The big problem with the 'Great Outdoors' is that it's full of strange sounds and smells. It's often quite far away and full of critters that want to bite and eat you.

However, if the thought of being in the wild doesn't appeal in reality, the next best thing - kinda - is Forest Camp Story.

This is a fabulously cute mobile game sim that lets you operate a campground without setting foot anywhere near a forest.

Features

● Loveable addition to the sim genre

● Cute characters

● Business management sim that filled with animals

● You don't need experience of the outdoors or camping

More

Creating a campground in the great outdoors and making it successful takes a lot of work. And there's no difference when it comes to Forest Camp Story.

Once you acquire the land you need for your campsite, you need to ensure your little corner of the forest stays in good order. Before long, your first customers show up to pitch their tents, take pictures and generally chill out.

While the peace and quiet are a selling point, you will want to ensure you get repeat business by developing fun activities like horse riding, fishing, and bird watching. Gotta keep those campers occupied.

You also have to think about expanding your customer base to people who have never camped before. To ensure they get bitten by the camping bug, set up open days to show the ropes to those new to camping. Pitch it right (pun intended), and they will be back for more. And, if you're lucky, you may get visits from some of the local wildlife such as squirrels, rabbits, and other cute creatures.

However, don't rest on your campsite laurels. You need to expand and diversify by setting camping goods stores in nearby towns to earn extra money and draw new customers.

Play it right, and you might spark off a nationwide camping craze.

The Japanese developers, Kairosoft, have done a commendable job. While it's clear this game's roots are Japanese, it has a universal appeal that many find addictive.

So don't be afraid. Embrace Mother Nature and create the camp you have dreamt about from the safety of your armchair.

PROS

● An adorable business sim that appeals to all ages

● Available in English, Japanese, Korean, Simplified and Traditional Chinese

● Fun and lots of gameplay to enjoy

CONS

● Some reports that the English language version is 'problematic'

Price - $5.99

How to use

Forest Camp Story is downloadable from Google Play and Apple's App Store. The game gets excellent reviews and remarkable star ratings of 4.7 and 5.0 out of five. However, these are on the back of a relatively small number of reviews as the game is pretty new (version 1.1.6 at the time of writing), it should be pointed out.

The Android game needs 52 MB of storage space and Android 4.4 or later. iOS users need to cough up 272.7 MB of storage and run iOS 9.0 or later.