I like to play it as a light appetiser or dessert to playing a more complex game. The game isn't too heavy (both literally and in terms of gameplay), which means that once you've got the hang of the rules, it's a nice game for when you don't want to be battling with too many rules and strategies. But overall, you're focused on putting down your tiles, which is satisfying in itself, particularly if you can get it just right! There isn't much player interaction in this game, you're competing to finish your park first and to lay down the highest scoring tiles (both for bear enclosures and bear statues) – so if someone nabs a specific tile you're after, it can be a little frustrating, especially if it's the only tile of that shape. the species is not found in set habitats), thus doubling the number of clues available and to try to work out. Two layers of difficulty are available, the one described above, and another version where inverse clues are also provided (i.e. And typically, what happens is that as information is gathered and clues are guessed, a newly placed block will throw everything into confusion. Sounds easy, but players need to find out the clues that their opponents have, without giving too much information away about their own clue. The first person to 'Search' a space and correctly guess where the Cryptid is located is the winner. If a cube is placed, the player whose turn it is must also place a cube onto the board in another space and must also tell the truth.Īlternatively a player can 'Search' a space they think the Cryptid could be, whereupon each player must put down a block until a cube is put down. They can 'Guess' and directly ask another player whether the Cryptid could be in a certain space, to which the other player must answer truthfully and place a block (cube for 'no' or circle for 'maybe') on that space. Each player has a clue as to where the species could be on the map, such as in certain types of habitat, but players don't know each other's clues. Age 10+, 3-5 players, 30-50 minutes playing time.Īband of crytozoologists have come together to find the Cryptid, an elusive creature that has never been found.You'll likely lose some species along the way, and in fact, you may find that it's a handy strategic move. If you want to be more aggressive, you can play predatory traits that allow you to attack other species – if they don't have defensive traits to block your attack that is. There can be quite a bit of interaction with other players' species, with the ability to passively gain food from neighbouring species when you apply parasitic or shark cleaner traits to your species. The first half of the game is relatively slow, as you gradually evolve your species using the 12 ‘Surface’ traits available, and feed from the reef to build their populations. Age 12+, 2-4 players (5-6 with deluxe edition), 60-90 minutes playing time.Ī standalone game to the award-winning Evolution series, the aim of this marine-themed game is to create and evolve marine species in an ever-changing ecosystem, and try to stop them from going extinct.By Nick Bentley, Dominic Crapuchettes, Ben Goldman, and Brian O'Neill.