# The Gruffalo Spotter 2 — AR adventure with The Gruffalo

> Augmented reality adventure app featuring characters from The Gruffalo book. (iPhone/iPad app by Magic Light Pictures Ltd..)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-gruffalo-spotter-2/id1501152290 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Magic Light Pictures Ltd.](https://appshunter.io/developer/705107097)
- Category: Games, Education, Adventure, Family
- Price: Free
- Rating: 2.40/5 from 73 App Store ratings · 20 written reviews indexed
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 15.0 · 418 MB
- Languages: American English
- Released: 2020-03-16
- Data updated: 2026-08-27
- Monetization: free
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-gruffalo-spotter-2/id1501152290/reviews.md

## What is The Gruffalo Spotter 2?

The Gruffalo returns to the deep, dark woods with a state of the art augmented reality app!

Children can interact with all The Gruffalo characters in 3D – waving, stomping, flying, dancing and roaring - as they appear magically beside them.

These wonderful moments can be filmed and photographed to cherish later and share on social media with the hashtag #GruffaloSpotters.

The Gruffalo Spotter 2 has been designed for exclusive use at Forestry England sites. The app is free, has no in app purchases and requires downloading before your visit.

**We recommend you fully charge your device before your visit. To get the longest battery life whilst on the trail you could consider turning Airplane Mode on and Bluetooth off.**

The Gruffalo Spotter 2 has been developed for iOS 11 and later on iPhone (6s and above), iPad Pro and iPad 2017+. Previous versions of these devices will not be fully supported. 

Please email office@magiclightpictures.com if you experience any technical difficulties.

Find your nearest trail at www.forestryengland.uk/gruffalo-spotters
 
Brought to you by Magic Light Pictures and Forestry England, The Gruffalo Spotter 2 app is cutting edge technology developed and animated by the award-winning Nexus Studios. 

Based on The Gruffalo, the best-selling picture book written by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler, families follow clues on an interactive trail and track signs for their favourite characters.

The self-led trail is packed with fun facts about the forest animals with fantastic activities along the way. Once families have spotted the characters, they can use the app to bring the 3D character animations to life, interact with the characters and film and take photographs of the experience. 

Videos and photos are automatically added to the device’s gallery. 

Taking family forest walks to new heights, the app mixes new technology with the real world, encouraging children to get exploring, firing their imaginations and giving them a forest experience like no other.

A Gruffalo Spotters 2 trail pack will be available to buy on site which includes an activity leaflet full of fun facts and activities, Gruffalo Mask and paws, a nature spotters game, stickers as well as a crayon and pencil.

For further details please visit www.forestryengland.uk/gruffalo-spotters 

www.magiclightpictures.com
www.nexusstudios.com

## Key features

- Augmented reality character interaction
- 3D character animations
- Film and photograph AR experiences
- Interactive forest trails
- Fun facts about forest animals
- Shareable photos and videos

## Recent user reviews (10 of 20)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/the-gruffalo-spotter-2/id1501152290/reviews.md

### 5/5 — My mind is blown sooo good 🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳

*2024-08-26*

Ok so my dad and me went on a walk to do the game we did all of the footprints the graphics were so good and if you go home and trace the footsteps on paper and colour really accurately it works at home so I’m happy I can do it at home know do get the game soo good and epic

### 2/5 — Unfit for purpose, nice idea, good animations

*2021-12-19*

This is a lovely idea, but unfortunately it is not fit for purpose. It crashes frequently, has difficulty picking up the on screen motion and resets itself if someone walks in front of the camera. This makes it almost impossible to use with any success and turned a pleasant walk through the forest into a fraught and upset-children-filled drama. In addition the children of course want to see what is on the screen, not be in front of it. There is an automatic play option, which is helpful, but it should just play through without interruption or delay. All in all it was a disappointment, which is such a shame because a lot of work has clearly gone into the animation. It also stop working if you lose the signal, which is obviously quite often in the forest. A real shame.

