The Tree (2020)

I randomly stumbled upon this game during a recent sale and decided to take a chance on it, despite it having no positive reviews at the time. This is a sincerely made card game with novel mechanics that I have not seen in any other card game before. The premise is that you and your opponent(s) take turns building a tree from the trunk out -- first branches, then leaves, then buds, and finally flowers and fruit. Your cards represent the items that you can place on the tree during your turn. The goal is to place a certain number of each item onto the tree; the first player to place all required items is the winner. I successfully completed about a half dozen matches and I did not encounter any bugs. Both the mechanics and the interface are somewhat unusual, which I suspect leads some players to give up on the game too soon. I recommend playing through the tutorial twice to ensure that you fully grasp the concepts; the tutorial is short and it explains everything that is needed to play the game. While I do like the game overall, it does have some shortcomings: - The single player AI is weak, and you will never lose to it unless you do it on purpose. - The game supports up to four…

The Tree is a serious contender in the category of "Terribe Ideas For Video Games". It's a cardgame vaguely (very vaguely) reminiscient of Settlers of Catan, but not quite as interesting. You create a "tree" using cards. In terms of metagame, placing more cards than your opponent is the goal, and you accomplish this by matching pairs and wildcards and so on, and placing them in the structure of branches etc on the playing board, which takes the shape of a tree. The mechanics are convoluted and yet at the same time don't scratch the itch that most avid card game players tend to have... this is more like Old Maid than Magic: The Gathering. From a technical perspective, the game doesn't meet basic minimum requirements that most PC gamers expect as standard. It's a little buggy and unpolished, starting the game takes a few minutes to load up even though the file size is tiny. The game is comprised of somewhat mediocre hand drawn 2D illustrations instead of professional looking 3D game assets. It's unclear if this is due to lack of budget to arrange someone who can create graphical assets properly, or lack of talent. Regardless, the overall visual quality of the game is very …

I didn't even get past the tutorial. It's complicated, slow, dull, and I just cannot be arsed. You have to put things on in a certain order but that order is not visible anywhere I see on the screen, plus the slow hand-holding confusing tutorial? Not interested.

The Tree is a digital board game-style strategy title developed by Touched By Grace and published by PID Games, offering a compact, card-driven competitive experience centered around the symbolic act of growing a tree. Rather than simulating nature in an open-world or survival format, the game interprets its theme through a structured, turn-based system where players strategically place tree components in an effort to complete their structure before opponents. It embraces simplicity in both mechanics and presentation, aiming to provide accessible, quick-play sessions rather than sprawling depth or narrative immersion. At its core, The Tree revolves around placing segments such as branches, leaves, buds, fruits, and flowers onto a central tree framework. Each player begins with a limited pool of pieces, and the objective is straightforward: be the first to place all of them according to the rules of valid positioning. While this sounds simple, the game introduces guardian spirit cards that add layers of tactical disruption and opportunity. These cards allow players to accelerate their own growth, hinder opponents, or manipulate the state of the board in subtle ways. The interplay b…

The Tree presents itself as a notable entry in the realm of "Terrible Ideas For Video Games." This card game bears a faint resemblance to Settlers of Catan, yet lacks the engaging elements that make it captivating. Players are tasked with constructing a "tree" using cards, with the primary objective being to place more cards than opponents. This is achieved through matching pairs and utilizing wildcards, arranging them into a tree-like structure on the game board. The gameplay mechanics are intricate but fail to satisfy the expectations of dedicated card game enthusiasts, resembling Old Maid more than Magic: The Gathering. From a technical standpoint, the game falls short of the basic standards that most PC gamers anticipate. It suffers from bugs and lacks polish, with lengthy loading times despite its small file size. Visually, the game features mediocre hand-drawn 2D illustrations rather than polished 3D assets. It remains unclear whether this is due to budget constraints or a lack of artistic skill. Regardless, the overall visual presentation is subpar, failing to meet the expectations of modern gamers accustomed to high-quality, photorealistic graphics. While it avoids pixel…

This game has changed my life. If it weren't for this gam, I would still be in the deepest of pits. To the developers, thank you, thank you for changing my life. Эта игра изменила мою жизнь. Если бы не эта игра, я бы до сих пор находился в самой тёмной яме. Разработчикам — спасибо, спасибо за то, что вы изменили мою жизнь.