Wingspan – A Real Joy to Play

Wingspan is a competitive, 1-5 player, engine builder with an absolutely outstanding aesthetic.

Players take control of a habitat board split into three sections; Woodlands, Grasslands and Wetlands. Using Food Tokens you are able to draft Bird Cards into your habitats, earning you points and abilities. Bird Cards can give you a lot of points or others might give you less points but will also have an ability. Some abilities will allow you to gain Food, lay Eggs, reduce the cost of other Bird Cards etc. By cleverly placing Bird Cards into your habitat, you are able to build an engine of abilities that trigger one another in an efficient and satisfying way. The game itself is split into four rounds, each with a randomly generated way of scoring bonus points, meaning each game played is unlike the last with players aiming for different goals. The gameplay is relatively gentle but has a surprising amount of depth and intricacy due to the combos you can build from the deck of 170 unique Bird Cards and the randomised nature of the bonus points.

With the gameplay aside Wingspans other main feature is its aesthetic. It is positively stunning. Each Bird Card (all real birds) have beautiful art work and a little info on each bird. The habitat boards are gorgeous, the eggs are lovely, the dice are wooden and there's even a little bird feeder dice tower that sits in the middle of the table. Playing Wingspan is to surround yourself in loveliness.

With two expansions, European and Oceania (yay our birds!) there is plenty to explore and expand with Wingspan.

Winner of the prestigious Kennerspiel des Jahres award, Wingspan combines strategic gameplay with visual and mental nourishment. Do yourselves a favour and check it out.