### 4/5 — Nice animations

*2021-11-23*

The app worked for me at Moors Valley Country Park. It didn’t crash and I captured videos and photos. It didn’t always react to movements to move the dialog on but putting it in auto play was fine.

### 1/5 — Great idea but poor execution

*2021-10-24*

The concept is great but unfortunately the app does not work particularly well. The AR is too temperamental and we just could not get it to work on 3 of the 5 locations on our walk. The allows the user to auto play the animations, it is a shame we could not force the app to play the animations manually for each location. At the end of a walk we had a very upset toddler who could not see the Gruffalo at the end of the trail!

The app really struggled with bright light and / or dirty sign. I suspect the app was unable to distinguish contrasting pixels robustly enough.

**Developer response:** Hi there, thank you for taking the time to leave a review, we are sorry to hear that you had some trouble while using our app. We are trying to fix these issues to make sure families have the best possible experience when using our app, your feedback makes it much easier for us to trouble shoot the problems. If you wish to get in contact with us directly please email us at office@magiclightpictures.com, best wishes, Magic Light

### 1/5 — Slow & tedious: Moors Valley Country Park

*2021-10-17*

App is incredibly slow and kept crashing, very slow and tedious, same as others that son wanted to see the characters with him so selfie mode needs to be introduced. Also when he was doing what the characters tell to do, jump, stomp etc to wake them, make them dance or what ever, despite him moving lots only one of them moved, he got bored this part needs to be more sensitive to movement.

**Developer response:** Hi there, we are so sorry to hear you had such difficulty when using the app. We are aware that some people are have had similar issues and we are working hard to try and resolve them. We always appreciate feedback so please get in touch with us directly at office@magiclightpictures.com if you would like to discuss this further. Best wishes, Magic Light

### 1/5 — Couldn’t get it to work at all!

*2021-08-31*

Totally disappointed. After taking over half an hour to download (not the app’s fault at all, this was due to signal) I was really looking forward to the Gruffalo trail with my toddler for her birthday today. Unfortunately, after telling me how to use the app, it all went blank. No camera showed, literally nothing. I tried on two of the footprints, then gave up. The concept of this is brilliant, and I really think my toddler would love it, if it would work!

**Developer response:** Hi there, we are so sorry to hear you had some technical issues using our app. We know some people are having issues with it and we are doing our best to try and rectify them so families can have the best time possible when using our app. It is easier for us to do this if we have more information. If you can email us at office@magiclightpictures.com and tell us what site you were visiting, what model phone and OS you have that would be very helpful. Thanks in advance, Magic Light.

### 1/5 — Very disappointing - wouldn’t bother

*2021-08-27*

A bit baffling to be honest. Didn’t work properly, it cancels out if you cross the sign at all (difficult to explain to a toddler!) We gave up after the second sign as it was ruining an otherwise perfectly lovely walk. Also slightly baffling as surely on a forest walk you’d want to avoid screen time?! We had a LOVELY walk and enjoyed seeing all the animals, but I wouldn’t bother with the app at all.

**Developer response:** Hi there, sorry to hear you did not enjoy using the app. We are aware of some technical issues people are having with it and we are working hard to try and resolve them as quickly as we can. We want the app to be fun for the whole family. If you are able to tell us which site you visited by emailing us at office@magiclightpictures.com it makes it easier for us to troubleshoot the issue. Thanks in advance, Magic Light.

### 3/5 — Great concept!

*2021-08-02*

Wonderful engagement for the family, few issues with the interaction cutting out in the middle of use and also I have been to two locations to complete the hunt and both times the snake wouldn’t open despite lots of attempts to scan the posts 🥲

**Developer response:** Hi there, sorry to hear you had some trouble scanning the markers using the app, we are aware other families have had similar issues and we are working hard to try and fix this. If you can email us at office@magiclightpictures.com with the location you were visiting it makes it easier for us to figure out how best to fix this issue. Many thanks, Magic Light.

