I've got a soft spot for cozy games with flying in them and these are my 4 favorites

I lobbied to make Promise Mascot Agency the best cozy game in our 2025 Game of the Year awards, which means I'm only (checks calendar) a little late in getting it added to my list of best cozy games this week. I adore its silly story and open world exploration and got to thinking about how much fun it is to full throttle my kei truck right off the side of a cliff and press a button to sprout wings so I can soar peacefully around Kaso-Machi island.

It isn't even the only game with flying on the list now. It is in fact the third on that list of ten. I think I have a real soft spot for flying in cozy games.

There are as many definitions of "cozy game" as there are cozy gamers, but freedom is a really common element. There's freedom to build in life sims or freedom from time constraints in puzzle games. What is flying but complete and total freedom of exploration?

In the years since Breath of the Wild we've been spoiled for open world games with gliders, but a game with proper flying is even better. In Promise Mascot Agency I can hit my kei truck's boost thruster, nudge its nose up to gain altitude, and bank into a turn for a second pass over the rural sprawl below. It's the most open an open world can be and the freest I ever feel exploring one.

What are your favorite cozy games with flying in them? Bonus points if they really are flying, not gliding. Here are mine:

Promise Mascot Agency

Once you upgrade your kei truck with wings you are unstoppable. This thing is meant to be bashed and crashed into every obstacle you find, which is extra true once you can launch it off a switchback mountain road into an elegant nose dive directly onto a collectible you were looking for. Pure joy.

Journey

A classic from before the "cozy game" era, this one is all about increasing your flight distance as you progress through its short, emotional story. The ending of this one is the most pure distillation of the joy of flight.

Sky: Children of the Light

Also by the studio who made Journey, it has similar flight controls and distance upgrades, but it's a miniature MMO with tons of puzzles and exploration that I love going back to every few months.

A Short Hike

Technically, this one is gliding because I don't think you can gain altitude, but exploring the gorgeous lofi island in search of secret areas is exactly what makes flight so fun.