Every so often a game comes along from an unheralded publisher that makes you stop and look. It might be incredible table presence, it might be gorgeous artwork, it could be two people bouncing between intense focus and laughter that you can’t help but ask what’s going on.
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In Leaf, players become the wind, strategically placing leaf tiles to grow mushrooms, help animals, and advance the season.
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Flutter is a beautiful, thematic game. But the petal tracking and some of the complexities set the experience back. It’s a fun puzzle, but I would wait to bring it to the table until the kids are a little older and have better fine motor control.
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“The dual nature of the cards forced me to keep swapping back and forth and think of both aspects of every card – how it could be used for its scoring condition, and how it could contribute to the goals I’d already set out.”
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Strato is a solo card game with ten different puzzling scenarios, designed by Sophia Wagner and published by Helvetiq. The box says it’s best for ages 8 and up and plays in about 15 minutes.
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After a cold dreary winter, we are ready for green, growing things. Let’s talk about games with flowers and plants that make us think spring.
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With Tiwanaku, designer Olivier Gregoire has asked the question, “What if I embellished the old Microsoft Windows game Minesweeper and turned it into a board game?”
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It’s rare that a game can move as quickly as Redwood does while allowing players to interact in a non-destructive way. It combines point-of-view with a photography theme in a way that’s fresh and easy to understand.
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Wonder Woods is a very good introduction to deduction. We think if you give it a try, it will grow on you.
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For kids studying food webs and ecosystems, this new marine biology card game from Genius could really help to reinforce concepts. But will parents actually enjoy playing it?
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Ignore the silly bird. We’d recommend Featherlight for couples or families with older kids who want a game that will engage your brain while staying light and fast.
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With Fyfe, I can envision myself drawing out a board in the sand and using found objects to play. This game is incredibly open-ended, almost to the point of being overwhelming.
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Clans of tiny woodland people join together to build a new Garden Nation – but each clan wants to reign supreme by constructing the best buildings.
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Winter is a tiny abstract strategy game for two players that captures the freeze and thaw cycle of a mid-winter day.
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Collect and arrange pages about the four kingdoms living in the forest: animals, plants, insects, and fungi, to add to the Codex Naturalis.
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Play Canopy to learn more about rainforests while enjoying lush tropical art from Vincent Dutrait. Technically a 2 player game, but we enjoy it better at 3 players!
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We may be filled with wonder when we look up at the stars, but there are plenty of incredible things to see when we lower our gaze from the skies, as well.
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