Time on Frog Island
PREVIEW
What those frogs want, and what they’ll
give me for it, is often a puzzle. No one
speaks in words on Frog Island, only in
pictures. The pictures can be simple, an
identifiable object shown in a word bubble.
Or it can be a little trickier. A frog asking
for a sunflower is easy to understand but
another shows me a picture of a mug,
then a snowflake, then points at the
local pub. Clearly he wants a cold
beverage, but I’m just a tiny sea
captain – how can I make him a
drink, and what will he give me for it?
And so I go exploring, trying to figure
out what everyone wants and how to get it
for them. When I find an object, I can pick
it up and run around holding it over my
head. It is, frankly, adorable, running
around the island on my little legs, picking
stuff up and trying to make a frog happy
with it. Even if no one wants the item I’ve
found, it’s still lots of fun sprinting around
with it, whether it’s a flower, or a fruit, or an
angrily buzzing beehive.
Not every frog I help directly leads to
fixing my ship. One frog handed me a giant
love letter (I knew it was a love letter
because little hearts floated above it) and I
had to figure out who to deliver it to. I knew
it was for a green frog, but there are noshortage of green frogs on Frog Island.
When I got the letter to the correct frog, I
was sent back with a reply letter. The letter
storyline had nothing to do with fixing my
ship, but it made two frogs very happy,
and seeing happy frogs makes me happy.
Frog Island is a big place, too, with lots
of areas to explore, from beaches to
forests to mountains with snow-covered
peaks. There are puzzles to solve as well,
items I need to carry not to a frog, but to a
particular place to make something
happen. Objects can also change
depending on where you bring them, or
the weather, or other factors. There are
also a few timed challenges that had me
racing around frantically, trying to get
where I needed to be before time ran out
and figuring out shortcuts and ways to
travel more quickly.HOPPY DAYS
Sorry if I’m being vague about most of
this, but discovering these puzzles and
figuring out what sorts of puzzles they
even are is part of the fun. Just like the
frogs themselves, the game doesn’t really
tell you what you should be doing. It’s up
to you to find out by experimenting,
and that’s been so rewarding that I
don’t want to ruin it for anyone else.
It’s a game I find myself thinking
about even when I’m not playing it.
“Well, what if I brought that item... to that
place... maybe that would...” Then I rush
back to my PC to try it out.
There are all sorts of enjoyable details
in the scenery, in the frog’s homes and
their personal habits and personalities,
and there are even yapping dogs in the
form of tadpoles that will chase after you
then run away when you try to chase them
back. And late in the evening when my sea
captain begins to yawn, I set up a fire at a
campsite and sleep, each night learning a
bit more about my own past and what
brought me to the island in the first place.
Frankly, I’m not sure I actually do want
to fix my ship and leave this cute island
filled with lovely, friendly frogs. Repairing
my broken rudder and replacing my sail
are not all that high on my priority list at
the moment. There are still puzzles to
solve and mysteries to figure out and
frogs that need help getting happy. And
I’m happy to help them do it.
Christopher LivingstonT
ime on Frog Island was originally called
Trading Time, and I can see why. I’m
shipwrecked on an island, and the only
way to fix my boat is to help out some
giant frogs. Give a frog something it wants, it’ll give
me something back. It’s all about trading up.Explore a colourful island and
trade items with lovely frogsTIME ON FROG
ISLAND
IT’S A GAME I FIND MYSELF
THINKING ABOUT EVEN WHEN
I’M NOT PLAYING ITRELEASE
2022DEVELOPER
Half Past YellowPUBLISHER
Merge GamesLINK
mergegames.comNEED TO KNOWPLAYED
ITFarmer Frog has a pest
problem, so I’m off to
mend his scarecrows.