### 1/5 — Not fit for purpose

*2021-07-31*

It’s great when it actually works, unfortunately incredibly unreliable though. Crashed a few times and when we got to the Gruffalo at the end it was so glitchy that we just abandoned the app and gave up. If you’re going to give it a go make sure your phone is fully charged as it absolutely drains your battery at a ridiculous speed.

**Developer response:** Hi there, we are sorry you had some issues when using our app. We are currently working hard to try and improve the app so families have the best experience possible. If you are able to email us at office@magiclightpictires.com with more details of the issues you faced it makes it much easier for us to troubleshoot the problems. Thanks in advance, Magic Light.

### 3/5 — Great idea needs some work

*2021-07-24*

We used the App yesterday at whinlatter forest. It worked ok but a few trail markers wouldn’t pick up and we spent several minutes moving the phone to pick up the marker (don’t know if it was an issue with the sunlight as the ones in the shade picked up fine) when we did pick them up if we moved slightly the animation stopped and had to try and pick it up again. A few times it took a while for the app to kick into life and sat with a black screen. 
It also took a while for it to pick up the actions my daughter was doing and she flapped her arms for the owl and span round for the snake quite a lot before it recognised her actions. 
We loved the idea and the videos and photo functions were good but could be better.

**Developer response:** Hi there, thank you so much for your feedback, we are aware of some of the issue people are having when trying to pick up the trail markers. We want families to have the best possible experience when using our app so we are currently working on this issue. If you are able to email us at office@magicligtpictures.com we can discuss these issues further, thank you, Magic Light

## Frequently asked questions about The Gruffalo Spotter 2

### What is The Gruffalo Spotter 2?

The Gruffalo Spotter 2 is an augmented reality app that allows children to interact with 3D characters from The Gruffalo book in real-world environments. It's designed for use at specific Forestry England sites.

### Does The Gruffalo Spotter 2 work offline?

The app requires downloading before your visit, suggesting it can be used offline once installed. However, it is designed for exclusive use at Forestry England sites, implying location-based functionality.

### What devices support The Gruffalo Spotter 2?

The app is developed for iOS 11 and later on iPhone (6s and above), iPad Pro, and iPad 2017+. Previous versions of these devices may not be fully supported.

### How much does The Gruffalo Spotter 2 cost?

The Gruffalo Spotter 2 is a free application and does not include any in-app purchases. You can download it before visiting a Forestry England site.

### What is the age rating for The Gruffalo Spotter 2?

The app has an age rating of 4+, making it suitable for young children and families to enjoy together.

### How often is The Gruffalo Spotter 2 updated?

The latest version is 1.91, and it was last updated on July 28, 2026. This indicates a relatively recent update, suggesting ongoing support and potential for new content.

### What do users like about The Gruffalo Spotter 2?

While specific user sentiment data isn't detailed, the app's concept of bringing beloved characters to life via AR and encouraging outdoor exploration is likely a key draw for families.

### Can I film and share my experiences with The Gruffalo Spotter 2?

Yes, you can film and photograph your interactions with the 3D characters. These moments are automatically added to your device's gallery and can be shared on social media using the hashtag #GruffaloSpotters.

## Version history (last 5 releases)

### 1.91 — 2026-07-28

Compatibility updates

### 1.6 — 2021-05-25

Bug fixes to resolve crashing issues.

### 1.11 — 2020-10-08

Safety information added.

### 1.1 — 2020-03-17

Improved AR movement tracking and selfie mode.

### 1.0 — 2020-03-16

No release notes.

## More apps by Magic Light Pictures Ltd.

- [Room on the Broom: Games](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/room-on-the-broom-games/id705107094)
- [Gruffalo: Games](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/gruffalo-games/id909269064)
- [Room on the Broom: Flying](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/room-on-the-broom-flying/id949494519)
- [Stick Man: Helping Santa](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/stick-man-helping-santa/id1039320585)
- [Gruffalo: Puzzles](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/gruffalo-puzzles/id1156159645)
- [Hello Gruffalo](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/hello-gruffalo/id1454369641)

All apps by Magic Light Pictures Ltd.: https://appshunter.io/developer/705107097

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*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 2026-08-27.*