A Gentle Rain - Bloom Edition
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FroGames — Moments You'll Remember
Choose where to place your tile. Make a mistake, and the flowers remain closed. There are no rounds, no opponent. Just you, the lake, and the rain that eventually stops.
WHAT IT IS
A zen puzzle where failure is part of the journey
Designed by Kevin Wilson (Descent, Arkham Horror LCG) and illustrated by Wiktor Kozyra, A Gentle Rain was born from the desire to create a solitary experience that slows down, rather than speeds up. A tile-placement game where you don't score points: you simply hope the flowers bloom before the rain ends. Published by Mondo Games in LongPack format, it fits in your pocket but offers moments of pure concentration.
You draw a tile, place it next to those already on the table, matching the colored edges. When four tiles form a complete square, a lotus flower blooms in the center. The goal is to open all eight types of lotus before the deck runs out. No timer, no external pressure. Just you and the geometry of the expanding lake, slow and silent.
What they're saying abroad
An experience to stop and breathe. Small, portable, but with a surprising depth after the third game. It's not just a puzzle: it's a ritual.
— FroGames
Kevin Wilson has built a game that never shouts. It only asks you to look, think, place. And when you lose, you're not frustrated. You start over.
— FroGames
A Gentle Rain
FrogScore · FroGames editorial rating · based on rules, international reviews and game sessionsWhat you'll find inside
Few components, zero waste
Lake tiles
Each tile shows four colored edges and, sometimes, half a flower. When the edges match, you build the lake. When four tiles touch, the half-flowers become whole and bloom.
Eight types of lotus
White, yellow, purple, pink water lilies. Each has a different color, and you must make them all bloom. Some are rare, others appear immediately. The game is to know when to let one go and focus on another.
LongPack format
The box is narrow, long, and thin. It fits in a bag, a backpack, a pocket. Open, play, close. No setup, no board to assemble. Just tiles and concentration.
No scoring
You don't keep points. You either win (all eight flowers bloom) or lose (you run out of tiles). You can record how many tiles you have left when you win, but the game doesn't force you. It's your choice whether to compete or simply play.
Sometimes you win, sometimes you don't. But every game ends the same way: by placing the last tile in silence, looking at the lake you've built, and breathing.
📜 REGOLAMENTO
A game in five moments
What happens at the table
Not the rules. The experience.
The first tile
You shuffle the deck, draw a tile, look at the four colored edges. There's no right or wrong place, yet. The rain begins, the lake is empty, and you place the first tile. Silence.
The first flowers
You've placed four, five tiles. Suddenly, a square is completed and a flower blooms. Then another. The first two are always easy. The third one less so. You realize that simply placing tiles randomly isn't enough.
The deck thins
You're halfway. Three flowers have bloomed, but five are still missing. You look at the deck: 15 tiles left, maybe fewer. You start calculating, hoping the right colors appear. It's no longer zen. It's pure geometry.
The moment you understand
A tile blocks a flower. You placed it two turns ago and now you realize it will never bloom. You have to let it go and focus on the others. You accept partial failure and start building again.
The last tile
The deck is empty. You count the open flowers. Eight? You won. Seven? You lost, but the lake is still beautiful. You shuffle again, and start over. Because A Gentle Rain never truly ends.
How to play
The flow of each turn
There are no complex rounds or phases. Just a simple cycle that repeats until the deck runs out.
Take the top tile from the deck. Look at the four colored edges and the half-flowers drawn on them.
Place it next to an already played tile, matching at least one edge. The colors must match. If you cannot place it, the game ends immediately.
If four tiles form a complete square, the half-flowers in the center join and bloom. Mark that flower as completed.
Draw again and continue. When the deck runs out, count how many flowers have bloomed. If all eight have, you win. Otherwise, you lose. You can mark the number of remaining tiles or simply start over.
Why it's different from others
Six details that make the difference
No score, just one objective
You don't accumulate points. You don't optimize. Either all eight flowers bloom or they don't. The game doesn't judge you, it doesn't rank you. You can mark how many tiles you have left when you win, but it's a choice, not an obligation. This binary simplicity (win/lose) removes all performance anxiety.
