A few days back, Apple made a statement about the number of available apps in the iOS App Store. According to Apple’s press release, the App Store now features a bit over 1.5 million apps, which is an astonishing achievement. What this means for developers is an additional step towards making a profit since the App Store’s competition is stronger than ever. This also means that developers are working harder than ever towards creating apps that are more powerful and capable than ever before. This is why developers are always trying to come up with a completely new concept, and hire well-known artists to shape up their games and apps. In fact, once in a while we get to see an iOS game that can be considered as the prime example of today’s digital art. The last one that managed to enchant me was Monument Valley, and I am sure you have heard a lot about this game. Monument Valley brought an amazingly designed graphics that captured everyone’s attention, but iOS users also liked isometric visual puzzles that made this game incredibly popular.
In today’s article we are going to tell you about one of this week’s App Store newcomers, a game named Prune ($3.99). In case you browsed the App Store recently, you must have noticed this game since Apple decided to showcase it. There are many reasons for this, so continue reading to learn what is so interesting about Prune.
Prune is a relaxing and challenging game about growing trees. I think it could be said that this is a fully featured simulation, since you can play the same level in several different ways, and there are numerous ways to get to the same goal. The first thing that you’ll notice is the game’s visual style. The game features textured flat aesthetics, with very nice tonal levels, and deep blacks that contrast nicely with the creamy beige background. Even though the game brings flat-design aesthetics, many surfaces are subtly textured, which creates a sense of depth. In addition, there is the calming soundtrack, creating a Zen-like feeling. I have tested the game on my iPhone 6 and the animations were absolutely smooth, but I think I would have enjoyed the game even more on a larger screen iPhone.
Prune brings several chapters, where each comes with 12 levels to beat. The goal of every level is to grow a tree and shape it properly while battling against dark shadows and other dangerous forces of nature. You will first need to swipe up across the screen in order to let a tree grow. If you make a curve with your finger, the tree will grow in that particular direction. You goal is to make the tree grow towards the light, in order to make it prosper and bloom. As it becomes bigger and taller, you will have to trim the branches off for it to keep growing, and then continue evolving the tree towards the most prosperous direction. However, you will have to carefully plan your moves since the tree needs to grow away from the shadow. In addition, moving shadows will dictate the way you play certain levels, since you will need to grow new branches as the level dictates. As you progress further into the game, you will get to see numerous new dangers and mechanics, making it more challenging to successfully complete the levels.
Prune’s difficulty lies in moving mechanics that negatively affect the tree that you are trying to grow. The goal is to have enough blossoms to correspond to the diamonds in the sky, since only then you can move to the next stage. In addition, the darkness and other obstacles will cause parts of the tree to die, so you need to plan your moves accordingly. The good news is that there are no timers are you have an infinite amount of tries on each level, so you try over and over again. While initial levels are fairly simple and tech you basics, you’ll soon find yourself playing very complex and attention-grabbing parts of the game.
When it comes to the controls, they are very simple and intuitive. You start out by growing a tree from the ground. This is done by swiping from the ground where you want to place your tree. You should know that you’ll need to plan which way to grow it, since the tree will follow the path of your swiping. Once it gets fully developed and blossoming, you will need to trim branches off, which is once again done by swiping. If you find yourself unsatisfied with how things are progressing, you can try to reshape the tree or even better – simply plant a new one and start over, without having to fully restart the level.
In case you like achievements and leaderboards, you might be disappointed to know that Prune doesn’t bring Game Center integration in that manner. Since there are no scores or timers inside the game, it is not possible to score your skills and compare them to other players. However, there is one interesting way to compare yourself with others, and that can be done by sharing a screenshot of your tree creation, which can be done from in-game. I guess this can give you some kind of satisfaction and a sense of achievement. It is actually very interesting to see other players’ creations, since as I said before – there are numerous ways to grow your tree and get to the goal. This also means that you can try to pass the level as fast as you can, or you can play around and shape your tree a bit longer.
Thanks to its unique visual style and interesting gameplay, Prune is one of the most exciting new games. It is priced at $3.99, but doesn’t bring any in-app purchase options, so you’ll get a fully working game without any timers and similar monetization techniques. Even though it is somewhat higher priced than most iOS games, the money you are going to spend will be well worth it. If you are a fan of artsy and relaxing games, Prune should be your next purchase.
