For everyone looking for a gift, the FR is presenting six games that show that nature conservation and sustainability can be exciting and fun.
Climate change has become the issue of humanity. This has also arrived in the world of board games. We have seen the new products for 2021 and seen whether from Christmas onwards the game will only be played with a raised index finger – or whether the fun will prevail.
This is a thing of the past with thematic trends in the gaming world. Mostly it’s just fashions – like the pirate games that were popular for a while. But for some years now, nature, the environment, species protection and the survival of mankind have increasingly been the focus. At “Spiel 21”, the world’s largest board game fair, the “eco” share of the 1000 new products was unmistakable. The nice thing about it: Despite all the correctness, the gaming experience is never neglected. Unlike in the past, no publisher could afford that.
The range is immense. Who would have thought that cell biological processes could become a board game (cytosis)? On the other hand, collecting flowery card sets like in the game “Flourish” or the placement game “Eco: Coral Reef” with its growing coral reef seems almost everyday.
Many lovingly designed and illustrated animal games, especially for children, catch the eye. The smart game of skill “Happy Hopping” lets frogs hop across the table by the dozen. On the other hand, animal expert games such as “Endangered” or “Arche Nova” are of a completely different caliber. The cooperative game “Spirit Island” is even more spectacular, for which the fifth expansion has already appeared with the offshoot “Fissured Earth”. This island is, so to speak, the alternative to the super classic Settlers of Catan: The players inside try as nature spirits together to push back the hordes of settlers that have come over their island like an epidemic.
Speaking of extensions: If the games are running well, the publishers are guaranteed to add a “booster” to them. Moneymaking !? Not necessarily. Sometimes very nice additions come out, like “Photosynthesis: In the moonlight” shows. In addition to the thematic trends, further directions of development can be identified.
Two-player titles are currently en vogue. Just like this trend, another – but contrary – trend is due to the Corona period. You meet in a larger group, but with a fixed cast – and you need games beyond the usual four people.
But what about the environmental awareness in the production of the games themselves? You can still hear the dispute over “valuable wooden toys” versus “plastic scrap from China” when it comes to toys. At least some thought has started (and not just because of supply chain problems).
A decidedly expressed claim like that of the boss at Deep Print Games, which was founded in 2020, is still rather rare. When the programmatic debut “Renature” appeared, Matthias Nagy said: “We chose the name Deep Print Game with care. The lasting impression – that also alludes to the ecological footprint of the human being. ”That could certainly be reduced at the gaming table, for example by using less plastic. In “Kyoto”, for example, instead of the popular zip-up bags, a cardboard item is available for sorting the material, which is then folded into a small storage box.
Note: At the time of going to press, the titles discussed were available in stores or marked as “Upcoming”.
Tree Hotel – Giving animals a home is child’s play
The children’s game on this page is a very nice mix of luck and memory. Up to four participants have a tree in front of them in which three animal species from owls to caterpillars to squirrels want to move in, always in pairs. In your turn you take a card from the draw pile. If the animal fits into your own tree hotel, you create it. Otherwise the card will be placed face down in your own filing system – which means for the others: make sure you remember! Because if you have collected two red fruits when you draw cards, you can redirect them to your own hotel if you are told precisely (“I want the owl from you”). It’s all very simple – if it weren’t for the raccoon and the bear. One steals the fruit, the other drives the animals out of the tree hotel. But only as long as they haven’t moved in as a couple. “Tree Hotel” shows how much fun the younger ones (but also the older ones) have when they need a lucky hand when drawing cards – and the little glee when the bear messes up the tour for the almost certain winner.
Tree Hotel: 2-4 players: indoor, from 7 years, 15 minutes, approx. 16 euros (lodging)
Shift change – hard coal on rails
After so much eco-friendliness, it can also be a dirt finch! Games with the topic of cabbage extraction and processing have a certain tradition, especially in the game-loving Ruhr area. The expert game “Shift Change” takes the group to West Germany in the 1950s. In order to supply the Adenauer Republic with energy, we mine hard coal and refine it into coke via a supply chain. Whoever sells the most of them is already well on the way to victory. But also those who optimally expand their transport routes (road, rail, canal) and get their miners through a shift quickly get a lot of points. In keeping with the Malocher theme, “shift change” is a game with workers. In this case, that means: around the playing field, four participants have 21 cards as action locations. Anyone who, for example, occupies the “Rail and Canal Expansion” with one of their workers, blocks this option for the rest of the current round. But there is still a lot more to be done: pumping out seeping pit water, putting your winding towers on the board or building colliery houses. Even the spoil from the dump can be used profitably. One suspects that without strategic planning the mine will soon sink and Count Koks will be someone else. Conclusion: When coal comes on the table in such a nostalgic way and with fun, it can sometimes stink against eco-friendly products.
