Wingspan

Slow, calming, beautiful, and also very complex. But if you're not going for new world records, you don't have to play it as competetive - you might as well just relax and have a good time. Always exciting to see what cards you get in the beginning, and decide what strategieis you'll aim for. The tutorial is long, and slow, but maybe not enough if you are totally new to this like I am. I watched a tutorial/guide on youtube, and also a guide for the physical game, which was probably what made all pieces come together. It can be a little hard to grasp the idéa behind these small action-cubes that you constantly move around, but watching the physical game being played it gets more clear. When you've learned the game, it doesn't feel very complex, but the strategies/options when playing are very deep! I've only played 3 games so far, and play slightly better than easy AI, so will probably ramp up to medium soon. Each game takes like 40 minutes or so.

The defining feature of a European style board game is that there are multiple ways to earn points. Wingspan is a solid example of this type of game. You earn points from the bird cards you play, by completing end-of-round goals and your unique bonus goal at the end of the game, laying eggs, and by activating certain bird card abilities that let you slot cards or cache food. It's a relaxing game, but I wouldn't exactly call it casual. The rules are moderately complex and you need to keep track of several different elements, although fortunately these are always right in front of you. The tutorial helps, but honestly I got more out of looking up the rules to the board game online. The good news is that even though it allows for some complex strategies to maximize your points, there are no frustrating moments in the game, due to the fact that there's limited opportunity for the players to interact with each other. There are no moments where you spend 5 turns setting up the perfect combination only to have your opponent block you at the last minute and you've wasted half the game. For this reason, playing against the AI feels almost like playing by yourself. The first time I played, I basically ignored what the other players were doing, and even though I ended up in last place, it didn't feel like a loss. I felt I had adopted a successful strategy and completed all the goals, and the other players' scores were just meaningless numbers of the screen. This might not appeal to everyone, but I found it refreshing and relaxing. My only complaints are: 1. It's sometimes too easy to get lost in what's going on during card activation sequences, especially when it happens during opponents' turns. 2. A game like this needs a manual, and it doesn't come with one. But these are minor, and I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys board games, especially European style board games.

Great game, runs on Linux with wine through Lutris or GameHub (not minigalaxy). Unfortunately, multiplayer requires authentication through GOG Galaxy which I couldn't get working with wine. The GOG listing only advertises Windows and OSX support.

Took me a while to get the hang of all the mechanics but it's super fun and really cute!

its like the game but on computer. A+ for soundtrack. We listen to sound track while play game irl. such lol. Much love. your faithful friend -sim