Flock Off support

How to play

Flock Off runs on iPhone with iOS 17 or later and is played in portrait. Your herd starts at the bottom of the board and the other herd starts at the top.

1. Send your herd. Tap a lane to send your next animal up it. The tray at the bottom shows the animal you send now and the one after it. After each send there is a short wait before you can send again.
2. Push together. When your animals meet the other herd, the two sides push. Animals come in four sizes, small, medium, large and huge, weighing 1, 2, 3 and 5. Each animal wears its weight, and a plate on the fence shows both sides' total weight while they push. The heavier side drives the other back. Animals lined up nose to tail push as one, so you can back up a lane that is losing.
3. Claim 3 lanes. Reach the far end of a lane, or push the other herd back to its own gate while your side is heavier, to claim it. A gate glows when a herd is being pushed toward it. A claimed lane is closed for good. The first player to claim 3 of 5 lanes wins.

Each lane has room for only a few of your animals at a time, so choose where they go. Near the end of a match a stampede starts: animals move faster and you can send more often. If time runs out, the player with more lanes wins. With equal lanes, the herd that has pushed further up the open lanes wins, otherwise the match is a draw.

A short tutorial opens on first launch. You can see it again from Settings › How to play.

Why can't I send an animal?

You cannot send during the countdown at the start, while you wait between sends, into a lane that is already claimed, or into a lane that already holds as many of your animals as it can.

What happens if I leave a match?

Leaving counts as a loss and earns no experience. In a Nearby or Online match, the other player wins.

Game modes

vs Computer

Pick Easy, Normal or Hard on the main menu, then tap vs Computer. This mode works with no network. After a match, tap Play again for another round.

Nearby: two iPhones on the same Wi-Fi

Each player uses their own iPhone, so neither can see the other's next animal. Both phones need Flock Off open and the same Wi-Fi network.

1. On one phone, tap Nearby, then Host a game.
2. On the other phone, tap Nearby, then Join a game, and tap the host's name in the list.

The first time you use Nearby, iOS asks to let Flock Off find devices on your local network. Choose Allow on both phones. Flock Off uses this only to find and connect to the other phone.

If the other phone does not appear or the phones cannot connect:

• Check that Local Network is on for Flock Off on both phones: Settings › Privacy & Security › Local Network › Flock Off. You can also find it in Settings › Apps › Flock Off.
• Check that both phones are on the same Wi-Fi network, not one on Wi-Fi and one on mobile data. A personal hotspot or a guest network may block devices from seeing each other.
• Keep Flock Off open on both phones, with the host waiting on its screen.
• Turn off VPN apps or Low Data Mode if the phones still cannot see each other.
• Tap Try again, or go back and host or join again.

Online

Tap Online on the main menu. Online play needs an internet connection.

• Quick match pairs you with the next person who is looking for a game. If no one else is searching, it stops after a short wait and says no one is around. Try again later, or play a friend with a room code.
• Create a room gives you a 5-character room code. Tap Share code to send it to a friend.
• Join a room: type the code your friend sent you. The game joins when the code is complete.

After a Nearby or Online match, either player can tap Rematch. The rematch starts when both players have tapped it.

If online play cannot connect:

• Check that your iPhone is connected to the internet. Try switching between Wi-Fi and mobile data.
• Check that the room code matches exactly. Codes use letters and numbers that are hard to mix up; there is no letter O or number 0, and no letter I or number 1.
• Make sure your friend is still waiting in the room. A room closes if its host cancels or waits too long; if you see "Room closed", create a new one.
• Make sure both players have the latest version of Flock Off from the App Store. Players on different versions may not be able to play each other.
• Tap Try again. If it still fails, wait a few minutes and try again.
• If the problem continues, contact support with the message shown on screen.

Your display name is shown to the other player in Nearby and Online matches. It is made of two preset words. Tap New name in Settings › Your name for a fresh one, or choose both words yourself.

Herds and levels

Every finished match earns experience, even a loss. Wins earn the most, each lane you claim adds a little more, and harder computer levels and online matches earn extra. Your level is on the main menu.

New herds unlock as you level up. Open Herds on the main menu and tap an unlocked herd to play with it.

Herds change the look only. Every herd has the same sizes, speeds and pushing strength, so online matches stay fair. Herds cannot be bought, and tips do not unlock them.

Sound, music and haptics

Settings › Sound has separate Effects, Music and Haptics switches. Effects are the sends, bumps, pushes and claims. Haptics let you feel each send and each bump when herds meet; bigger bumps feel stronger.

Settings › Sound › Music tracks lets you pick Shuffle or a single track, and preview any track. The music and sound effects were made for Flock Off and play offline. If you play your own music, Flock Off's music stays quiet.

If you cannot hear the game, check these switches, your iPhone's volume and Silent mode. Haptics need System Haptics turned on in your iPhone's Sounds & Haptics settings.

Scores and Game Center

Tap Scores on the main menu to see your matches, wins, losses, draws, win rate, streaks, lanes claimed, animals sent and wins in each mode. These stats stay on your iPhone and work offline.

Scores › History lists your recent matches and your rivals. Each friend you play Nearby or Online appears once with your wins, losses and draws against them, even if they change their display name. After a Nearby or Online match, tap Rematch to play the same friend again. If your friend has left, the button changes to Menu.

Scores › Game Center Leaderboards opens four optional leaderboards:

• Total Wins: lifetime wins in every mode, except wins against the Easy computer.
• Online Wins: lifetime online wins. A win when the other player leaves counts.
• Lanes Claimed: lifetime lanes claimed in every mode.
• Hard Win Streak: your best run of wins in a row against the Hard computer.

If you are signed in to Game Center, your scores are sent after each match. If you sign in later, your whole record is sent then. Flock Off never shows the Game Center sign-in unless you open the leaderboards. You can play the whole game without Game Center.

Optional tips and reviews

Flock Off is free, with no ads. Settings › About › Support Development offers five one-time tips through Apple's In-App Purchase. Tips are optional and unlock nothing. Every herd and mode stays free for everyone. Apple handles the payment.

After a few days of play and a win, Flock Off may ask Apple to show its review sheet when you return to the main menu. This happens at most twice a year. Apple decides whether to show it, and Flock Off never learns your rating.

Privacy

There is no account and no sign-up. Your progress and settings stay on your iPhone. Flock Off sends anonymous usage summaries to help improve the game; turn them off in Settings › Privacy › Share anonymous usage. Online matches use Google Firebase with an anonymous id. Read the full privacy policy.