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Botany Manor

Cultivate and research rare plants while reflecting on the interconnectedness of nature, no green thumb required.
Botany Manor Game Cover
87%Game Brain Score
Most mentioned positive aspects:story, graphics
Most mentioned negative aspects:replayability, grinding
94% User Score Based on 1,091 reviews
Critic Score 80%Based on 13 reviews

Platforms

Nintendo SwitchAndroidPlaystation 5Playstation 4Xbox Cloud GamingXboxSteam DeckWindowsPlayStationXbox Series X|SPCTabletXbox Game PassCloudPhoneXbox OneMobile Platform
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Botany Manor Game Cover

About

Botany Manor is a single player simulation game with mystery and historical themes. It was developed by Balloon Studios and was released on April 9, 2024. It received positive reviews from critics and very positive reviews from players.

Welcome to Botany Manor, a stately home in 19th century England. You play as its inhabitant Arabella Greene, a retired botanist. Explore your house and gardens, filled with botanical research, to figure out the ideal habitat for a collection of forgotten flora. Grow each plant to discover the mysterious qualities they hold…

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Botany Manor screenshot
Botany Manor screenshot
Botany Manor screenshot
Botany Manor screenshot
Botany Manor screenshot
Botany Manor screenshot
Botany Manor screenshot
Botany Manor screenshot
Botany Manor screenshot
Botany Manor screenshot
Botany Manor screenshot
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94%Audience ScoreBased on 1,091 reviews
story170 positive mentions
replayability11 negative mentions
  • Beautiful, cozy art style with vibrant visuals and immersive ambient sound design.
  • Engaging and well-designed puzzles that provide a balanced challenge without causing frustration.
  • Compelling and heartfelt narrative about the protagonist, a woman botanist facing gender discrimination in the 19th century, revealed through environmental storytelling.
  • Short gameplay length, typically around 3 to 5 hours, which many feel is too brief for the price point.
  • Inconvenient clue management system requiring frequent backtracking to re-examine clues not accessible from the in-game journal.
  • Linear progression with limited replayability and a lack of complexity or depth in puzzle variation.

  • story

    392 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The story is a sweet, subtle, and emotionally engaging narrative about Arabella, a woman botanist facing gender discrimination in 19th-century England, told primarily through environmental storytelling and scattered letters. While its simplicity and short length (around 3-4 hours) may leave some wanting more depth or length, most players found it charming, heartwarming, and well integrated with the puzzle mechanics, creating a cozy and poignant experience.

    • “Rather than relying on dialogue-heavy storytelling or dramatic plot twists, the game unfolds through exploration—every room, scrap of paper, and forgotten notebook becomes a piece of Arabella’s world, inviting you to reconstruct her research and rediscover who she was beyond the labels society imposed on her.”
    • “The story woven throughout was also incredible; a tale of a passionate woman of science, ignored, discouraged, and disrespected by many around her, who seeks to continue despite these setbacks and aims to be recognized, to contribute to the furthering of the scientific field of botany and to pass the knowledge to generations to come.”
    • “Arabella's story is so heartwarming to follow and walking around the gorgeous manor solving plant puzzles was the perfect way to spend the afternoon.”
    • “There's surprisingly little you can interact with in such a large map, and while there are hints at a larger family story, they never progress beyond hints. Having completed the game, I can tell you basically nothing about my character—about any of the characters, actually. Only a couple of named characters display any personality and those mostly negative; everyone else is interchangeable and forgettable.”
    • “Story is told to you in the worst possible way: notes you read, and even the beats you get are flat and uninteresting to say the least.”
    • “The overarching story was... heavy handed, to say the least. It's hard to fit much subtlety in a game this short, but every other story note was basically spelling out the theme of the story, which had little to do with the gameplay.”

  • graphics

    223 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game features a charming, cozy, and stylized art style reminiscent of titles like The Witness, with bright, vibrant colors and beautifully crafted environments, especially the manor and gardens. Its visuals, while not highly complex or realistic, effectively create a relaxing, immersive atmosphere complemented by smooth performance and polished animations. Overall, the graphics receive consistent praise for enhancing the calming, engaging aesthetic experience, though some note the style is simple and the plant detail somewhat underwhelming given the theme.

    • “Utterly lovely visuals and sound design - the game is a walk through a gorgeous garden on an absolutely blissful summer's day.”
    • “The art style is just amazing.”
    • “The graphics wow-ed me from start to finish and the lighting and sound design is phenomenal!”
    • “For a game about botany, the graphics quality of the vast majority of the plants is underwhelming to say the least.”
    • “When moving around, the visuals glitched out a bit which I got used to but was kind of irritating at first.”
    • “Given the game's simple art style and low Windows system requirements, I suspect this is some pathology in Wine's graphics stack; pragmatically, I would caution against playing on a non-Windows system if you want to have a good time.”

