There are few things I find more pleasurable in this life than a good jigsaw puzzle. Anytime I can find the time to crack open a box and lay pieces out on my coffee table, I’m most at peace. I won’t even turn on music; I’ll just sit for hours and zone out to the sound of my hand rifling through the box. It’s a rare moment where I’m able to block everything out and just enjoy the simple moments of life.
There are plenty of virtual jigsaw puzzle games that replicate that experience, but Wilmot Works it Out is actually about it. A pseudo-sequel to 2019’s Wilmot’s Warehouse, a game simply about organizing boxes, Flock developer Hollow Ponds’ latest simply tasks players with putting together puzzles by moving square pieces around the floor. It’s almost a cheeky design joke riffing on Wilmot’s previous outing, but I’ve found it to be an oddly moving experience. It’s a peaceful celebration of life’s quiet moments tied up in a small, charming puzzle game.
In Wilmot Works it Out, our boxy pal signs up for a subscription to a puzzle service. At certain intervals, a mailperson knocks on the door and gives Wilmot a package full of pieces. I pick a space on the floor to unpack it and a flood of square puzzle pieces come out. From there, Hollow Ponds cleverly recontextualizes the mechanics of Wilmot’s Warehouse to form a simple puzzle-building hook. When I stand next to a piece, I can attach it to myself by pressing the joystick in its direction. I can carry as many pieces as I want at once by moving the joystick through any connected pieces. From there, it’s as simple as placing two joining pieces next to one another, which automatically fuses them together if they match. When I finish a puzzle, another arrives at my door.
There’s some clever nuance to that hook. When I get a box, I get a few extra pieces meant for another puzzle that I’ll get the pieces for in later packages. I need to sort out the extras and move them out of the way so I can focus on the puzzle I can fully complete. That’s where the DNA of Wilmot’s Warehouse comes into play, as part of the game is about keeping your space tidy. If I leave pieces scattered haphazardly around with no logic, it becomes more difficult to find pieces and navigate them around when I get a new delivery that floods the room.
Hollow Ponds gets a little deceptive with its puzzles, too. I may have one puzzle of colorful sailboats at the same time as I have one of hot air balloons. The textures and colors in those puzzles are similar, so I need to look carefully to spot the differences and isolate those pieces so I don’t get mixed up.
If all of this sounds a little simple, it is — and that’s the point. Wilmot Works it Out isn’t just about making puzzles; it’s about savoring the quiet moments of life. The heart of it all isn’t even in its puzzles, but rather the quick conversations Wilmot has with his mailperson every time they deliver a package. There’s always a bit of light chitchat as she talks about her vacation plans and her sister. It sounds small, but those serene suburban moments make Wilmot feel like a part of his community, even when he’s keeping to himself all day.
I’m surprised by how much I relate to that. I’m a bit of an introvert myself who finds peace in little moments. I’ve recently taken to birdwatching in a local cemetery, where I get to soak in the natural world and listen to the sounds. Occasionally, I’ll stop and chat with another birdwatcher about what we’ve spotted that day. Those minute-long interactions may seem unimportant from a distance, but they’re simple pleasures in my day that keep me connected to the world, like one puzzle piece in a giant jigsaw puzzle.
Wilmot Works it Out is a true “cozy game,” in that it’s explicitly about comfort. Where Wilmot’s Warehouse was about finding order in chaos, this is about finding beauty in the mundane. Put all those small, unassuming moments of your life together and you’ll find that they add up to a big picture.
Wilmot Works it Out is available now on PC.
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