When I first saw Map Map: A Game About Maps, I had to admit, I wasn’t sure that I understood the appeal. Maybe that’s because I have all the directional ability of a jellyfish washed up on the beach, but I’ve been watching development, and I am happy to admit that my initial thoughts were wrong. 

Map Map, currently being developed by Pipapo Games, is absolutely and categorically adorable in its aesthetic. With more cozy vibes than you could ever want, lovable characters, and a sense of exploration that’s almost indescribable. It is also, without a shadow of a doubt, the very epitome of something being much harder than it would seem to be.

I’m an explorer now

In Map Map, you set out to explore apparently uncharted islands with nothing but a map, a pin, some stationery, and some good friends at your side. On those islands, you’re tasked with finding specific spots without a compass to guide you, or even knowing where you are on the island yourself. If that sounds like it might be problematic, that’s because it very much is.

What starts out as something simple, such as marking a tree on a very small and particularly shaped island, ends up becoming something much more complicated. Counting your steps from the only map-marked landscape on each island becomes crucial, and you might need to touch up on your topography skills if you want to stand any chance of figuring out where the necessary locations are. 

When you think you might have pinpointed a location, you can open your map and literally pinpoint it using the pin. Just drag the pin to where you think the location is, and you’ll quickly learn how accurate (or in my case, inaccurate) you managed to be. 

Taking in my surroundings

A lot of my gameplay can be boiled down to one thing: Aimless wandering. I mapped out the shore of each island in my head, taking note of any particularly noticeable dips or curves. I added stickers to my map in the hopes of getting my bearings, and I spent a staggering amount of time taking in the scenery while I explored each island. 

But I like to think that real explorers of the past acted in much the same way. It’s hard to imagine Charles Darwin going to the Galapagos Islands and not at least glancing at the scenery, and I can’t fathom how Robert Falcon Scott could have ended up in the Antarctic and not taken a second to appreciate the blank canvas of white that awaited him. If anything, I’m just doing the natural thing here. Exploration first, charting maps second. It’s the only right way to do things. 

It’s pretty obvious by now, because I’ve said it repeatedly, that I have terrible navigational skills. I’m the type of person who still has to say the “Never eat shredded wheat” acronym to figure out which way is west and hold up my hands with the thumbs sticking out to figure out which way is left sometimes. Needless to say, my ability to pinpoint locations in Map Map was incredibly hit and miss, and that’s putting it lightly. 

Completely lost and loving life

“This is a very small island. I have no idea how I got so lost.” That’s a sentence that genuinely came out of my mouth while playing Map Map, and I still have no idea how I managed the feat. Still, I’m of the mindset that getting lost can actually be a very freeing experience, so I rolled with it and explored some more before getting back to the task at hand. 

It’s hard to pinpoint (ha) exactly what makes Map Map so utterly enjoyable to play. Between the lovable friends who guide you and the unreal levels of satisfaction that you feel when your pin lands directly where it was supposed to, you’ll find yourself equal parts chilled out and confused. It’s a strange combination, but it’s a winning one.

Map Map: A Game About Maps is set for release at some point in Q2 (Summer) of 2026. If you want to get a taste of what’s to come in the full game, there’s a lovely demo available to download and play right now through Steam.