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would therefore recom- mend playing Wyrm span with two or three
at most.
On the design level,
the meaningless color differences be- tween the cave cards could be criticized, as this can wrongly suggest that a certain cave card may only be placed in a cave of that same color. The terminology of the game also takes some getting used to. Why not go for the obvious names for the three actions: play a cave/dragon card or advance the explorer? “Entice” and “Exca- vate” are confusing here and don’t make things any easier to understand. Why do you have to “lay” an egg and not just get it? And why do the tokens only have their own space during exploring, while there is no such designated storage area for the other two actions? None of it makes the game more thematic, instead it just raises the entry bar. I usually try and translate these terms for new players, but if you’re not getting introduced to the game, you won’t understand them straight away. The iconography, on the other hand, is clear and easy to grasp.
In direct comparison, both games have a very similar gameplay feel to them. The redesign of the three row-linked actions is very effective. And the rulebook is fas- cinating in its simplicity: It’s very concise, for all that’s contained in this game.
Major differences between the two “Spans” are, among other things, that the number of actions no longer decreas- es with each subsequent round; instead, the number of moves per round increases towards the end. The birdhouse, which built up tension and drew everyone in, is now missing, but the element of luck is slightly reduced. Except for die-hard fans, dragons can’t really compete with real birds, which delight the birdwatcher and amaze the layperson. The placement of the dragon cards onto the cave cards makes handling the display a little fid- dlier. The flow of the game is also ham- pered, as you now have to check out six cards in the display.
On the other hand, Wyrmspan lets you plan ahead a little more. You can predict what to expect from the Dragon Guild. And also plan for the income from the cave cards you already have in your
hand. But if you don’t have much, you won’t have many strategic points of reference.
The somewhat dreary egg-collecting strategy in the final phase of Wingspan is no longer necessary. This means that some players may actually manage a few profitable moves at the end, while others have blown their cards and can only achieve weak final effects. (cs)
Clémentine Campar- dou aka Blule sells watercolor illustrations of the dragons on her website: blule.fr/col lections/dragons.
Title: Designer: Illustration: Publisher: Players: Age: Duration: Price:
Wyrmspan
Connie Vogelmann Clémentine Campardou Stonemaier Games
1– 5
about 12+ years
about 90–150 minutes about 65 euros
Reviewer
Christwart Conrad
Andreas Becker
Playing appeal
6
7
Simple rules, but still no simple decisions when there is a scarcity of resources on all fronts. In terms of theme, I find the original more engaging.
L. U. Dikus 8
Once again, a pleasure, spanning both games. Instead of uplifting, the game is now exhilarating and even more entertaining.
Stefan Ducksch 8
Sufficiently different from Wingspan to count as an independent game. Also, slightly more variable. Still, the dragon theme doesn’t really appeal to me—I prefer to stick with the birdhouse.
Manuel Fritsch 7
Small improvements to make it a stand-alone game. You don’t need both of them, but if you don’t like the luck of the dice or the birds, pick this up without hesitation.
Maren Hoffmann 8
If there were real dragons (and an app that would make their voices audible), it would be perfect.
Sybille Whitehill 8
Concept and theme of Wing-/Wyrm span are similar. Again, the protag- onists are cast in a positive light: as “beautiful creatures” that need to be established. Players who know the original will also enjoy this game, as the titles are distinctive enough. And all those who don’t know it can jump right in with confidence.
Stephan Zerlik 6
Spans the same spectrum as its prede- cessor, but gets sluggish rather than faster in the endgame, and it also lets you play yourself into a corner.
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