Kawaii Pet Shop Monogatari is one of those weirdly charming Game Boy Color games that never left Japan—which is a shame, because it’s basically a pixelated pet shop simulator with way more depth than you’d expect. You start off with a tiny store, a couple of sad-looking cages, and a handful of customers who mostly just complain. But after a few days of feeding, breeding, and strategically pricing your hamsters (or whatever bizarre pets roll in), the place actually starts to feel alive.

The sprites are adorable in that classic GBC way—big heads, tiny bodies—and the gameplay loop is weirdly satisfying once you figure out which animals sell fast and which ones just eat all your profits. Pro tip: don’t overinvest in the exotic stuff early unless you enjoy bankruptcy.

It’s definitely a slow burn, but if you’ve ever wanted to run a virtual pet shop with zero real-world consequences, this is your jam.