Getting started
Open the game and choose a mode. The Long Season is the story: 28 in-game days with a beginning, four turning points, and an ending. Free Growth is an endless sandbox with no fates or failure.
Both modes use the same small vocabulary: a tree, a meadow, a forecast, and a row of actions. Nothing is hidden behind a tutorial level. The interface tells you what the weather is, how the tree is doing, and how many moments remain. The rest is observation.
Moments, days, and saves
In the story, each day gives you four moments. Every action except sitting uses one. You can end the day before spending them all; the weather will still change, and the tree will still live through the night. There is no penalty for stopping and no timer running in the background.
The game saves automatically in your browser after every action and at the end of each day. The title screen offers Continue when a save exists. There is no cloud save; clearing site data will remove the tree.
The actions
Each action has a visible effect and a slower echo. Exact numbers are intentionally not shown as a score; the tree’s appearance, the field notes, and the summary are the feedback.
Water
Adds soil moisture. Overwatering above a high threshold can stress roots, so check before you pour.
Shake
Loosens leaves and seeds. Playful once; repeated in one day can frighten or weaken the tree.
Prune
Removes canopy but improves structure and future growth. Pruning an already sparse tree is harm, not care.
Plant
Plants one seed near the tree. Saplings need soil and water to survive the days that follow.
Mow
Shortens grass and makes a tidy path. Mowing too short removes habitat and reduces the meadow’s life.
Mulch
Returns cut grass to the soil and helps roots through heat or frost. Uses some of the meadow’s grass.
Sing
Builds the tree’s regard and gives a small lift. Repeating it in one day has diminishing returns.
Sit
Free once per day. Reveals a memory and a line of field note. Sometimes the story notices that you stayed.
Harvest
Takes fruit and seeds when the tree is mature. Helps the village, but a taking is still a taking.
Take an axe
Deliberate, lasting harm. Hidden behind a confirmation. The story does not forget it; neither does the tree.
Reading the weather
The forecast panel shows today and tomorrow. Weather affects soil water, tree vitality, and the meadow. It is also the main source of atmosphere: the light, the wind, the sound of rain, and the color of the sky all follow it.
Clear
Soil slowly dries. A good day for pruning, planting, or sitting.
Breeze
Gentle movement, little water loss. The tree is talkative in the leaves.
Overcast
A resting day. Small water loss, even light, no urgency.
Rain
Refills the soil. You can skip a watering and use the moment elsewhere.
Storm
Adds water but tests the canopy and flattens the meadow. Large crowns catch more wind.
Heat
Pulls water out quickly. Water and mulch matter more than a dramatic gesture.
Mist
Mostly atmosphere. A reminder that not every day asks for a number change.
Frost
Checks soil and roots more than today’s effort. Mulch and healthy roots help.
Snow
Cold and quiet. Water arrives slowly; vitality can slip if the tree is already weak.
A storm is not automatically bad. It waters the meadow. It is simply more dangerous for a tree with a large, unpruned crown. Heat is not a monster to defeat; it is a week that asks for water and shade. The right response changes with the season.
The Long Season
The story begins with a return to a meadow at the edge of a village. The tree is old, weathered, and still alive. Over 28 days, from the first thaw to the first lasting frost, you decide what kind of caretaker to be.
At the end of each week, a short interlude asks for a decision that a four-moment day cannot: how to answer the village, who gets the water, what to do with a stranger’s offer. These choices sit beside the everyday actions in the final summary. There is no single correct answer.
The story is designed to be finished in one evening (roughly 35–50 minutes), but you can stretch it across days or weeks. The weather does not advance while the tab is closed. Nothing bad happens because you were away.
Endings, without spoilers
The season ends in one of two central fates: something living or something cleared. Within each fate there are variations shaped by the tree’s health, the meadow, the village, and the kind of attention you paid. Care, deliberate harm, and neglect are tracked separately.
The final summary is a portrait, not a grade. It names the tree, describes the ground and the village, lists the marks that remained, and ends with a short account of your karma. You can play again immediately with a different relationship to the same patch of ground.
If you want a deliberately difficult first season, the game will not stop you. If you want to repair a season after causing harm, that is also possible. I will not say how.
Free Growth
Free Growth has no ending and no judgments. Time moves on its own: light shifts, weather changes, and seasons turn. The tree accumulates rings indefinitely, unlocking companions and small changes in the meadow. Actions are always available; there is no moment counter to manage.
Damage is forgiving here. A tree that is shaken or overwatered will recover over time. You can simply watch the rain, plant a seed, or sit for a while. Progress saves automatically in a separate slot from the story.
Accessibility and performance
The game can be played with a mouse, keyboard, or touch. Buttons are focusable and labelled. The story and every choice remain available if the 3D scene cannot load, and a drawn fallback appears instead. Reduced-motion preferences are respected in the site’s CSS, and the game offers a calm-motion toggle.
Sound is optional and starts off. The game downloads its 3D engine only when you press play. If you have an older device, close other demanding tabs for the smoothest scene.
Found something broken? Tell me.