Among Trees
- November 10, 2021
- FJRD Interactive
- 9h median play time
Among Trees is a first-person survival adventure game set in a vibrant, ever-changing forest. Gather resources, craft tools, and build a shelter to withstand the dangerous wildlife and harsh seasons. Uncover the mysteries of the forest as you explore and interact with its ecosystem, but be careful, as your actions may have lasting consequences.
Reviews
- Beautiful art style and graphics that create a calming atmosphere.
- Relaxing gameplay that allows for exploration and crafting without intense pressure.
- Cute pet fox that adds charm to the experience.
- Game feels unfinished and lacks substantial content after a few hours of play.
- Developers have abandoned the game, leading to no future updates or bug fixes.
- Fishing mechanics are frustrating and difficult to master, detracting from the overall experience.
- graphics528 mentions
- 59 % positive mentions
- 40 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their stunning art style and beautiful visuals, creating a calming and immersive atmosphere that enhances the overall experience. Many players appreciate the unique aesthetic, likening it to other visually appealing titles like "Firewatch," though some express disappointment over the game's lack of content and development. While the graphics are a strong point, they are often seen as the main highlight in an otherwise underwhelming gameplay experience.
“The graphics are stunning, the music is calm and fits the atmosphere the game is supposed to emit.”
“The visuals are breathtaking and the soundtrack conveys a feeling of peace and quiet.”
“The art style is beautiful, and there are lots of plants to collect.”
“The gameplay mechanics are lackluster, the saving system is horrid, and the graphics settings are very limited.”
“Caved in for the graphics, despite the warnings of this being abandoned unfinished by the devs. Unfortunately, even the exploration of said beautiful landscapes grows repetitive and pointless, since around your starting area you can find the four types of looting areas; the rest just has some different visuals.”
“Graphics are nice but the lack of content is the reason why I'm giving this a bad review right now.”
- gameplay413 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 58 % neutral mentions
- 10 % negative mentions
The gameplay of this title is characterized by beautiful graphics and a relaxing atmosphere, but it suffers from repetitive mechanics and a lack of content, leading to a short-lived experience. Players often find the survival elements tedious, particularly the fishing mechanics, which can be frustrating and poorly explained. While the game offers a calming exploration experience, it ultimately feels incomplete and lacks engaging gameplay loops, making it difficult to sustain interest beyond a few hours.
“However, given I spent $14.99 on this title and received around 15.6 hours of relaxing, enjoyable gameplay, I consider it well worth the money.”
“The gameplay itself is more focused on adventuring and building your cabin than I think people expected, but that's not a bad thing.”
“The art style is beautiful and reminds me closely of Firewatch, and the gameplay is great.”
“Good concept but poor gameplay; it feels like a walking simulation.”
“Their tutorials are ill-placed and rather unhelpful; it quite literally requires players to search the web for how to do certain things because the game fails to explain the base mechanics.”
“Sadly, the gameplay loop only works for a little bit and it gets tiresome even before you finish your cabin.”
- music230 mentions
- 64 % positive mentions
- 34 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The music in "Among Trees" is widely praised for its calming and soothing qualities, enhancing the game's peaceful atmosphere and immersive experience. Many players enjoy the ambient soundtrack, which complements the stunning visuals and encourages relaxation, although some note that the music can be repetitive and lacks variety. Overall, the soundtrack is considered a significant asset to the game, creating a serene environment perfect for unwinding.
“The art style, sound effects, and music create a stunningly gorgeous ambient wilderness experience.”
“The music is soothing and the view is gorgeous.”
“The visuals are breathtaking and the soundtrack conveys a feeling of peace and quiet.”
“The music, which I look for in playing a game, was almost non-existent, and didn't add anything to the experience, and only had a couple of tracks.”
“The music isn't seamless; it cuts in and out, breaking immersion.”
“The sound effects and music are just too loud together, and not being able to balance them just killed my ability to feel immersed in the game.”
- story168 mentions
- 13 % positive mentions
- 64 % neutral mentions
- 23 % negative mentions
The game's story is largely criticized for being minimal or non-existent, with many players expressing disappointment over the lack of narrative depth and environmental storytelling. While some appreciate the beautiful visuals and relaxing gameplay, they feel that the absence of a compelling plot or quests detracts from the overall experience, making it feel unfinished and more like a walking simulator than a story-driven adventure. Overall, those seeking a rich narrative will likely be disappointed, as the game primarily focuses on survival mechanics without a substantial storyline to engage players.
“It's a story-driven game that's visually amazing, has a captivating story, and it will keep you way more entertained than this game.”
“The game music and story is amazing.”
“Such a cool story line and the views are just amazing!”
“The game has no story at all and feels like a walking simulator.”
“There is no real story to it, so it's basically just 'build your shelter, avoid bears'; it seems extremely unfinished and bare bones.”
“As you explore, you don't uncover any story like with Subnautica. Even just finding some notes from people who were there before you would be nice.”
- atmosphere144 mentions
- 74 % positive mentions
- 24 % neutral mentions
- 2 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its stunning visuals, calming music, and immersive, dream-like quality that creates a relaxing experience for players. Many reviewers highlight the game's ability to evoke a sense of peace and tranquility, making it feel like a cozy escape into nature, despite some criticisms regarding a lack of content and gameplay depth. Overall, the game's aesthetic and ambient design are considered its strongest features, providing a beautiful backdrop for exploration and creativity.
“I love the unique art style of this game and the dream-like atmosphere is so beautiful; I felt incredibly relaxed when I played it.”
“Outstandingly beautiful scenery and peaceful atmosphere with a soundtrack that complements the mood perfectly.”
