Botany Manor, the beautiful and bucolic country house puzzler from developer Balloon Studios, is finally destined for PlayStation and will be planted on PS4 and PS5 starting December 17.
Previously released for Xbox and PC, Botany Manor takes players to Somerset, England, on an almost impossible Mediterranean summer day in 1890. Here, they will embark on a wonderfully serene journey through the life of the retired botanist. Arabella Greene, which unfolds as they explore her sprawling, memorabilia-filled home, the Botany Manor of the title, playing elegant first-person puzzle games as they go.
A central element of the Botany Manor puzzles is the Herbarium, a book of pressed plants for scientific study, which players gradually complete by matching and crossing clues found in Arabella’s house, slowly discovering how the fantastical flowers detailed within it They will flourish in nature. However, its riddles can only be fully resolved once the newly acquired seeds have been brought to life by replicating the book’s process using artificial means.
It’s relaxing, quietly brilliant stuff, Botany Manor’s puzzles gradually increase in complexity in a way that really encourages players to explore its beautiful surroundings and immerse themselves in Arabella’s world. “Perhaps an afternoon in the company of Botany Manor will stoke your own curiosity about nature,” I wrote in my four-star review earlier this year, “or perhaps you’ll simply be content to explore its sun-drenched corners, work out its few clever riddles and enjoy the timeless pleasures of a lovely summer’s day walk.”
Botany Manor is truly lovely stuff and, I imagine, a perfect summer escape for PlayStation owners who will be turning it on as the icy embrace of winter approaches. And if that appeals to you, it will cost £20.99/$24.99 USD when it launches for PS5 and PS4 on December 17.