  • music

    148 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game features a subtle, calming soundtrack that complements its peaceful, nature-inspired atmosphere, with music playing primarily during key moments or discoveries to enhance the sense of progression. Users praise the beautiful, soothing compositions that blend well with ambient sounds, creating a relaxing and immersive experience. While the music is not constant or expansive, its quality and fit with the game's tone are consistently highlighted as major strengths.

    • “Instead of relying on a constant soundtrack, the game mostly lets nature speak for itself, with soft ambient sounds and small musical tunes that play when you discover new areas.”
    • “The music gives a soothing experience as you explore the manor, as progressing further allows the music to develop and build to give yourself a sense of wonder uncovering the world of botany you'd left behind.”
    • “The music perfectly accompanies the game's feel and makes for a light, smooth playthrough.”
    • “As far as the atmosphere goes, it would have been helped with more sound effects and background music; the game felt a little too quiet to me.”
    • “I also noticed that there was no music most of the time except when there was a delivery or a clue was found.”
    • “This may be more of a streamer issue than a standard player issue, but I'd have to play my own music to accompany the long stretches of silence, and the game music would only play just long enough that I had to pause my own music to experience it, only for the game music to fade away almost immediately after.”

  • gameplay

    140 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Gameplay in this puzzle-based walking simulator is smooth, charming, and relaxing, with simple to medium difficulty puzzles focused on unlocking plant growth through clue-solving. While the mechanics are enjoyable and well-balanced, many reviewers find the game short (around 3-5 hours) and somewhat overpriced for its length, with limited replayability and few new mechanics introduced throughout. Overall, it delivers a cozy, visually vibrant experience that prioritizes atmosphere and storytelling over deep gameplay complexity.

    • “The gameplay loop is perfect also; unlock area, find seeds, search for clues, fill in notebook, grow flower.”
    • “A marvelous feel-good game with light exploration mechanics and gradually more complex puzzle-solving centered around making plants bloom using information discovered in both obvious and sometimes slightly hidden locations.”
    • “Beautiful aesthetic that tips its hat to 19th/20th century England, very cozy gameplay with easy yet creative puzzles to solve.”
    • “At around 3 hours of gameplay for $25, it’s hard to justify the full price.”
    • “For twenty five dollars, I should be getting more than 4 hours of gameplay, or some sort of randomized gameplay for repeated playthroughs.”
    • “The gameplay is short and not very replayable (since you know all the puzzle answers), but I personally bought it for $20.”

  • atmosphere

    75 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game is widely praised for its cozy, relaxing, and immersive atmosphere, enhanced by beautiful art, vibrant visuals, and soothing music. Players appreciate the peaceful and charming setting of the manor and gardens, which invites leisurely exploration and contemplation. While some note the game’s short length, the tranquil ambiance and thoughtful environmental storytelling create a memorable and comforting experience.

    • “Botany manor is a gentle, atmospheric puzzle adventure that invites players into a meticulously crafted English estate filled with sunlight, quiet gardens, and scientific curiosity.”
    • “That exact moment was where I said 'whoa, this game knows exactly the feel I'm looking for.' Vivid colors, tangible sound effects and atmospheric ambiance, well-laid plots to the garden grounds and even placement of household items and architectural design absolutely sing to the heavens of the thoughtful and well-conceived lengths the developers went to in creating this game.”
    • “The atmosphere, the music, and the pacing were all so lovely and warm and calming but not boring or repetitive!”
    • “While it makes up for some of that shallowness in character and atmosphere, it is a middling experience with an inflated price.”
    • “As far as the atmosphere goes, it would have been helped with more SFX and background music; the game felt a little too quiet to me.”
    • “The first few were straightforward in a way that I didn't find enjoyable, mostly staying for the art and the atmosphere.”

  • emotional

    49 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game delivers a deeply emotional experience through its heartfelt story of Lady Arabella, combining cozy, wholesome puzzle gameplay with themes of perseverance and gender discrimination in the 1800s. Players praise its soothing atmosphere, beautiful visuals, and touching narrative that culminates in a satisfying, often tear-inducing ending. Overall, it is celebrated as a calming, inspiring, and emotionally resonant journey.

