Forest Game

Forest Game is a cozy planting puzzle where you play the forest ranger. Each level hands you a patch of open land, a small bag of seeds and a list of woodland animals that are looking for a home. Plant the right trees in the right places, wait for them to grow week by week, and the deer, owls, squirrels, frogs and beavers move in. In dry spells you also keep watch from the fire tower and put out sparks before they spread. Play Forest Game free online in your browser with no download, on a keyboard, mouse or touch screen.

How to play

• Read the goal: every level asks for a set of animals by a deadline, for example two deer and an owl by week 8. The card next to the map shows how many of each have moved in so far.
• Pick a seed and plant: choose oak, pine, willow, wildflowers or fern with the tool buttons or keys 1 to 5, then tap a tile, or move the cursor with the arrow keys and press Enter. Tiles where the seed can grow light up.
• Use your actions: you have three actions a week. Planting, watering a spark and digging up an older plant each use an action. Digging up something you planted this week is a free undo.
• Let it grow: press Next week or N. Trees count as grown after two weeks and oaks become old after five. Wildflowers bloom and ferns unfurl after one week.

Soil, light and water

• Oaks: need sunny open ground. They are slow, so plant them first when a goal needs an owl.
• Pines: grow on sunny ground and also on the grey rocky soil of the hills where nothing else will.
• Willows: only grow on the darker damp soil around rivers and ponds.
• Wildflowers: like oaks, they want sun. They bloom quickly and turn a clearing into a meadow.
• Ferns: need shade. A fern can only be planted where at least two grown trees stand on the tiles around it.

Woodland animals

Each animal needs a different habitat, and many goals need several of them at once, so plan your layout before you plant.

• Deer: wildflowers right next to a grown tree.
• Owls: an old oak. Each old oak is home to one owl.
• Squirrels: a grown pine right next to a grown oak.
• Frogs: a fern right beside the water.
• Beavers: a grown willow right beside the water.

Dry spells and the fire tower

Some weeks are marked as a dry spell. At the start of those weeks a spark appears on one of your plants, or two in the hardest droughts. Choose the water bucket with key 6 and tap the spark before you end the week. Sparks inside the dashed square around the fire tower take one action to put out, and sparks farther away take two, so it pays to plant near the tower. A spark you miss burns its plant and jumps to a neighbour.

Levels and stars

There are fourteen levels across three regions: the Meadow Edge, where you learn oaks, flowers and pines, the River Valley with willows, ferns, frogs and beavers, and the rocky Old Hills, where everything comes together. Each level can earn three stars: one for meeting the goal, one for meeting it by the par week and one for losing no plants to fire. Clearing a level unlocks the next, and your stars are saved in your browser. The free sandbox has unlimited seeds and no deadline, so you can grow any forest you like.

Tips

• Slowest first. Plant oaks in the first week of any level that needs owls, then fill in the quick plants.
• Share trees. One grown oak can shelter several wildflower patches and a pine, so cluster your plants around it.
• Water before you plant. In a dry week, put out every spark first, then spend what is left on seeds.

FAQ

Is Forest Game free?

Yes. It is free to play with no account and nothing to install. Pick a level and press Play.

Does it work on phones and Chromebooks?

Yes. On a phone or tablet, tap a tool and then tap the map. On a Chromebook or laptop, use the arrow keys, the number keys and Enter, or the mouse.

Can I pause?

Press P or Esc, or use the Pause button. The game also pauses when you switch tabs.

Are the nature facts real?

The rules are simplified, but the ideas are real. Willows grow along rivers, ferns like shade, pines cope with poor rocky soil, deer feed along forest edges and owls nest in the hollows of old trees.

Like growing things? Try Garden Game to tend your own plot, or balance a whole food web in Ecosystem Game.