# Forbidden Island — A co-operative adventure! > Cooperative strategy board game adaptation about collecting treasures from a sinking island. (iPhone/iPad app by Button Mash Games Inc..) - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/forbidden-island/id427419772 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`) - Developer: [Button Mash Games Inc.](https://appshunter.io/developer/427419775) - Category: Games, Board, Strategy - Price: $4.99 with in-app purchases - Rating: 4.80/5 from 938 App Store ratings · 158 written reviews indexed - Age rating: 9+ - Requires: iOS 11.0 · 133 MB - Languages: American English, French (France), German (Germany), Greek, Hungarian, Indonesian, Japanese, Malay, European Portuguese, Chinese (Simplified, China) and 2 more - Released: 2011-11-09 - Data updated: 2026-06-10 - Monetization: free with in-app purchases - User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/forbidden-island/id427419772/reviews.md ## What is Forbidden Island? "Forbidden Island is honestly one of the best apps I have ever played on iOS." -- BoardGameGeek.com "Beautiful graphics reproduce the look and feel of the original game." -- Wired.com: GeekDad "Two thumbs up! I highly recommend it!" -- The Dice Tower ** Awards ** BoardGameGeek iOS Board Game Awards 2011: iOS Board Game of the Year - Nominee Best Children's Game App - Winner Best Family Game App - Nominee Best Interface and Graphic Design 2011 - Nominee Best Local Multiplayer or Pass and Play Multiplayer - Nominee The Dice Tower: Best Digital Boardgame 2011 - Nominee **** Forbidden Island is a cooperative game of strategy and courage as you and up to three other adventurers attempt to capture the four ancient treasures hidden on a sinking island. It's a thrilling adventure based on the best-selling Gamewright board game. Forbidden Island was the secluded retreat of an ancient mystical empire known as the Archeans. Legend has it that the Archeans possessed the ability to control the Earth's elements - fire, wind, water, and earth - through four sacred treasures: The Crystal of Fire, The Statue of the Wind, The Ocean's Chalice, and The Earth Stone. Because of their potential to cause catastrophic damage if they fell into enemy hands, the Archeans kept the treasures secretly hidden on Forbidden Island and designed it to sink if intruders ever attempted to claim them. In the centuries since the mysterious collapse of their empire, Forbidden Island remained undiscovered ... until now. Will your team be the first to breach its borders, capture the treasures, and make it out alive? Awarded as Mensa Select in 2010 and nominated for the prestigious Spiel des Jahres award in 2011, Forbidden Island is a fantastic game that's fun and engaging for all who play. **** Features: ∙ Co-operative gameplay - everyone wins/loses together ∙ Pass-and-play multiplayer for 2-4 players ∙ Single player gameplay (by controlling multiple Adventurers yourself) ∙ Game Center Achievements ∙ Side-by-side or Around-the-Table board layouts ∙ Beautiful artwork ∙ Interactive tutorial and in-depth rulebook ∙ Context aware in-game hints ∙ Includes two different island shapes, providing different gameplay challenges ∙ A single in-app purchase for 10 more island shapes Tested and compatible with iOS 11. ## Key features - Co-operative gameplay - Pass-and-play multiplayer (2-4 players) - Single player mode - Game Center Achievements - Multiple island layouts - Interactive tutorial and hints ## Pricing and in-app purchases Base price: $4.99. **One-time purchases** | Purchase | Price | Type | | --- | --- | --- | | Island Pack | $0.99 | one-time | ## What do users think of Forbidden Island? Overall sentiment: positive **Pros** - 🚀 Great co-op game - 👍 Faithful to board game - 🎨 Beautiful graphics - 💡 Helpful tutorial - 🕹️ Easy to play - 🕹️ Challenging gameplay - 👍 Replayability **Cons** - 🐛 Card shuffling issues - 🐛 Difficulty level too high - 🕹️ Lack of online/remote multiplayer - 🕹️ No single-player mode - 🐛 Crashes at end of game - 🔋 Slow animations **Commonly reported bugs** - Card shuffling issues - Crashes at end of game **Most requested features** - Online/remote multiplayer - Single-player mode - Retina display support - Customizable island layouts - Action counter for players ## Recent user reviews (10 of 158) All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/forbidden-island/id427419772/reviews.md ### 5/5 — Best collaborative board game *2023-08-25, version 3.25* Play 2-4 players against the rising waters on a sinking island. Use skill and judgement and most importantly help each other to get off. You all win or you all loose. Works really well on the iPad. ### 5/5 — Plays just like the board game! *2022-02-03* I shared my screen in a virtual meeting and used the game as a lesson in working together, co-operation, and resource management for the youth leadership project that I facilitate. I had 8 to 17 year olds divided into 4 teams. They had a great time and actually won the first time they played. I highly recommend for long distance team building. And game night with distant friends and family. Personally, I don't care much for playing it alone, but it can be done, you just act as all of the players. ### 3/5 — This game is great when travelling *2021-10-24, version 3.25* Fun game, it needs more of a storyline or events to make it better. Still good for couples looking to spend time together. Easy to learn, hard to master. ### 5/5 — Loving this game *2021-07-01, version 3.25* I’m going to have to get the physical version too. This is great! ### 4/5 — Update? *2021-04-27, version 3.25* Needs an update for 2021 but still a great game! Make it HD and republish it.