The Roottrees Are Dead, the investigation puzzler first released on PC, is now available on iOS and Android, publisher IndieArk and developer Evil Trout Inc. announced.
First released in 2025 to critical acclaim, the game’s premise is as it says: the Roottrees are dead, and you’re here to investigate why.
Set in 1998, as a private investigator, you’ll have to make use of a computer with dial-up internet, look up old websites, newspapers, interviews, advertisements, photographs, books, and archives, cross-referencing names, professions, and timelines so you can put everything together and uncover what really happened to the generations of the Roottree family, who are now dead.
Rather than having you collect clues and later test you through a multiple choice answer, The Roottrees Are Dead will have you non-linearly follow clues and leads, put things together and uncover what truly happened mostly on your own. You know you’re onto something when things add up and a new lead emerges. You get a whole evidence board that you can place all the clues and arrange so they they line up or connect.
The mobile port of The Rootrees Are Dead features a rebuilt mobile interface and controls by IndieArk so that it works for smaller screens and touch input. “High-frequency actions” like reviewing clues, searching records, comparing information, and assembling the family tree has also been reworked.
The Roottrees Are Dead on mobile also includes the post-game additional content, Roottreemania, alongside the base game.
Evil Trout this year also released The Incident At Galley House, a similar style of investigation puzzler (directly inspired by The Roottrees Are Dead as a matter of fact) originally created by William Rous as Type: Help.
The Roottrees Are Dead is now available on iOS and Android. The game is also available on PC (Steam).