Cancel your weekend plans because this cozy cowboy life sim just went into open beta and you can play it for free

Imagine if Arthur Morgan from Red Dead Redemption 2 visited Stardew Valley. Actually, don't imagine that because he'd probably rob the train and shoot the mayor dead and drag Pierre through the town behind his horse. How about this: imagine Arthur Morgan had a twin brother named, um, Garthur, and Garthur Morgan wasn't a violent bank-robbing outlaw but a nice gentle farmer who enjoyed a quiet life of fishing and crafting and chatting with townsfolk. And he only occasionally shot a few bandits and cattle rustlers.

That's what you'll find if you mosey on over to Cattle Country on Steam: a cozy cowboy life sim where you plant crops, raise livestock, go fishing, romance the locals, and sometimes get into a few scraps. And guess what, partner? Cattle Country has just entered open beta so you can play it for free.

If you've played Stardew Valley you'll find lots of similarities in Cattle Country, like the convenient box you dump stuff in to automatically sell it and the calendar in town that displays everyone's birthday. I've only played a few days but it starts you off with a nice little plot of land, several crops already growing, and a  bunch of tools and supplies so you can jump right in and get started quickly. I already have a dog and a cat, I've caught a bunch of fish, cooked a few meals, and met most of the townsfolk including the blacksmith and sheriff.

There's been no sign of outlaws yet (and I'm not even sure where to get my little pixelated hands on a six-shooter) but that suits me just fine for the time being. I'm interested in some Red Dead Relaxation. Save the Redemption for later.

There are a couple welcome twists to the familiar Stardew formula: the inevitable mines you have to visit to whack rocks and collect minerals switches the game from a top-down view to a side-scroller, meaning you need to make use of craftable ladders and ledges to navigate your way up and down the levels. So that's a bit of a departure. And so far it doesn't seem terribly grindy. Getting my first sprinkler in Stardew was a hassle, but I just bought one from the general store on my second day in Cattle Country. Did they even have sprinklers in the Wild West? I'm guessing probably not but I'm willing to suspend disbelief if it means I can progress past primitive watering can technology.

To jump in just visit the Cattle Country Steam page, and on the sidebar you'll find the demo button to download it. I only mention this because demo downloads are usually highlighted with a big green bar in the middle of the store page, but for some reason it's harder to spot for this cozy cowboy game.