The Sapling v12.81a - early access

The Sapling is a thoughtful ecosystem simulator that puts creation and experimentation at the center. You design algae, plants and animals - for land, water and air - then watch how they interact, compete and evolve. The game balances depth and accessibility by introducing mechanics step by step through scenarios, while a full-featured sandbox lets you sculpt entire planets and then sit back to see what happens when random mutations are allowed to run wild.

Flora and fauna design is very flexible: you can make tiny bioluminescent flowers, dark algae adapted to low-light planets, spiky tree forests, amphibious fish that bury eggs on land, nectar-gulping mammals, or flying predators that hunt underwater. Scenarios act as guided lessons, each adding only a few new concepts so the simulation never becomes overwhelming. The sandbox unlocks everything, includes a procedural planet generator (so you can create deserts, ocean worlds, etc.), and even lets you set up to eight seasons and trigger large climate events like ice ages on the fly.

One of the most intriguing systems is random mutations: enable them and watch species rapidly adapt to new niches, rise to dominance for millennia, or crash when a prey or competitor evolves a new strategy. As solo developer Wessel Stoop notes, these mutations create dynamic, unpredictable evolutionary stories across your ecosystems.

Key features:
- Deep creature and plant editor for aquatic, terrestrial and flying life
- Guided scenarios that teach the simulation step by step
- Sandbox mode with everything unlocked and a procedural planet generator
- Ability to define up to 8 seasons and trigger climate changes during play
- Random mutations that let evolution reshape ecosystems over time
- Emphasis on experimentation and emergent ecological interactions

If you enjoy sandbox simulation, biological tinkering, and watching emergent systems evolve, The Sapling offers a rich, approachable sandbox for creating and observing life.