    • “Everything—from the serene visuals and quiet soundscape to the thoughtful puzzle design and understated narrative—works together to create a gentle but emotionally resonant journey.”
    • “We start very slowly with the most straightforward flora puzzle and then it gets more and more complex while you are trying to piece the clues on the plants together and figure out how to bloom them. You also have a chance to look into the life of Arabella Greene and the people around her. What made me so emotional was the way she kept getting rejected or belittled whenever she showed determination and passion for botany because she was a woman and they expected her to be a good little wife and mother. There were times they even used her observations and approaches as if they were theirs and continued belittling her. It's 1800s, it is only realistic that there is sexism, but still it managed to touch something deep within me.”
    • “For those seeking a peaceful, beautifully crafted escape with emotional warmth and intellectual engagement, Botany Manor is a rare and deeply satisfying experience.”

  • replayability

    36 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game generally offers low replayability, with most players completing it within 3-4 hours and finding little incentive to revisit due to its linear puzzles. While its art and atmosphere are appreciated, the short playtime and lack of new challenges on subsequent playthroughs make it a less valuable purchase at full price. Some players hope for future content to enhance replay value, but currently it is viewed as a one-and-done experience.

    • “Even knowing the puzzles, the environment and music gives it a lot of replay value.”
    • “Not too long or particularly replayable, but I would definitely buy it again.”
    • “This makes the experience cohesive, but those seeking a sprawling or highly replayable puzzle environment might find it more contained than expected.”
    • “$25 is way too much for a ~4 hour game with no replay value.”
    • “Game takes at most 3 hours to complete and there is no replayability.”
    • “There's no replay value to speak of, making it a one-and-done experience.”

  • grinding

    20 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Grinding in the game is often described as tedious due to frequent back-and-forth movement across large areas to gather clues and check notes, which can slow pacing despite the cozy atmosphere. While puzzles themselves are generally straightforward and enjoyable, the repeated walking and some simple tasks lead to moments of boredom and mild frustration. However, this grinding rarely overstays its welcome and fits the game's relaxed tone.

    • “The game has a grindy aspect, requiring 60 to 100 hours of playtime to progress.”
    • “You'll need a second life due to the extensive grinding required.”
    • “Grinding is a significant part of the gameplay, demanding a considerable time investment.”
    • “First, many of the puzzles are extremely easy to solve once you've found the clues, but both finding the clues and actually putting the solution into practice are boring and tedious.”
    • “That said, despite most of your hints being bits of paper, you can't pick them up and sometimes to check your notes, you need to go back and forth in a way that gets really tedious given how big the manor itself can be.”
    • “It looks beautiful but it's just really tedious having to walk all over to double check notes.”

  • optimization

    10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Optimization for the game is mixed, with generally solid performance on high-end systems but issues like stuttering and inconsistent frame times on lower-end or less typical setups (e.g., M1 MacBook Air). Some users experienced performance hiccups that could be mitigated with tweaks, though certain UI interactions also feel a bit clunky. Overall, it runs smoothly on powerful GPUs but may need improvements for stability and fluidity on mid-to-low-end hardware.

    • “Only downside was some performance issues but after some tinkering I was able to resolve them.”
    • “Performance was good on my RTX 5090.”
    • “Lovely puzzle game with gorgeous graphics and sound, solid performance, and respects your time!”
    • “A note on performance: I played primarily via Crossover on an M1 MacBook Air, where frame times were extremely inconsistent.”
    • “I had some pretty bad stuttering issues though.”
    • “The horizontal movement and performance in general isn't the most fluid.”

  • stability

    5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Stability reviews are mixed, with some users experiencing occasional bugs like issues in the clue selection interface and difficulty exiting the game, while others report a smooth, bug-free experience with minimal to no glitches.

    • “Bug free”
    • “The clue selection interface was quite buggy.”
    • “Occasionally buggy - can't exit game, have to alt+f4.”

  • humor

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in the game is minimal and underwhelming, contributing little value and making the $25 price feel unjustified.

  • monetization

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The feedback does not address monetization directly, instead focusing on gameplay elements like puzzles and clues. Therefore, no information about the game's monetization is provided.

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80%Critics’ scoreBased on 13 critic reviews
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5h Median play time
4h Average play time
3-5h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 23 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

Botany Manor is a simulation game with mystery and historical themes.

Botany Manor is available on Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Steam Deck and others.

On average players spend around 4 hours playing Botany Manor.

Botany Manor was released on April 9, 2024.

Botany Manor was developed by Balloon Studios.

Botany Manor has received positive reviews from players and positive reviews from critics. Most players liked Botany Manor for its story but disliked it for its replayability.

Botany Manor is a single player game.

Similar games include Quern: Undying Thoughts, The Pedestrian, The Last Campfire, The Inheritance of Crimson Manor, Carto and others.