FlowScape

About

FlowScape is a single player casual simulation game. It was developed by PixelForest and was released on August 15, 2019. It received positive reviews from players.

FlowScape is a single-player, violence-free game that allows players to create their own nature scenes by painting with over 300 models and 20 landscapes. With advanced paint options, physics, and the ability to import custom models, players can build their own private paradise and add life to their landscape. However, it has been noted for its grinding gameplay and occasional bugs.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

+55

Skip User Reviews

83%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,278 reviews

graphics76 positive mentions

stability38 negative mentions

FlowScape is a relaxing and easy-to-use tool that allows users to create beautiful landscapes and scenes quickly.
The program offers a wide variety of assets, including trees, buildings, and animals, which can be easily manipulated to create unique environments.
The developer is actively engaged with the community, regularly updating the software and responding to user feedback.

The user interface is clunky and unintuitive, making it difficult for new users to navigate and utilize all features effectively.
The program has been criticized for bugs and performance issues, including crashes and lag, especially when rendering complex scenes.
There is a lack of variety in assets and limited options for terrain sculpting, which can hinder creativity and lead to repetitive designs.

graphics
124 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
61%
37%
2%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising their beauty and high quality, particularly for creating digital art and maps for tabletop RPGs. However, some users report significant issues, including crashes and graphical glitches, which detract from the overall experience. Despite these drawbacks, the intuitive controls and rich visual capabilities make it a valuable tool for creative projects.
- “The amazing, almost life-like graphics are so beautiful, and it provides you with boundless tools for creativity.”
- “Intuitive controls and the graphics are just gorgeous.”
- “Fantastic creative tool for making beautiful scenic artwork, highly recommended for those new to digital art and want to try their hand at making some awesome images.”
- “Its graphics are horrendous and it looks nothing like it does in the pictures, not to mention the scale of things is so stupid.”
- “Lags and crashes all the time, even on low quality graphics settings.”
- “I made a different review before saying that it crashes a lot but I reviewed that on my basic computer, but sadly getting a new PC with a GTX 1660 Ti graphics card for this game doesn't make a difference.”
music
94 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
34%
62%
4%
The music in the game is widely praised for its relaxing and beautiful qualities, enhancing the overall calming experience of creating landscapes. However, many users express frustration over the inability to easily adjust or disable the music volume, which resets each time the game is loaded. While the soundtrack contributes positively to the atmosphere, some players desire a greater variety of music options and the ability to play their own tracks seamlessly.
- “It's one of the most calming games I've ever played, the music is so beautiful and the stuff you can make with this is astounding.”
- “Flowscape allows you to create atmospheric and picturesque scenes easily as you listen to relaxing music; I find it all a very zen-like experience.”
- “I really love the music, it's so relaxing and very therapeutic.”
- “The biggest problems for me were the annoying music which I could not figure out how to turn off.”
- “Strangely, there is no way to disable the music.”
- “I don't want to have to switch off the music every time I go in, for example.”
stability
40 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
5%
95%
The game suffers from significant stability issues, with numerous glitches, frequent crashes, and buggy features that hinder gameplay. Many users report frustration with the controls and functionality, leading to a lack of recommendation despite the game's potential. While some players have experienced smooth performance, the overall consensus highlights a need for substantial improvements in stability.
- “Smooth gameplay with no glitches; at least I did not encounter any.”
- “Smooth gameplay with no glitches; at least I did not encounter any.”
- “This game is so buggy; after over an hour of playing, I became so frustrated I quit and will likely never play it again.”
- “It frequently crashes and is buggy as hell.”
- “Sadly, it is buggy to the point of distraction.”
story
26 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
12%
76%
12%
The game's story aspect is polarizing; while some users appreciate the creative freedom it offers for personal storytelling, others note the absence of a structured narrative or end goal. Many find it a relaxing sandbox for building and imagination, but feel that the potential for storytelling is not fully realized or well-executed. Overall, it serves as a tool for creativity rather than a traditional story-driven experience.
- “After a mostly sleepless night a few weeks ago, lying in bed I had this relentless story going on in my head set in the Warhammer world where there is an old grey wizard that lives in a small keep out in an almost inaccessible swamp.”
- “Every night I would build the place up in my mind and have an ever-expanding story going on in the meantime (it involves gnomes).”
- “Creating an area like this helps me flesh out describing it in the story.”
- “This game has no story.”
- “There's no actual story or end goal, it's just a wholesome sandbox of creativity.”
