$9.99The First Tree A Fox, a Father, an Ending That Stays
Guide a fox through a dreamlike world while a son and his wife talk through what the journey means.
Is The First Tree worth it?
The First Tree is worth it if…
- you want a short, emotional story you can finish in one sitting
- you like slow exploration where the mood matters more than the mechanics
- you enjoy games such as Journey, Firewatch or Shelter
- you want something calm to unwind with, no combat and no pressure
- you can forgive simple controls in exchange for a story that hits hard
Screenshots
An evening of calm, at your own pace
There is nothing to fight here and nothing chasing you. You play a fox crossing quiet, open landscapes: snowy mountains, autumn woods, places that shift as the story moves. You dig in the ground to uncover buried memories, collect small lights scattered across each level, and hop up ledges when the path asks for it. If you would rather just wander and let the story wash over you, the game is happy with that too. It runs about an hour and a half or two, which makes it an easy fit for a single relaxed evening, and the soft, low-poly scenery gives you plenty of reasons to stop and look around.
Two stories, one journey
The fox's search for her missing cubs is only half of it. As you explore, a man named Joseph describes a dream to his wife, and the objects you dig up are pieces of his childhood in Alaska: keepsakes from a life shaped by a father he stopped talking to. The two threads run side by side, and the game is careful about how it brings them together. The fox's path through each landscape mirrors what Joseph is working through, so where you climb and what you find often says as much as the narration does. It is a simple idea, and it lands.
Music and voices that carry it
The soundtrack is a genuine highlight, with tracks from artists like Message to Bears, Lowercase Noises and Josh Kramer: gentle, instrumental pieces that swell exactly when the story needs them to. The narration is voiced by the developer and his wife, and it works: the conversation between Joseph and Rachel feels natural and lived-in, like you are overhearing something private. Wind, snow and quiet fill the space between words.
What should you know before playing?
How long does it take to finish?
Around an hour and a half to two hours for the story itself. If you hunt every collectible, including 150 stars and a few well-hidden secret items, it can stretch to several hours, and some of those are hidden well enough that you may want a guide. There is no chapter select, so completionists should know that going in.
Is there any combat or fail state?
No. You explore, dig, jump and listen. The platforming is light and you will not get stuck: the game is built so the story carries you from start to finish rather than testing your reflexes.
How does the fox and human story connect?
You only control the fox, but the world you explore is Joseph's dream, and the artifacts you dig up reveal his memories of his father in Alaska. The two stories run in parallel and meet at the source of life the fox is travelling toward, touching on grief, family and death along the way.
Is it in English only?
Subtitles are available, and if English is not your first language, turning them on is worth it: the story is told almost entirely through the spoken dialogue.