Rules in 90 seconds
Read the rules once and you've understood everything. Draw, place, check for flowers. There are no exceptions, special cases, or lengthy FAQs. Kevin Wilson has built a minimal system where every tile makes immediate sense, even for those who have never played a puzzle before.
Every game is different
The deck is dealt in random order. Sometimes the right colors arrive quickly, sometimes they never do. One game you win with five tiles left over, the next you lose on the last tile. There's no solution to memorize: every deck is a new geometric problem.
LongPack format
The box is narrow and long like a deck of poker cards. It fits in a pocket, backpack, or bag. You don't need a large table: 30x30 cm is enough. Open, play, close. Zero setup, zero takedown. Perfect for train, plane, lunch break.
A theme that breathes
It's not an abstract puzzle with colored squares. It's a lake in the rain, with water lilies waiting to open. The illustrations by Wiktor Kozyra are delicate, watery, zen. The theme isn't tacked on: you feel it as you play, in the slowness with which you place each tile.
No timer, no rush
You can think as much as you want. There's no stopwatch, no pressure. A game lasts 15 minutes only because the deck runs out, not because the game pushes you. If you want to stop, think, look at the lake you've built, no one tells you to hurry. It's a game that slows you down, not speeds you up.
How it ends
How to win and how to lose
There are no hit points, no eliminations. Only two possible endings, both silent.
Victory
- You made all eight types of lotus flowers bloom before the deck ran out
- You can mark how many tiles you have left in your hand as a personal score (but it's optional)
- The lake is complete, the flowers open, the rain stops
Defeat
- The deck runs out and at least one flower has not bloomed
- You draw a tile and cannot place it while respecting the edges: the game ends immediately
- You look at the lake you built, shuffle again, start over
In the end, A Gentle Rain doesn't ask you to be good. It just asks you to be present, to observe, to choose carefully. And when you win, it's not because you were fast. It's because you breathed at the right time.
Frequently asked questions
FAQ about A Gentle Rain
Is it really a game or just a relaxing pastime?
It's a real puzzle, with decisions that matter. Every tile you place opens or closes possibilities, and losing is easy if you don't plan. But yes, it's also relaxing: there's no rush, no competition, no shouting. It's a game you can play while listening to music, while waiting, while you need a moment of silence.
Does it really last 15 minutes, or is it underestimated as always?
Really 15 minutes. The deck has a fixed number of tiles, and when they run out, the game ends. There are no extra phases, no complicated victory conditions to check. Draw, place, check. Repeat. Around the fifteenth tile, the game is already over.
If I lose, can I try again immediately, or is it frustrating?
You can try again immediately. You shuffle the deck and start over. There's no setup to dismantle, no components to put back. The game is designed to be played multiple times in a row, like a puzzle you solve, shuffle, and solve again. It's never the same, and losing is not frustrating: it's part of the flow.
Is it suitable for people who never play board games?
Absolutely yes. The rules fit on half a page, and the concept is immediate: place the tiles matching the colored edges. If you've ever done a puzzle, you'll understand right away. You don't need to know complex mechanics, you don't need to know what tile placement or patterns are. It's a game for anyone who wants to stop for 15 minutes and build something beautiful.
Is it available in Italian?
A Gentle Rain is language-independent: there are no texts on tiles or cards, only symbols and colors. The rules are brief and available in Italian. It works for anyone, anywhere, without language barriers.
A Gentle Rain is a solo tile-placement puzzle designed by Kevin Wilson and published by Mondo Games. In 15 minutes, 1 player builds a lake of colored tiles trying to make all eight types of lotus flowers bloom before the deck runs out. Each tile has four colored edges that must match those already placed, and when four tiles form a complete square, a flower blooms in the center. Pure pattern building mechanic, ages 8+, minimal complexity, high replayability. No score to maximize, just a simple objective and a zen atmosphere. Portable LongPack format, perfect for travel, breaks, moments of quiet. Available on FroGames.it.
A Gentle Rain - Bloom Edition
Frequently Asked Questions
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