Tree Bonsai

A tranquil simulator when you just need to feel zen.

Tree.Bonsai is a pleasant simulator about growing your own bonsai throughout the seasons, from year to year in the Chinese zodiac calendar.

Positives

+ Each tree is random every time you play a new game.
+ Different sounds with each season.*
+ Grafting and pruning your bonsai to change how it looks. I enjoyed seeing how it changed throughout the years.
+ Relaxing, easy way to unwind and have on in the background as you do other tasks.
+ Simple UI, complexity is not needed in a simulation game about being zen.*

Negatives

- *Sounds can get repetitive as they play over quite often.
- Branches can be a little difficult to click on, you really need to fiddle with the mouse buttons to zoom in properly. As far as I could tell, there is no way to reset the cam to the original position. I eventually got the hang of it.
- *A simple UI could be a good thing, but often I had trouble clicking the prune/graft/nutrient buttons. Sometimes I had to click multiple times before something would happen.
- Once you prune a branch, you have to click the prune button again to deactivate it, or else you might find yourself accidentally pruning branches when clicking around.

Neutral

~ Some relaxing music could be added to all the seasons. As far as I can tell, only Winter has some atmospheric music.
~ Should be able to continually play at different speeds instead of clicking play every few moments since it constantly pauses. (From what it seems to me, the play button constantly popped up, so I kept clicking it.)
~ Spelling mistakes/grammatical errors can be worked on and updated.
~ Menus could be a bit more polished.

It's a very basic simulator game that does not require your full attention, but it's nice to check in on every now and again when you feel stressed out. I'm watching it in the background as I type this review, and I must say that my bonsai is looking rather good covered in blossoms in the spring.

Find more reviews at Balance Patch.

Alright. Tree.Bonsai is done and dusted? Sort of? I wasn't able to trigger the late stage mushroom growth, and I don't know that I really want to sit/click through another tree's life cycle to see if it triggers the next time, so I'm content to call this game completed.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3365975383

It's cool enough. This game basically has you watching a bonsai tree grow. You can interact with it by pruning branches and grafting fruits onto it. Honestly, IMO none of that works particularly well. It does work, but I'd say it's more random as to whether you'll be able to do so at any moment.

So, in lieu of all that, what you'll really do is watch the tree interact with the four seasons, changing its appearance with each. However, as Autumn switches to Winter, you will also be able to pick fruit, which best I can tell will allow you to speed up the growth of branches you click on. Or, in the case of the hallucinogenic fruit, it will just outright change the appearance of the tree.

You can treat the game as a clicker and clicking it seems to speed up the season cycles. Or you can simply idle it and let the tree do its thing at its own pace. It's really all up to you.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3365975411

I think the graphics are decent and the various seasonal aspects of the tree look cool. Especially when it starts shedding its leaves into the wind. That can look very impressive during the latter stages. And the music is really nice. And at times, the playing picks up its pace and can almost be exciting.

Eventually though, your tree will wither and die of old age. After which you are free to start over with another tree.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3365975355

And that is the game in its entirety best I can tell. I liked it for what it was. And I can think of worse things to spend a buck on. Is this a must own, must play? Certainly not. But is it a decent time filler? Yeah. It can be that for you.

If you found this review helpful and would be interested in supporting my Curator group, Robilar's Reviews, it would be appreciated. Cheers.

Also follow IndieGems for more reviews like this one.

This game is totally sick. It's incredibly beautiful in a minimalistic way, and the gameplay is addictive, rewarding, and relaxingly simple. Best $2 i ever spent on a game. I would like to see this concept expanded upon (more kinds of trees?) but am totally content to dump hours into it as is.