A cozy, open-source tower-building game where you create and nurture your own vertical community at your own pace — no stress, no failure, just creative expression and gentle simulation.
TowerForge brings the beloved SimTower experience into the cozy games era. We're creating a peaceful, creative space where players build unique vertical communities, watch residents live their lives, and express themselves through architectural design — all without pressure, failure states, or competition.
- Cozy Game Movement: Players crave gentle, non-competitive experiences that respect their time
- Genre Revival: SimTower's charm deserves a modern, stress-free interpretation
- Technical Excellence: Modern C++20 + ECS enables smooth, meditative simulation
- Open & Welcoming: Free, open-source, accessible to everyone
- Cross-Platform Comfort: Play on Windows, Linux, or macOS
Build → Watch → Nurture → Enjoy
- Create → Place facilities where they feel right, experiment freely
- Observe → Watch your community come to life with daily rhythms
- Nurture → Care for your residents' happiness through thoughtful design
- Express → Make your tower uniquely yours with no wrong choices
Every building is a creative expression. TowerForge offers:
- Peaceful, meditative building at your own pace
- Watching lives unfold in your vertical village
- No failure states or pressure — just gentle growth
- Unlimited undo for stress-free experimentation
- Personal style and creativity over optimization
- Community and warmth emerging from your design
- No Failure States: You can't lose, only create and discover
- Gentle Pacing: Play for 5 minutes or 5 hours — both are perfect
- Personal Expression: Every tower is unique to its creator
- Meditative Experience: Calming, peaceful, restorative gameplay
- Nurturing Care: Watch your community thrive under your care
- Resident Lives: Watch people develop routines and live their days
- Emergent Stories: Small narratives unfold naturally
- Daily Rhythms: Morning bustle, lunch breaks, evening calm
- Seasonal Events: Optional celebrations bring warmth (never required)
- Full keyboard navigation
- High-contrast mode for visibility
- Scalable UI (50%-300%)
- Gentle tooltips and optional help
- Screen reader support (future)
- Never excludes anyone from the cozy experience
- Unlimited undo/redo — experiment fearlessly
- Optional discovery system for new content
- Gentle milestone celebrations (never requirements)
- Robust autosave — never lose your creation
- Multiple save slots for different towers
- Mod support for community creativity
- Primary: Cozy game fans seeking creative, non-competitive experiences (18-65+)
- Secondary: Former SimTower fans wanting a stress-free modern version
- Tertiary: Players seeking meditative, calming games (Animal Crossing, Stardew Valley fans)
| Game | Year | Strengths | TowerForge Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| SimTower | 1994 | Nostalgic charm | Cozy redesign without stress |
| Animal Crossing | 2001+ | Cozy perfection | Vertical building focus |
| Stardew Valley | 2016 | Community & care | Urban vertical setting |
| Project Highrise | 2016 | Modern polish | Truly cozy design philosophy |
- Only cozy tower sim — no failure states, pure creative expression
- Open-source & welcoming — free forever, community-driven
- Best-in-class accessibility — everyone can enjoy the cozy experience
- Meditative pacing — respect for player's time and mental health
- Technical excellence — smooth, performant, beautiful simulation
- Language: C++20 (cutting-edge features: ranges, concepts, modules)
- ECS Framework: flecs (industry-proven, high-performance)
- Rendering: Raylib (2D vector graphics, hardware-accelerated)
- Build System: CMake + vcpkg (reproducible, cross-platform)
- Testing: Comprehensive suite (integration, E2E, unit tests)
- Scalable: Thousands of entities simulated simultaneously
- Efficient: Smart culling, batch rendering, lazy updates
- Responsive: 60 FPS target on modest hardware
- Gang of Four design patterns throughout
- RAII and modern C++ memory safety
- Composition over inheritance
- Declarative, reactive UI architecture
- CI/CD with multi-platform builds
- Peaceful building simulation
- Living residents with daily routines
- Gentle elevator management
- 12 facility types to discover
- Economic system (non-punishing)
- Optional discovery system
- Milestone celebrations (not requirements)
- Unlimited undo/redo
- Robust autosave
- Calming audio atmosphere
- Seasonal celebrations and events
- More facility variety for expression
- Enhanced resident personality
- Cozy visual themes and decorations
- Accessibility improvements
- Community sharing features
- More ways to express your style
- Community tower showcases (non-competitive)
- Expanded modding for creativity
- Weather and seasonal aesthetics
- Mobile ports for cozy play anywhere
- Gentle achievements and discovery
- Welcoming Feel: Players feel calm and comfortable immediately
- Return Rate: Players return because they want to, not obligation
- Session Flexibility: 5 minutes or 5 hours both feel good
- Player Creativity: Unique towers showing personal expression
- Positive Sentiment: "So relaxing," "My cozy space," "Beautiful and calm"
- Sharing Culture: Players share creations, not compete
- Helpful Community: Welcoming to newcomers
- Creative Mods: Community adds cozy content
- Word of Mouth: "You have to try this peaceful game"
- Long-term Love: Players keep returning to their towers
- Stability: Smooth, crash-free experience
- Performance: 60 FPS on modest hardware
- Accessibility: WCAG AA — everyone welcome
- Respectful: Never demands, never stresses
- Open Forever: Free, open-source, community-owned
Mental Health Through Play: In an age of stressful, competitive games, TowerForge offers a peaceful refuge. Gaming should comfort, not stress.
Cozy Game Movement: Responding to players' desire for gentle, meaningful experiences that respect their time and mental wellbeing.
Inclusive by Design: Accessibility isn't an afterthought — everyone deserves access to cozy experiences.
Open & Welcoming: Free forever, open-source, community-driven. This is a gift to players, not a product to optimize.
Preservation with Purpose: Keeping SimTower's spirit alive while evolving it for modern wellness-focused gaming.
Play: Download and build your peaceful tower
Share: Show your unique creations (no competition, just appreciation)
Create: Mod with Lua — add your own cozy content
Connect: Join our welcoming community
Rest: Take breaks, return anytime — your tower waits patiently
- Repository: https://github.com/adam4813/towerforge
- Documentation: See
GAME_DESIGN_DOCUMENT.mdandTECHNICAL_DESIGN_DOCUMENT.md - Cozy Philosophy: Based on the Cozy Games Manifesto
- Build Instructions: See
README.md
TowerForge: Creating cozy vertical communities together.
Inspired by SimTower. Guided by the cozy games philosophy. Built with care.