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Family Island Beginner’s Guide: Tips, Cheats & Strategies to Survive on a Deserted Island

Melsoft Games, the creators behind the popular Toy Defense franchise, is back with another eye-catching mobile title. This time, they are taking us on an unforgettable adventure through the exotic world of tropical islands. As the name suggests, Family Island is a game in which your task will be to turn a deserted village into a thriving economy.

Yet, there is more than meets the eye in Family Island. In fact, the game is full of surprises! First of all, the captivating story will make you feel a genuine connection with Bruce, Eva, and their kids. As a result, you’ll feel a strong desire to help them out. Well, it must be your lucky day since our list of Family Island tips, cheats and strategies will explain all the important elements of the game. So let’s not waste any more of your time and instead let’s delve into our Family Island beginner’s guide!

1. Keep Everybody Busy At All Times

Being stranded in the middle of nowhere is not a pleasant experience, to say the least. However, the protagonists of Family Island have managed to pull themselves together. Even though they are starting from scratch, they want to make as much progress as possible. In other words, they want to explore the islands and improve the quality of their lives.

Well, the secret to progress is hard work. For that reason, it is imperative that you always keep everyone busy. In other words, always fill up the production queue, no matter what you can produce. Every item can be sold or traded, and that is why it is important that the primitive factories are never idle. The same goes for plant beds, which means that you should harvest the crops as soon as they are ready.

2. Complete The Tasks And Objectives

To progress through the game, the best option is to follow the storyline. Of course, players will be spending a lot of time exploring the rainforests on their own. However, the panel with the objectives, which is located on the left-hand side, can show you the right way.

family island tasks and objectives

By clicking on the small circles on the left, you will sometimes open stories and dialogues. In other cases, you will receive tasks and objectives. Either way, the game will show you the priorities. If you put an effort and complete the objectives, lucrative rewards will go your way. So, keep an eye on the stories and scroll through them from time to time. Admittedly, you will sometimes complete them without even paying attention, but the majority will ask for a bit of effort.

3. Use The Tips To Locate Hidden Items

Objectives and tasks in Family Island will mostly ask of you to locate all sorts of items. Sometimes the mission will be to discover a new type of plant or to go on a treasure hunt. Yet, this will be easier said than done. The biggest problem will be to see the items under the thick fog. Likewise, the colorful environment will make it difficult to discern and differentiate anything at all!

So, the secret to finding the necessary items and ingredients hides within the use of Tips. Designed in the shape of a magnifying glass, the Tips are also located in the Objectives section. In other words, players can click on the magnifying glass to learn where they should go in search of the item. An oversized yellow arrow will pinpoint the location.

4. Get As Many Energy Points As Possible

To be honest, hidden items will not be the biggest problem for players who decide to embark on an adventure on the deserted island. On the contrary, energy points will be much harder to find! But without them, you will be powerless. As a result – Bruce, Eva, and their kids will be left to fend for themselves. So, we recommend that you use every possible method to obtain as many energy points as possible!

family island energy points

The number of available energy points will be displayed in the upper right corner. One of the easiest ways to boost the levels of stamina is by eating berries and fruits. Unfortunately, these resources are scarce and they can be hard to find. So, you could try the alternative option – cooking. Yes, the family will get the energy from food as well.

5. Sharpen Up Your Cooking Skills

Finding food on a tropical island does not sound like much of a problem. After all, the fruit is everywhere around you, right? Well, not so much, at least not in Family Island. For that reason, you will have to resort to cooking your meals. Needless to say, well-prepared meals are much more nutritious than a banana or a couple of berries.

At the early stages of the game, scrambled eggs or fried roots will be the main options on the menu. Luckily, the family will be more than willing to eat those meals as frequently as possible. Of course, make sure that chickens and goats are providing sufficient quantities of eggs and milk. Once the meal is ready, gather the family and serve the food at the improvised table.

6. Upgrade The Facilities At Every Opportunity

If you have enough energy, you can conquer any obstacle in Family Island. Moreover, all that stamina will allow you to collect enough resources to upgrade the production units in the village. As a result, the production of goods will increase and the economy on the island will start to blossom.

family island facilities upgrade

For instance, players should upgrade storage facilities whenever they get the chance. Why? Well, the storage units are important for safekeeping your resources. If you level up a storage facility, you will open up space for new goods, such as timber, stone, or grass. Yet, the requirements will not always be easy to meet. So, click on the ‘Use’ option to make a reservation for the items you currently have in stock. By doing so, you will not be able to spend them elsewhere.

7. Visit The Shop To Buy The Things You Need

As we said, some items in the game will be hard to find. For that reason, the Shop is the perfect option for those players who may be running low on patience. By visiting this section, you can buy exotic and unusual things, things which would take years to develop through a natural process.

The shortcut for the Shop is located on the right-hand side of the screen. The available items are divided into several categories. One of the in-game currencies, diamonds, will be of great use in this section. So, be careful with how you spend the precious stones. If you manage to save some of them, they can be of great value in the Shop.

8. Trade With The Merchant At The Marina

As we all know, primitive societies relied heavily on trading. This activity enabled them to get their hands on something that they could not produce on their own. Well, a family stranded on a deserted island can produce only so much and extra goods are always welcome.

how to trade with the merchant in family island

So, how about visiting the Merchant’s ship in the marina? His ship will arrive at regular intervals (every 4 hours), and your ‘job’ will be to prepare everything he asks for. Yes, he will have a list of demands. If you manage to complete the list before the time runs out – the family will receive a bunch of valuable gifts. Diamonds, energy points, food – you name it! Thus, make sure to load the cargo before his ship leaves the island.

9. Explore Other Islands

When it comes to playing the Family Island, you don’t have to be concentrated on one island in particular. On the contrary, the game offers an abundance of options for exploring other islands in the archipelago. Of course, unexplored terrain could be dangerous, but that’s what makes it exciting, isn’t it?

The main reason for going to other islands would be to go and search for resources. For example, new islands will provide you with plenty of berries and fruits. Likewise, tasks and objectives on those other islands will often include a form of ‘treasure hunt’. In other words, players will have to clear a path through the jungle to collect valuable chests. To embark on an adventure, click on the Map at the bottom left corner of the screen.

10. Decorate Your Village

As we said earlier, the survival and prosperity of the family stranded on the island depend on how hard they work. Meaning, the more energy they invest in performing their daily chores – the better their overall life standard will be. Yet, there are simple ways to make life on the island more picturesque than ever, if that’s possible.

how to decorate the village in family island

For instance, you could buy all sorts of decorations and accessories. From flowers to lighthouses – the Family Island offers a bunch of eye-catching items. By scattering them around the village, you will boost morale and even earn a couple of energy points here and there.

And this wraps up our beginner’s guide for Family Island. We hope you’ve enjoyed this set of tips and tricks. Nonetheless, if you happen to know any other helpful tricks for the game, feel free to leave us a comment below!

Joan Carnell

Thursday 19th of October 2023

In order to upgrade your storage you need to produce certain items but you cannot take the items from the workshop unless you have enough storage! I have only been playing the game for a few days and the storage needs constant upgrades in order to continue. I do not intend spending the amount of money needed to keep sufficient storage. Please give me enough storage to last at least a week!

William

Wednesday 10th of May 2023

I have a bunch of gold pickaxes but I can't find anything to use them for

Michelle

Monday 24th of April 2023

How do I gather the family for a meal?

Shaun

Thursday 13th of April 2023

I made food and the people wont eat it. Table is FULL. Hearth is FULL. I can't fulfill food quests. How do I get rid of food?

Riva

Sunday 19th of March 2023

How do you unlock the second level of home island?