Hidden Gem: Every Letter

Back in the dinosaur age, when I didn’t have a phone attached to my hip, my prized possession was an ever-growing shoebox of letters — all from my best friend. She moved away from our hometown, just days after my seventh birthday party, so we started writing to keep in touch; hers always came with her latest drawings, and mine were very wordy. We eventually moved on to texting, of course. But to this day, I still love getting a rare handwritten note from someone — a small joy I forgot about until I sat down to play a wholesome indie title developed by Violet Fairy. With 124 reviews on Steam, Every Letter is a hidden gem all about writing and sending letters. From reconnecting with old friends to coming up with bedtime stories, there’s plenty to type in this cosy world.

You start the game as a new hire joining a small team of letter writers. With your trusty typewriter, it’s your job to craft thoughtful notes on behalf of your customers. Before you begin writing, you’ll choose a single request from three cards. Each one offers a short paragraph describing who the recipient is and what the sender wants you to say, but the blank page is yours to fill with what you think captures their emotions best. Theoretically, you could just write lines of complete nonsense without getting penalised, but it’s much more rewarding to play the game as intended.

Some requests are lighthearted, such as planning activities for a trip or writing jokes to a character’s pen pal, but others definitely pull at your heartstrings. Even though you’re writing from the perspective of the characters, it truly feels like you’re drawing from your own experience. Whether you’re drafting an apology, love letter, or note to leave at someone’s grave, you’ll feel a bunch of emotions surfacing that may have been tucked nicely away. The poignant piano music in the background will also make you feel very cosy, even if you’re a bit teary-eyed.

The overall vibe is a lot like the Coffee Talk games, where you listen to anecdotes and personal problems from the eclectic cast of characters. The gameplay is also similarly simple but enjoyable, as you write with the typewriter. Anything you type goes on the page, but you can’t use the backspace to undo a mistake. This made me slow down a lot, taking long pauses to make sure I knew what I wanted to say and to avoid typos. As someone who often writes by dumping all her thoughts on the page as quickly as possible, it encouraged me to approach writing with more intention. But mistakes happen, and I had to be okay with those, too. I also loved how the game replicates using a real-life typewriter, such as having you flip the release lever to make a new line.

I do recommend playing the main story in one sitting though, since it doesn’t have a save feature. Depending on how long your letters are, you can complete the game in 10 to 30 minutes. I, personally, spent a long time on the last request because it made me cry, though I won’t spoil it here. You can spend more time writing in the Endless mode, which unlocks after completing the story. It’ll keep giving you sets of requests, and you can continue fulfilling them as long as you like. If you’re a writer, this is a great, low-key way to get into “writing mode” before launching into a project.

Every Letter is lovely all the way through. It makes writing so relaxing, and it’s easy to just slip into the chill loop of sending letters. If you’re looking for something simple, thoughtful, cathartic, and fun, this is definitely a gem to add to your library. Even better, it’s free, so you really should try it if it sounds like your type of game.