Stardew Valley Meets Kiki's Delivery Service In Charming New RPG Coming September 17

57 minutes ago 10

Published Aug 24, 2026, 3:00 PM EDT

Sharmila is an engineer-turned-gaming hardware journalist and freelance contributor at ScreenRant who has been covering the gaming and tech industry since 2021. While she first built her expertise writing about video games, she has since pivoted towards gaming hardware, with a focus on PC components, peripherals, handhelds, and performance-driven tech. When she’s not testing gear or writing about the latest hardware trends, she can usually be found diving into competitive shooters or keeping up with the evolving esports scene.

If you’ve ever wished you could combine the slow, satisfying grind of a farming sim like Stardew Valley with the warm, wistful magic of a Studio Ghibli movie like Kiki’s Delivery Service, I’ve got one adorable game that can make your day. And while it’s already available on Xbox consoles and PC, it’s all set to land on Nintendo Switch soon.

Little Witch in the Woods has been quietly building a following since it first popped up in Early Access back in 2022, and it got its full release on Steam last September. It’s also been kicking around on Xbox through the Game Preview program for a while now. Switch players, though, have had to wait, and honestly it’s been a long wait. Thankfully, the wait will finally end on September 17 (players in the US will technically see it a day earlier, on the 16th, thanks to time zone differences).

For context, Little Witch in the Woods has you play as Ellie, a bubbly young witch fresh out of school who gets sent off to a Witch House in “the land of witches” known as Lucerein Ortu. Your job—much like Kiki in Kiki’s Delivery Service—is to figure out how to be useful in a new place without anyone handing you a manual. That means helping out grumpy villagers, brewing potions to solve their problems, and slowly turning a beat-up cottage into a real home. It’s less about slaying monsters and more about earning people’s trust one small favor at a time, which is a nice change of pace if you’re burnt out on games that constantly demand something dramatic from you.

Where the Stardew Valley comparison really kicks in is the daily rhythm. You’ll be out gathering ingredients, fishing at the local pond, decorating your space with furniture you’ve crafted yourself, and just generally settling into a routine that feels cozy rather than stressful. There’s no ticking clock pushing you to optimize every single hour of your day. Instead, you wander the forest on your broom, meet the local wildlife, fill out an encyclopedia of creatures you find along the way, and pet approximately every cat that crosses your path (and there are a lot of cats, which honestly might be reason enough for some players).

The village itself has real stakes, even if they’re gentle ones. As you build relationships with the residents, you unlock pieces of their backstories, some of which turn out to be more personal than you’d expect. It’s a nice bit of narrative payoff for anyone willing to stick with the slower pace instead of rushing through.

On Steam, Little Witch in the Woods has pulled in a “Very Positive” rating from thousands of players, with reviews consistently pointing to the atmosphere, the writing, and the villagers as the real draw. That kind of reception makes the Switch release feel like good timing rather than an afterthought. Portable, pick-up-and-play cozy games of this nature tend to thrive on Nintendo’s console, and Little Witch in the Woods seems tailor-made for a few minutes of potion brewing on a commute or a longer session curled up on the couch on a rainy afternoon.

Little Witch in the Woods will run you $19.99 when it lands on Switch, matching its price on Steam. The Xbox version is priced at $15.99, however. If you’ve been holding out for a handheld version to give this one a shot or are simply looking to add a nice game to your library, I’m definitely vouching for this one.