“A relaxing and atmospheric stroll through the woods, Among Trees is a refreshing comfort game perfect for those looking for a chill and therapeutic survival experience they can pick up and play.”
“This is the long dark on easy mode; sadly, while it's really nailed the atmosphere, this game is not worth much in terms of playtime. I pretty much saw all the content and goals within 4 hours.”
“Everything about it is pretty - the music, the atmosphere, the scenery, etc. The only 'but' is, there isn't really a main premise.”
“It's more about atmosphere than survival.”
- grinding78 mentions
- 1 % positive mentions
- 6 % neutral mentions
- 92 % negative mentions
The grinding aspect of the game is widely criticized for being tedious and repetitive, with many players finding the resource gathering and inventory management overly cumbersome. While some appreciate the game's relaxing vibe, they note that the constant need to grind for materials and manage basic survival needs detracts from the overall enjoyment, making it feel more like a chore than a fun experience. Overall, the game is described as having a grind-heavy structure that can quickly become monotonous, especially for those seeking a more engaging gameplay experience.
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“If an achievement doesn't pop, usually starting a new save fixes it, but the gameplay is so tedious and repetitive, it's probably not worth it.”
“No story, very little content, and lots of needless grinding that's just not fun.”
“You are constantly having to drop less important items (sometimes accidentally dropping your axe, which vaporizes into the air, causing you to either go back to a previous save or craft another expensive axe) which means that you will waste every single day doing very little of what you actually want to do, in between relentless, monotonous, irritatingly stressful grinding.”
- stability46 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The game is widely reported to be unstable, with numerous bugs affecting gameplay, such as issues with achievements not unlocking, environmental glitches, and frequent crashes. Many players feel the game is unfinished and abandoned by developers, leading to a frustrating experience despite its potential and relaxing qualities. While some users enjoyed the game, they caution others about its significant stability issues, recommending waiting for potential mods or updates.
“If you are thinking about picking this up, I'd either wait until mods that make it worth it come out, or pass on it as the achievements are buggy and it's unfinished.”
“Aside from it being abandoned, the game is quite buggy, crashes a fair bit and doesn't unlock achievements properly.”
“I'm sad because this seemed like such a fun game and since I spent hours troubleshooting the issue on my end to no avail I wasn't able to get a refund on it either so now I'm stuck with a broken game.”
- optimization44 mentions
- 18 % positive mentions
- 55 % neutral mentions
- 27 % negative mentions
Overall, the game's optimization is widely criticized, with many players experiencing performance issues, including stuttering and low frame rates even on high-end systems. While some find the visuals appealing, the lack of content and ongoing optimization efforts have led to concerns about the game's development status, with many feeling it may be abandoned. Despite occasional smooth performance, the consensus is that significant improvements are needed to enhance the overall experience.
“I think this game is really pretty, it's gorgeous and runs smoothly.”
“As far as I've seen, the last updates weren't content updates at all, but visual optimizations and bug fixes.”
“There are many things that could have been better optimized in the creation, but the HUD/UI is nice, the soundtrack and ambient sounds are great, and it is a beautiful game to look at.”
“The optimization isn't great and there is no toggle for head bobbing, which may deter some.”
“Lack of optimization also makes it run fairly poorly despite the lack of content.”
“Constant stuttering even with a high-end machine (3070, i7, 32 gigs etc.) this is at best an early access alpha, money grab.”
- replayability22 mentions
- 18 % positive mentions
- 36 % neutral mentions
- 45 % negative mentions
The game has been widely criticized for its lack of replayability, with many players expressing disappointment over the limited content and minimal tasks available after the initial playthrough. Despite its enjoyable gameplay and high production values, the absence of procedural generation, diverse crafting options, and meaningful endgame content leaves little incentive for players to return. Overall, it appears that the game does not meet the expectations of those seeking a more replayable experience.
“I don't see it having much replay value, but I did enjoy what I played of it!”
“I'm simply very disappointed that I'm not really going to get any more chance to play this game as replayability is highly limited.”
“Great game, but zero replay value.”
“All aspects (besides survive bear attack and survive 50 in-game days) were done in roughly 20 in-game days (roughly 6 hours) and with no replay value, minimal adventure or tasks, just not worth the time, effort, or money.”
“Unfortunately, no replay value; only a couple of sites/blueprints move and rares are always in the same areas.”
“It's superb visual standard, great audio immersion, and somewhat demanding mechanics make for a charming, entertaining, yet surprisingly short-lived gaming experience that lacks any real endgame content and provides little to no replayability after your first full playthrough.”
- monetization12 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization aspect of the game has been widely criticized as a blatant cash grab, with many users expressing frustration over its perceived lack of content and support post-launch. Reviewers feel misled by the initial potential of the game, which they believe was never fully realized, leading to accusations of abandonment and unmet expectations. Overall, the sentiment suggests a strong disapproval of the game's monetization strategy, labeling it as exploitative.
“It's another 'build a game that has potential, support it for a few months' cash grab.”
“It's clearly a cash grab and will just fool you into thinking it's a good and finished game.”
“Lazy cash grab.”
- emotional10 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by its beautiful visuals and calming soundtrack, creating a wholesome and comforting experience that resonates with players. Many users express feelings of adventure and nostalgia, likening the game to a delightful escape from reality, though some lament its lack of content, which detracts from the overall emotional impact. Overall, it is praised as a feel-good game that evokes positive emotions and keeps players engaged.
“This game made me feel like I ran away from home and I had great adventures.”
“It's such a feel-good, wholesome, comfort game. 10/10 would recommend.”
“Bro, this game is so cute and wholesome.”
- humor2 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is widely regarded as lacking, with many users expressing disappointment in its comedic elements. Overall, it seems that the attempts at humor fall flat, failing to resonate with players.