This love letter to trees and horticulture branched out beyond the norm, was rooted in greatness, and was a game you’d never want to, er, “leaf” alone. (Sorry.)
What was Prune?
A game about pruning trees. Which you might think doesn’t exactly scream “video games,” but stick with it. The game appeared to take place not in a lovely garden, but instead in some kind of minimalist dystopia. This barren world was all jagged rocks, shards of daylight, and ominous floating orbs.
Your aim was to coax a tiny tree from the ground and help it to grow. As the game’s name suggests, that meant pruning. If you sliced off the right branch, the remainder of the tree would continue to sprout new ones. On reaching sunlight, it bloomed and all was well in this bleak world. (Well, marginally more cheery, at least.) But if you snipped the wrong bit, you’d end up yelling something decidedly non-zen – and possibly buying real-world flowers for anyone in earshot as penance.
Why was it a classic?
Prune felt like a perfect mobile title in so many ways. It was resolutely focused, with one core idea, executed to perfection. It worked wonderfully on the touchscreen, with you zooming in and out for precision or perspective, and swiping to lop off branches.
Visually, it was gorgeous, fitting in with the minimalist aesthetic that was prevalent at the time, but without being sterile. Instead, subtle gradients and motion made this meditative world feel quietly alive, not least when twinned with the atmospheric soundtrack.
There was also a great sense of pace. Early on, you’d noodle around. But later challenges involved fast-growing plants that had to weave between orbs that would smash brittle branches or infect everything they touched. Failure could sting, but instant restarts kept frustration in check. And, hey, that beats real horticulture, where “undo” is very much not a thing.
Where is it now?
Over the years, Prune dug itself in for a long spell on the App Store, echoing a mature tree in how it appeared to change very little. In 2022, a “+” version joined Apple Arcade; two years later, both versions sprouted new levels, which was a wonderful surprise.
Most recently, 2025 saw Prune celebrate its tenth anniversary with a Windows release on Steam. But my heart will always remain with the serene, graceful, beautiful iPhone and iPad original.
Visit the Prune website or get Prune ($5/£5) from the App Store.