Shift change: 2-4 players: inside, from 12 years, 60-90 minutes, approx. 60 euros (game faible)
Kyoto Environment Conference 1997
Like some things from the Deep Print Games publishing house, the title of this game was chosen with full intent: “Kyoto” revolves around the big environmental conference in 1997. The players slip into the role of industrialized nations. Up to six can attend the conference and decide on the future of the planet. However, not in the negotiation marathon, but despite the large number in rapid succession. To do this, the conference leader – who changes in laps – reads out a task. The map announces what is needed to prevent global warming or air pollution or to save an animal species from extinction. Each country decides whether to donate money and / or reduce CO2. To do this, it has to forbid affluent affluence, such as “night skiing”.
Each round has 90 seconds to offer wealth cards and one million dollar bills. The evil, but also wonderfully satirical element in “Kyoto” is now: Whoever donates the least money in the course of the twelve rounds and protects his prosperity most persistently, will get more points in the end. The thrust is given by two “agenda cards” that everyone receives before the conference. For example, the coal lobby warns the Australian: “Your government has always benefited from our willingness to cooperate.” If Australia manages to allow just enough air pollution to prevent the planet from bouncing, extra points are awarded. And whoever has the most points ultimately wins. Unless the conference fails! Then the point-gullet loses and the second placed wins.
Kyoto: 3-6 players: indoor, from 10 years, 30-45 minutes, approx. 25 euros (Deep Print Games)
Ark Nova – Popular new release
The expert game “Arche Nova” was one of the most popular innovations in the run-up to the game fair. Simply put, it’s about bringing as many animals as possible to your zoo. But also the right ones, because: The 255 cards are interlinked in a variety of ways across numerous elements. The players get point-worthy card combos: inside, however, not through luck in their hand. It takes meticulous planning so that all the cogs mesh together. The acquired animals naturally want to be accommodated in the zoo in a species-appropriate manner. What the right enclosures are needed for. These in turn should be cleverly placed on your own player board with the hex fields in order to unlock further bonuses and advantages. These in turn help to win partner zoos in other parts of the world. And that is what it takes to invest successfully in species protection programs. Everyone wants that, because: Arche Nova comes up with a nice variant of the usual victory point track. Instead of one, there are two counting bars running in opposite directions. One shows the points that the animals bring in the zoo. The other allows you to make great leaps forward in successful species protection campaigns. The joke here: If the markers of one of the players meet on the track, the last round has started. However, it is not a matter of fact that this or that person will win. There are plenty of additional points for the final scoring cards that you receive at the beginning or that you acquire during the game.
Arche Nova: 1-4 players: indoor, from 14 years of age, approx. 90-150 minutes, approx. 65 euros (Tierra del Fuego)
Treetops – A game for two
The two people opposite try to make the lush rainforest grow out of 114 maps. Each card shows only part of the plant, such as a piece of tree trunk. In order for the stacked trunks to score as a jungle giant, you also need a treetop. So it is important to get hold of the right tickets. The larger number of completed trees is also productive. Bromeliads and ferns on the forest floor are just as important. Those who then settle animals appropriately, ideally as a duo, are way ahead. What is exciting in “Treetops” is the way you get maps. Three “growth piles” are on display, starting with one, two and three cards. In your turn, you look under pile 1. If you keep the card, it’s your turn. Otherwise you put the card plus an additional one from the draw pile face down again. Same game with pile 2. But you have to take pile 3 at the latest – even if it punishes you with “fire” or “drought” and the tree crown you long for does not appear. The fascinating thing about “treetops” is, in addition to the lovingly detailed, magical illustrations, the game mechanics, the try-your-luck principle. The set with 28 special cards that comes with the pack ensures that the games always run differently and offer even more variety.
Treetops: 2 players: inside, from 10 years, 30 minutes, approx. 20 euros (Kosmos)
Photosynthesis: In the Moonlight – Demanding Extension
The demanding family game “Photosynthesis” is a very successful example of how a game expansion gives the whole thing a whole new twist. So before it goes to “In the Moonlight”, first take a look at the basic game. Up to four foresters: inside want to let as many trees as possible of their color flourish on an area consisting of 37 fields. You pay “sun points” for the four growth spurts from seedling to large tree. These are given at the beginning of each round, depending on the size of the tree and the incidence of light. The joke is that a sun disk circles the hexagonal playing field. Depending on the position of the sun, the photosynthesis activity of each tree changes – and with it the yield. Clever players: inside see that even their small trees are not in the shadow of the big ones. With the “In the moonlight” expansion, eight animals move into the forest. All players receive one thing and try to use their different properties: The beaver building the dam ensures better irrigation and more tree growth. The fox digs in the ground, displacing seedlings that have already been planted. Of course he will see to it, to put his own in a better light and to give those of the competition a shadowy existence. The animal activity is controlled via “moon points”. Their number depends on the moon disc rotating around the playing field in the opposite direction to the sun. Not at all easy to see through this spinning against each other.
Photosynthesis: In the moonlight, 2-4 players: inside, 60-75 minutes, approx. 20 euros (Asmodee)
