Wingspan Board Game Review 

if anyone is watching years later, the expansions solve the lack of variety very well

The feeling I have when I see your reviews is that they are made by people that love playing board games, but are not tied to a contract that makes them "love" all reviewed games. In a resume: Everytime I think about buying a game that everybody says they love, first I try to see if there is a review from you, because it says not only the good things but also the bad things about a game. I hope you continue making these so excelent videos :-)

♫♪ When you're laying an egg for a good friend, you gotta lay the best egg that you can ♫♪

One thing I love about this game is the components. The booklets have a lovely texture, the cards look amazing, the eggs are cute, and the birdhouse dice tower is just icing on the top and fun to use. It even has a little drawing on the box to help organise the box for storage. Lovely pollish on that front.

Another great review! I really appreciate that you always highlight positive AND negative aspects, without driving into hype or bashing. For me there are too much "reviews" that are mostly rule explanations. You give a great overview about gameplay but without getting stucked in rules. Keep up the great work! I plan on supporting your KS so you can make (.. and I can watch) more of these informative reviews!!! 😁

I'm marathoning through the Shut Up & Sit Down podcast and heard you were mentioned, so I paused it and had to watch this ASAP.

At 1:43, I laughed incredibly hard because you can HEAR Efka dropping the menu.

Amazing review! RU-vid just randomly recommended you and I am very happy to have found a wonderful channel!

Thank you! A more balanced review (and I’ve watched them all) of Wingspan than most. I enjoy your channel.

Thanks for the bird sound website tip, very nice!

Are we expecting too much from a single game that only costs $40 (USD)/$48 (CAD)? Maybe Wingspan is being held up to a higher standard because of the hype, but it is a 40-70 minute game with a complexity rating on BGG of 2.36. Terraforming Mars is a 120 minute game with a complexity of 3.23. Even Race is rated at 2.98. Wingspan is not a heavy game. However, I am a newer gamer who is now playing Forbidden Desert and Quest for El Dorado. Wingspan appears to be a step up, and if an expansion brings in more complexity, then I should be ready for it by then. Viticulture was also more simple before the Tuscany expansion, but experienced gamers got enough meat (or maybe cheese, in keeping with the theme) once that came out. I'd rather have a game roll out like that and be more accessible to a wider audience at first.

This game really shines for me. Not because I particularly love it, but because it's such a good ambassador for the hobby that doesn't make me want to puke when it comes out. I think this is probably my new "bridge" game replacing Lords of Waterdeep, or Century Spice and similar ilk.

Delightful review! I personally enjoy Wingspan much more than Roll for the Galaxy, whose iconography proved a major limitation for enjoyment and comprehension. It's a grand two-player game, but I have enjoyed several four-players plays, as well. I don't disagree with anything Efka and Elaine say here, though I don't consider them as much a problem as they do.

"Oeufs de resistance" - give them a million thumbs for that alone.

Great review as per usual!

I think meanwhile it's safe to say that you are filling a niche in the world of Boardgame-reviews on YT: Delivering critical reviews of otherwisem hyped games. And i like it because it shows other sides that no one else is mentioning.

I think this will fill the "non-gamer thematic gateway game" category for me. My wife does not often play games with me but I think this one she might.

Quinns!! Great review, I’ll still grab it; I’m a fan of the solo Automa variants

Is it me or are your videos looking even sharper these days? Another cracking review! So how many Mini Eggs did you eat while making this video? I'm looking forward to the Kickstarter, it will be my first time! I'm very excited to hear what you've got planned, could it be the album of board game songs from Elaine that I've been asking for? Love you guys!

Thank you for an honest review - not just hype! Loved it

Great review. Honest and balanced, yet entertaining as ever. 👍🏻 Will be backing the next Kickstarter campaign.

A review that didn't invoke my turkey vulture reflex!

Excellent competent and fair review. I subscribed immediately

Although I disagree with the game's review and critique, your videos are awesome. Keep it up !

Great review, your timing and editing was really spot on, keep up the good work!

Owning this game, and playing it 15-20 times by now with 2-5 players i can happily recommend this review as the one to watch if you are thinking about buying this game. Efka is right on the money on everything. After many plays I've come to appriciate this best as a 2 player game. It helps to remedy the fact that its sometimes feel like solitaire x3-5 ppl. In heads up situations, your desicions directly impact your opponent atleast. It's my best looking game by far, and it intrigues all my friends by just being on the shelf. It's engine building is interesting and, like Efka said, static. I don't by any means regret this purchase. It's already given me/us enough fun to merit it's cost. But untill an expansion comes out, I don't see myself prioritizing this game anytime soon. An expansion for this has the potential to make this good game truly great. Can't wait to see what these inspiring women come up with for an , fingers crossed, upcoming expantion.