- “It really was a neat idea, and would have been amazing for storytelling, but it was badly executed.”
optimization
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
17%
58%
25%
Overall, the optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with many users citing significant performance issues and a lack of graphical quality in default assets. While some players appreciate improvements in terrain tools and report stable performance without crashes, others express frustration over limited performance settings and the game's inability to run smoothly on higher settings. The consensus suggests that better optimization is needed to enhance the overall experience.
- “Good to see I can terrain sculpt manually, big improvements to the terrain tools and painting system, and it's well optimized so I haven't had any crashes.”
- “The models and graphic engine are well optimized.”
- “It boils down to how you use your static and animated resources on each project, how much of it you use, how big your terrains are, and your performance settings.”
- “The main problem is the performance and look of the scenes you make.”
- “There's not many performance settings, and the models provided by the game by default don't even look that great; the animals look really fake and robotic.”
- “I get some serious performance issues playing this game with a GTX 970.”
grinding
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game tedious, particularly due to the cumbersome process of importing assets and the limited selection available. The lack of integration with platforms like Steam Workshop forces users to manually download and import assets, which detracts from the promised accessibility for those without 3D knowledge. Navigating through numerous options, especially on a laptop, adds to the frustration, making the overall experience feel laborious.
- “The asset selection is very limited, which could be offset by integrating the Steam Workshop for custom models, but instead you have to download assets from the internet and import them manually (if you're not a 3D/texture artist able to create your own), which can be a tedious process and destroys the 'easy & accessible without needing 3D knowledge' promise.”
- “As each category contains dozens of objects, finding the object you want or even knowing if it exists in a category is tedious.”
- “Having to scroll to look at different options, especially on a laptop, is so tedious.”
gameplay
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
20%
50%
30%
The gameplay is described as relaxing and enjoyable once players familiarize themselves with the mechanics, although the controls are often considered janky and complicated. While the game allows for creative battlemap building and offers a unique first-person perspective for character visualization, the mechanics are perceived as both limited and in need of improvement.
- “It is a very relaxing and chill game once you get to know the mechanics.”
- “At first, you can build a beautiful battlemap, but after that you can go first person and get first person screenshots that you can use as character POV images so your players can see how their characters see without losing the grid style gameplay in a lot of D&D.”
- “The controls and mechanics are janky and need a wrench or something in the works.”
- “Mechanics are very complicated and, on the other hand, very limited.”
- “A much better terrain forming mechanic.”
atmosphere
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
75%
25%
Flowscape excels in creating a serene and picturesque atmosphere, enhanced by relaxing music and beautiful graphics. Users appreciate the extensive props, special effects, and excellent lighting controls, making it a valuable tool for tabletop RPG mapping. The beginner-friendly interface further contributes to its appeal for crafting immersive environments.
- “Flowscape allows you to create atmospheric and picturesque scenes easily as you listen to relaxing music; I find it all a very zen-like experience.”
- “There's tons of props and special effects and full control over lighting and atmosphere, very beautiful graphics.”
- “I've moved to this for a lot of my tabletop RPG mapping needs as it really helps build atmosphere.”
emotional
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The emotional aspect of the game is characterized by a strong sense of wholesomeness and creativity, with players expressing a deep appreciation for the nurturing environment it fosters. Despite lacking a traditional narrative or end goal, the experience is described as a sandbox that encourages genuine care and connection, evoking feelings of admiration and community.
- “Everyone is wholesome.”
- “There's no actual story or end goal; it's just a wholesome sandbox of creativity.”
- “Our wholesome dictatorship of genuine care will be shared and instilled into bunnies for generations to follow out of fear, patriotism, and sheer admiration.”
replayability
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
25%
75%
Reviewers highlight that the game's numerous features and user-friendly design significantly enhance its replayability, making it a worthwhile investment.
- “The number of features, ease of use, and replayability make this worth more than it costs, in my opinion.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users find humor in the irony of the game's promotion of a "relaxing" experience, given the clunky and overcomplicated controls and UI, which detract from that promise. The lack of customization options further adds to the comedic disconnect between the game's marketing and user experience.
- “I find it quite funny that they promote the 'relaxing' part of it, considering the controls and UI are clunky and overcomplicated with no option for remapping or customization whatsoever.”