Playing with Capitalism: Metareference, Comedy, and Coziness in Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion

This paper examines Turnip Boy Commits Tax Evasion (Snoozy Kazoo, 2021) as a case study in how cozy games can engage with capitalism through metareference and comedy. Its central argument is that cozy farming and adventure games, despite their soft aesthetics, can serve as expressive spaces that invite players to reflect on the relationship between games and capitalist systems. The analysis builds on prior scholarship on the extractivist and neoliberal logics embedded in resource-management games such as Animal Crossing: New Horizons and Stardew Valley, positioning cozy games as a distinct subset of this tradition.

The author's method is textual analysis of the game itself, tracing how it draws on conventions of role-playing games, including open-world level design, fetch quests, and resource gathering, while simultaneously exposing them. Examples include the game's fourth-wall-breaking dialogue, a trophy reward that openly comments on player engagement, and characters parodying gaming culture, such as a streamer who demands a "Tier 3 sub" that turns out to be a sandwich. The paper also notes intertextual references to the Legend of Zelda series and Animal Crossing, and reads these as a form of "metaludic" commentary on both the medium and its surrounding culture.

A central claim is that the game's comedy depends on its cozy atmosphere. Drawing on Van de Mosselaer's account of comedy as distanced reflection on incongruity, the paper argues that the sharpness of the game's satire contrasts with its gentle tone, and that the absence of time-critical pressure allows players the reflective attentiveness needed to appreciate the humor. The work thus contributes to debates on cozy agency, neoliberalism, and the critical potential of humor in contemporary indie games.