Love your videos

I really wanted to like this game, and at first I did. But I did not manage to play it my target five times, because I got bored after three games and could not get myself to play twice more. Yes, there is a lot that can theoretically happen and there are a lot of different theoretical interactions. But in reality, not much of that actually happens or pans out, and you can't even accomplish that much in a single game. In comparison, I played Bruges so many times. That's also a game where you can't plan ahead that far, and where the luck of the draw heavily influences your chances of winning. But every card really does something different, and you can come across cool new combos every time you play.

I love your shirt Efka!!!!

When you lay an egg for your best friend, you lay the best egg that you can.

Funny thing. I can't tolerate TM and really liked Wingspan. At 5 players, too. It's not trying to colonize a planet, it's just doing some bird watching. Scale down those expectations!

Did you feel that the game's expansions addressed any of your concerns?

Dare I say, Egg-cellent review! Gizmo gives it two Squawks up! :)

I was looking for an excuse to not buy this game. You gave it with a smile. Love you both and trust your reviews.

Of the classic engine builders which one is closest? RFTG?

Looks like one of those games with few players interactions which I don't really enjoy. Thank you for this great review.

getting some Peter O'Hanraha-hanrahan vibes from Quinns

It looks so pretty! But I have to say I now want mini eggs...

That's a lot of birds!

Eggcellent review

Have you guys tried Innovation? It's got over 100 unique cards and is about as wild and interactive an engine builder as you could ever play. Maybe too wild until you play it double digits but would recommend.

Hello to Brighton! :)

You are great :) and excellent!

Jamey's got some fun Jamey's got some fun Saw Wingspan on No Pun Looking like a lot of fun

This game inspires me to want to do a game about building an arcade.

For Aerois! - fun to see the reference to another channel I enjoy. Although I seem to be behind, as the next queued RU-vid is this week's episode.

1:14 nice, I did not need to sleep tonight anyway

I have yet to see a crow do a board game review. Just sayin' Quinns :3

Does Wingspan’s box really come with that little birdhouse for your dice?? I would buy any game for that prop alone!

Those Rocky Horror Picture mouths xD

I can't say I understand what your critique is exactly. You say that all those little static elements like type of nest, number of eggs and points don't have a cohesive way to be incorporated into a strategy. But that's what makes wingspan more about tactics. You can play a bird for it's great ability or for it's loads of points or because you want to put a lot of eggs onto it. You can't have a bird do everything. Choosing between different benefits is what wingspan is all about and what makes it so great because you can only play so many birds but you have so many goals you want to accomplish and are inevitably not going to manage all of them.

1:05 One Orange Egg fell over!

Anyone else look up “combinatorial” to check if it was a real word?

What is this, a crossover episode?!

If I learned anything from SU&SD, it's that the word is "orthogonally".

Any comment on player interaction? Is it just blocking food and birds?

Great review. I can only hope now that the SUSD boys give up on the idea of getting a new intern to replace Paul and just formally hook up with you guys. ;)

Thanks for the nuanced review (finally!). As good as it looks, this made me think that this is probably not for me in the long run. Hope I get to try it sometime, though.

Quinns sent me.

I didn't like Wingspan. It felt like a step up from Ticket to ride in that ticket to ride revolves around 3 action with the main one being select cards. Wingspan takes the ticket to ride card selection system (don't know original game with system I'm sure it wasn't TtR though), but makes the other actions more unique important and you can customize them. However at that stage you are so dependent on luck you feel like though unlike ticket to ride the 3 actions are now equally useful it depends on the draw. The game gives you the choice of 3 visible cards so most of the time your digging the large carpool for some synergy that will bring you to the front. At a certain point i just felt like I was playing a complicated game of Milles Bourne. Every choice I made felt predetermined and I just hated it.

Kentucky Meat Rain: never forget

ORANGE EGG DOWN!! I REPEAT, ORANGE EGG DOWN!!!

I understand the criticisms but I think viewed as a more lightweight/familyweight game I can forgive things like the lack of effect variety in return for fewer questionable rules interactions. I love Wingspan for its chilled and simple vibe. Player count is best at 3, I think, the comment about it slowing down at 4-5 is very on the money but it depends on how lazy your Sunday is as to whether that’s a good or bad thing!

