Get help with Rootbound, the root-growth puzzle.
Rootbound is an educational iOS and Android puzzle: draw roots through a cutaway garden and watch the plant grow above ground from a simple growth model. It has 160 plans in 16 biomes with 31 plant species, a Learning Path of 25 quests, a Daily Garden with a streak, Deep Dig, a Plant Library, a Free Garden with Compare and a Journal, is free to play with ads, has no accounts, and works offline. Questions? Write to bpupadhyaya@equalinformation.com.
Yes. Rootbound is free to play, with ads served by Google AdMob: a banner on the home screen and below the garden, and a full-screen ad after some completed plans. You can earn ad-free play each month by watching short videos, or go ad-free every month with an optional monthly subscription.
Press near the seed or an existing root and drag: the root tip grows toward your finger, and starting from the middle of a root makes a branch. Reach every water pocket before the root runs out of energy; boulders deflect the tip and clay costs more energy. Undo and restart are free, and nothing is ever unwinnable. Fewer strokes earn more stars. The plant above ground grows from the water, nutrients and soil you reached, and Plant Library cards explain what each species needs.
Open Ad-free from the menu and watch short rewarded videos. A progress bar shows how many videos you have watched this month and the date it resets. Reaching the goal turns ads off until that date. Watching is always your choice.
Ad-free Monthly is US$2.99 per month (local price shown in the store). It renews automatically every month until you cancel, and it removes ads for as long as it is active.
iPhone and iPad: Settings > your name > Subscriptions > Rootbound > Cancel Subscription. Android: Google Play > Profile > Payments & subscriptions > Subscriptions > Rootbound > Cancel subscription. Deleting the app does not cancel it.
Open Ad-free in the app and tap Restore purchases. You need to be signed in to the same Apple ID (iPhone and iPad) or Google account (Android) that subscribed.
No. Rootbound is a game. The plant facts in the Library are general, simplified and written conservatively (“can”, “traditional”); depths, spreads and needs vary with soil, climate and cultivar, and the game numbers are not fertiliser or watering recommendations. The facts were reviewed against public extension-service and horticultural sources, and the Sources screen in Settings lists them. Never eat a plant you have not positively identified, and ask a local expert or your extension service for advice about your own garden.
Yes. The game plays fully offline; only ads and subscription checks need a connection.
The app has no accounts and no servers of ours, and your progress stays on your device. It shows ads served by Google AdMob, which may use your advertising ID. Where the law requires it the app shows Google’s consent form, and on iPhone and iPad it asks permission through Apple’s App Tracking Transparency prompt. See the Privacy Policy.
Apple’s standard Licensed Application End User License Agreement on iPhone and iPad, and the Google Play Terms of Service on Android.
Progress is stored on your device, so it does not carry over to a new device or after an uninstall.
Email bpupadhyaya@equalinformation.com and tell us your device, the app version and what happened.