👍 ### 5/5 — Great co-op or solo puzzle board game *2020-12-29, version 3.25* Very nice aesthetics and implementation of the classic board game, lots of fun and puzzling from both novice to elite! ### 4/5 — Perfect, but I wish it was compatible with iPhone *2020-12-06, version 3.25* I really liked the app version. It works very well, I love that I don’t need to setup, and the app also helps with special habilites. My only complain is that for the layout, they could make compatible with iPhone. I wouldn’t mind having a smaller screen and play on the go, when my iPad is not available ### 5/5 — Great game. Very faithful to the original board game *2020-10-29, version 3.24* This is a very well done game. If you enjoy playing the Forbidden Island Board game, you will enjoy this version as well. I only have one minor suggestion for improvement. It would be great if I could play this with friends over the Internet. I understand that this would Involve more than a small amount of code, so I would recommend that you release internet playability as a separate, enhanced version. I would definitely be willing to buy the game again at a higher price to be able to play it with my friends over the Internet. With many of us being socially isolated due to the current coronavirus epidemic, I imagine that a Internet version would sell like hotcakes. ### 1/5 — No one player *2020-09-14, version 3.24* I love this game but I don’t like that you can’t play one player. ### 5/5 — Great game that plays just like the physical version *2020-07-22* I have the physical copy of this game so buying the digital game seemed like the right thing to do. It is great to play solo and it plays just as the original physical version. Some people prefer pandemic over forbidden island but I like forbidden island better. It’s simpler, easier on the eyes, and still has a good amount of strategy. ## Frequently asked questions about Forbidden Island ### What is Forbidden Island? Forbidden Island is a cooperative strategy game where up to four players work together to collect four ancient treasures from a mystical island that is rapidly sinking. Players must strategize to capture the treasures and escape before the island is completely submerged. ### What are the key features of Forbidden Island? Key features include cooperative gameplay where all players win or lose together, pass-and-play multiplayer for 2-4 players, a single-player mode, Game Center Achievements, and multiple island layouts for varied challenges. It also boasts beautiful artwork and an interactive tutorial. ### How much does Forbidden Island cost? The base game is free to download and play. There is a single in-app purchase available to unlock 10 additional island shapes, offering new gameplay challenges and replayability. ### What devices is Forbidden Island compatible with? The app has been tested and is compatible with iOS 11. It is designed for iOS devices, offering a digital adaptation of the popular board game. ### Who is Forbidden Island for? This game is ideal for players who enjoy cooperative strategy games, adventure themes, and puzzle-solving. It's suitable for families and groups of friends looking for an engaging and challenging gaming experience. ## Version history (last 5 releases) ### 3.25 — 2020-11-30 Fixing a bug that caused a crash with the different island layouts. ### 3.24 — 2020-05-04 Just a small update to the app description. ### 2.33 — 2019-12-23 We've finally fixed two tricky bugs. First, the game no longer crashes after winning or losing. This was previously happening to some players on certain devices and iOS versions. Second, players can now manually select which language to use from a new in-game menu. This alleviates a bug where the game did not match the system language. Happy playing, everyone! ### 2.32 — 2019-12-18 We've finally fixed two tricky bugs. First, the game no longer crashes after winning or losing. This was previously happening to some players on certain devices and iOS versions. Second, players can now manually select which language to use from a new in-game menu. This alleviates a bug where the game did not match the system language. Happy playing, everyone! ### 2.31 — 2018-04-19 We've decided to remove the Facebook and Twitter integrations. They weren't being used very much anymore and the Facebook API we were using was recently deprecated and started causing crashes. But that's all fixed now that we've removed it. ## Apps similar to Forbidden Island | App | Rating | Price | Category | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | [Spirit Island](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/spirit-island/id1501321205) | 4.2 (192) | Free | Games | | [Reiner Knizia Yellow & Yangtze](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/reiner-knizia-yellow-and-yangtze/id1439244350) | 4.3 (46) | $9.99 | Games | | [Sagrada](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/sagrada/id1439244077) | 4.8 (123) | $9.99 | Games | | [Charterstone: Digital Edition](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/charterstone-digital-edition/id1457338857) | 3.6 (13) | $9.99 | Games | | [D&D Lords of Waterdeep](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/d-and-d-lords-of-waterdeep/id648019675) | 3.2 (447) | $7.99 | Games | | [Raiders of the North Sea](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/raiders-of-the-north-sea/id1439244088) | 4.6 (528) | $9.99 | Games | ## More apps by Button Mash Games Inc. - [Forbidden Desert](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/forbidden-desert/id657395017) All apps by Button Mash Games Inc.: https://appshunter.io/developer/427419775 --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-06-10.*