Wingspan - A Five Second Board Game Review
Do you like green eggs and ... pink eggs and ...blue eggs and....
Wingspan is a fairly straightforward engine building game, in which you play cards which help you get better resources, which let you play more cards all while scoring points along the way. If that sounds boring, that’s because this isn’t a game that will sell itself on innovation. Wingspan intends to sell itself on production and execution. I am happy to report that both are incredibly well done. There is a common sentiment that bad production can ruin a game, but good production won’t elevate a game. Wingspan would kindly like to disagree. I normally wouldn’t spend much time on a game's look but Wingspan begs to be talked about in this regard. Virtually every element of the game is just gorgeous, including a linen-finished rule book which, while it certainly seems excessive, sure feels nice.
The gameplay is also fantastic, satisfying on every level, with that terrific element of needing to properly manage your card flow whilst giving you enough cards to feel like you can properly maneuver through any situation. I also would be remiss if I didn’t call out the nice thematic touches on just about everything. With just a card flip or dice roll, Wingspan makes the predators *feel* like predators. The random resource gathering mechanism feels like you are a bird foraging for your next meal.
While a few plays have left me wondering if this game has the staying power to remain interesting through the 30th play, as eventually you will run through enough of the cards to see most of the strategies, I realize I don’t care because Wingspan is charming enough to have me excited for my next ten plays,
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Editor reviews
I saw an eastern screech owl and some cedar waxwings on a walk the other day. It was pretty cool.
What it's immensely successful at is being a game for the current market, who are looking for a game that reveals itself in roughly one play, looks nice, and has a pleasant theme presented well. Replayability and variability don't even enter the equation most of the time. It's an amazing production and that goes a really long way as long as the game isn't bad, and it's not. It just only has about as much meat on its bones as a sparrow.
Vysetron wrote: I appreciate Wingspan more than I like it. As a game I think it's just OK. It really needs more card variety to stand toe to toe with games in its genre and the card effects aren't all that interesting.
What it's immensely successful at is being a game for the current market, who are looking for a game that reveals itself in roughly one play, looks nice, and has a pleasant theme presented well. Replayability and variability don't even enter the equation most of the time. It's an amazing production and that goes a really long way as long as the game isn't bad, and it's not. It just only has about as much meat on its bones as a sparrow.
Definitely agree, have a feeling this one will get regular expansions though and the puzzle might be smooth and interesting enough that I’ll be enraptured trying to perfect my play much like stone age has
im guessing that wont end up being the case and I’ll end up craving expansions but there are “low replayability” games like stone age that i could play forever
It's like an old friend has dropped by for a visit, unexpectedly, with a bottle of whiskey. Maybe it's not your favorite whiskey but that's not the most important part.
"Overall, the 3rd printing of Wingspan is relatively large. So if you don't need a copy soon, we encourage you to wait until May to buy a copy from your preferred retailer. The next time the game will be available to buy directly from Stonemaier Games is late July."