Mudlark Pottery

Mudlark Pottery is a cozy pottery game you play in the browser: you inherit the little pottery shop your great-aunt Jean left on Cross Street, and families from all over the world write in asking you to make the piece she once promised them — a Japanese tea bowl, a Yemeni pot, a Rusyn two-handled jar, each with a family story behind it.

Throwing a pot is all done by hand: center the clay on the wheel and pull it into shape, then cut it off, trim the foot, let it dry, dip it in glaze and fire it in the kiln. Anything on screen you can touch lights up, and the first time you try a new move a little finger shows you how. There is also a sleepy orange cat in the shop, and petting it makes it purr.

The morning after a delivery, the customer's thank-you letter arrives: tucked inside is an old photo, a home recipe written on the back, and the page of your great-aunt's travel book that belongs to that family comes back too. Between orders you can also make whatever you like, put it in the shop window to sell, and save up for things that make the little shop nicer and nicer — stained-glass windows, an astronomical clock, a koi pond.

One thing to be clear about: this is a very slow game, made for settling in and shaping clay at your own pace, not for anyone looking for a thrill. It opens straight in the browser on phone or computer, no download needed.