I lost count of the bird puns. Anyone else keep track?

So you are saying, "now boarding" has more options.

Wingspan is a brilliant game! Stonmaier knocked out of the park on this one 🐦 Thanks Efka for the review. I always enjoy your videos. Cheers!

Still feel like it is gizmos with birds and some dice.

Eggsellent?

God Bless Tiny Tim is NPI's "reference pear" 🍐

YOU LOOKED AFTER JACK +1B JACK POINTS

I've played this and had a great time!

Game reviewers crossover!! Game reviewer multiverse?

I love you

Quinns sounds like The Skeksis from The Dark Crystal. HMMMMMMMM!

NPI CON!!!

Tiny Tim!!!

People say this game is so gorgeous, but from what I've seen in videos & pics, everything but the box cover looks plain & boring. What am I missing? Are the card drawings really that much better in person?

Oreo.

Dare I say... the best review channel

Both this view and the Dice tower review seem more excited by the production than the actual gameplay. Definitely a pass for me.

After playing this once I can say that I agree with all your observations and critiques. Next time I play I'll have to use that app, too.

Wash, rinse, repeat... got a little redundant and was looking wrap the game up by mid-point of game.

I think you are missing the point on what audience this game is aimed at. It wouldn't make sense that a game with this theme and appeal would be a heavy Euro

Elaine & Efka! 🐦🐤🦢🦜

Absolutely brilliant review, Efka! Thanks for exposing the truth. The egg you laid was quite small my friend - more roughage. 😉

random game

I really think you miss the mark with that "wingspan lacks narrative" comment. Wingspan's redundant powers and similar powers are a masterful representation of evolutionarily conserved traits and convergent evolution. If organisms are redundant in some biological sense, they don't compete for a niche and this game's theme would make less sense: you are selecting an ecologically productive community of birds. Terraforming mars, which I also really enjoy, feels much more like the effects of individual cards are just tacked on. Compare algae vs farming vs any other plant related card in the game. The cards are mechanically different, but there isn't much of a rhyme or reason why one effect gets assigned to one card versus another other than for the sake of hierarchy and balance. A lot of games feel like the designer tried to fit real life mechanics onto their game mechanics. Wingspan is uniquely engineered the other way: attempting to take biological/ecological mechanisms and translate them into a board game.

Anyone who doesn’t love wingspan is wrong.

hi efka

the game looks like a half decent base for a game.. take the engines make the birds have more exciting abilities and variations, change birds to spaceships ( transport, mining/utility, warfare) and add a space map on which you have to achieve certain quests.. or if you need more educational value for your kids, keep the birds and ad fish, insects and different other animals to the mix and try to achieve some dominion in the forest.. with a balanced ecosystem as a favorable bonus. would not be half bad to get some expansions with different types of animals out that each have some new features and when you get all the expansions you can then get an addon expansion to merge them into a completely new game.

"...but, really, sadly, not one I love" is No Pun Included for "99% of the rest of you will love it."

When you need something to light up the fire. Bad game.

Is it all in Metric or can us American's play in feet and inches?

I don't want to hear a cute video, I want a good one. This game is mediocre.

Most overrated overhyped game ever I will give you credit for not falling for the hype Theme is dry and not not connected ...my groups were interested due to awesome graphics but too complex for newbies and too meh for gamers

I love your reviews, but I have a desperate plea to make of you - Please, please PLEASE don’t go down the path of SUSD and add lots more useless goofy content to your reviews. Some well-delivered humor is (of course) welcome, but I cannot watch SUSD reviews because they are TOO STUPIDLY LONG. Please, for the love of all that’s holy - keep it tight. Your fan, - h

I will have to disagree about the play time with 4 or 5 players. Our group of 5 averages just over an hour with Wingspan. Not sure what you guys are doing wrong, but it sounds like your group has some AP issues. It's 1 action per turn dude! How long does Terraforming Mars take you guys, like 4-5 hours? Also, I am a bit surprised that you find that Terraforming Mars is a more interesting theme for you. I really struggle with that game's horrendous art. It really is terrible. Sorry, this is a poor review. 2 thumbs down. 👎👎

Disappointing seeing the SUSD Socialist on here )-;

this game is so ugly and boring. Sorry, i dont understand the hype 🤷‍♂️