Magic: The Gathering’s Lorwyn Eclipsed set is here, with plenty of pricey cards for you to keep an eye out for. Still, if you’re looking to build a typal deck, or just want to find out a little more about the creature types in Lorwyn Eclipse, then this is the page for you.
Below are some of our favorite cards from the set, from Goblins to Elementals, to Giants, Treefolk, and much more. Planning to build a deck around any of these? Let us know in the comments!
Lorwyn Eclipsed Bestiary: All Creature Types Explained
Kithkin
In a lengthy blog post, Wizards said it wanted to stay true to the original Lorwyn creature types, and pushed to ensure the Limited environment brings creatures together with a playstyle in mind.
Kithkin lean into the green-white colors and a ‘go wide’ strategy, and while they might seem relatively adorable, Champion of the Clachan shows they’re able to tame bigger beasts, too. It’s a 4/5 with Flash, and buffs your other Kithkin with +1/+1.
Merfolk
Merfolk excel in white-blue and lean into blue’s general mischief and white for buffing your other creatures into a tangled web of counters.
Our favorite is Sygg, Wanderbrine Shield. He’s a 2/2 that can’t be blocked, but transforms into Sygg, Wanderwine Wisdom. Doing so protects one of your cards, and when he transforms, he can turn damage into card advantage.
Elves
As is often the case, Elves exist in Green primarily, but don’t discount black, either, with handy mill and graveyard payoffs like Dawnhand Eulogist and Gloom Ripper.
We’re a big fan of Selfless Safewright. It’s a 4/2, five-cost Elf Warrior creature with Flash and Convoke, and turns creatures of a chosen type hexproof and indestructible until the end of the turn.
Goblins
Goblins and Red go together like a dream, and Hexing Squelcher takes our pick. It’s an uncounterable 2/2 creature for two mana that has Ward (2 life) and stops your other spells from being countered while also giving them Ward (2 life).
Elsewhere, Auntie Ool is already becoming pretty popular since they appeared in the Blight Curse precon deck.
Elementals
Elementals take up all five colors, just like their precon, and there are big-hitters like Avenger of Zendikar and Muldrotha the Gravetide to be found in there.
As for our pick, I’ve gone for Moonshadow. It’s a 7/7 card that only costs one mana, but you don’t unlock its full potential until cards hit the graveyard and you get rid of its -1/-1 counters.
Faeries
Just as mischievous as they were in Wilds of Eldraine, Faeries exist across primarily blue and black.
For our favorite, I’ve picked Bitterbloom Bearer. It’s a low-cost flying card with flash, but it turns your life into small Faerie creature tokens.
Giants
There aren’t a ton of cards in the Giant category, but cards like Grave Titan are reprinted.
Burdened Stoneback, not unlike Moonshadow, enters with counters present. These ones can be removed, however, with a mana ability that can turn other creatures indestructible.
Treefolk
Again, not a huge number of treefolk here, but still some great options like Blighted Blackthorn and Sinister Gnarlbark.
Still, it’s Ferrafor, Young Yew who takes our top spot for Treefolk. It’s a 4/7 Treefolk Druid that doubles counters with its tapped ability, and creates a bunch of Saproling creature tokens when it enters, too.
Lloyd Coombes is an experienced freelancer in tech, gaming and fitness seen at Polygon, Eurogamer, Macworld, TechRadar and many more. He’s a big fan of Magic: The Gathering and other collectible card games, much to his wife’s dismay.
Riftbound, the League of Legends trading card game, is set to launch its next expansion, Spiritforged, in the West on February 13. Like Origins before it, there are a handful of different products you can buy to crack packs and build out your collection.
Riftbound: Spiritforged – Where to Buy
But also like Origins, getting your hands on sealed product was tough, with stores and even Riot’s own merch store selling out fast. With Spiritforged, you can pre-purchase these products on TCGplayer, although at significant markups, so just keep that in mind.
Riot’s online merch storefront still has each item at MSRP, and will likely resupply their preorder stock soon, even if it’s currently sold out, so be sure to check back often and sign up for a Riot account.
Otherwise, as always, one of the best ways to buy any TCG product is through your local game store, and Riftbound is no different. Be sure to utilize the official store locator to find shops in your area and support local businesses.
Spiritforged has four main products with its upcoming launch, with a total of 221 new cards to play with. You can get individual booster packs, each containing 14 cards to bolster your collection; you’ll receive seven commons, three uncommons, one rare, one foil of any rarity, another random foil or rare, and either one token or Rune card.
One booster pack is currently going for $14.75 on TCGplayer. Then you can pick up a booster box, which is a sealed box of 24 booster box. With boxes, drop rates aren’t entirely random. One in three boxes will contain an alternate art Overnumbered edition, while one in 30 will contain an ultra rare signed version. From here, you can purchase a booster display case, which is a collection of six booster boxes, if you can stomach the price.
For newer players, you can two preconstructed Spiritforged Champion decks. Fiora and Rumble are the Champion decks this time around, featuring a 56-card prebuilt decks focused on their respective mechanics. You’ll receive their Legend card, their corresponding Chosen Champion cards, their Signature Spells, three Battlefields, and a Spiritforged booster pack.
Riftbound: Origins – Where to Buy
Still enjoying cracking Origins packs? If you’re able to find them in stock, there are a handful of different product to get your hands on before Spiritforged drops.
A new lawsuit filed by shareholders of Hasbro against the company and its directors alleges that company leadership has mismanaged Magic: The Gathering by overprinting sets of cards, thereby devaluing existing ones. It also, quite notably, claims that Hasbro leadership “concealed the true reason” that its widely-criticized, incredibly expensive Magic: The Gathering 30th Anniversary Set was pulled from sale within an hour of its initial release.
The lawsuit, filed in Rhode Island earlier this week, is filed by shareholders Joseph Crocono and Ultan McGlone against Hasbro CEO Christian Cocks, a number of fellow company directors, and Hasbro itself. The lawsuit alleges breaches of fiduciary duty, unjust enrichment, waste of corporate assets, gross mismanagement, abuse of control, and violations of the Exchange Act.
Specifically, the shareholder plaintiffs claim that, under Cocks’ leadership, Hasbro has been printing far too many Magic: The Gathering sets, thereby reducing the value of existing sets. This complaint probably sounds familiar to avid Magic players, as Wizards of the Coast has been printing significantly more sets per year than it used to. This handy chart made in 2022 by jacobwillson2727 at Only on Tuesdays helps illustrate the problem, and it’s only gotten worse in the years since:
As noted in the lawsuit, Wizards of the Coast released more sets than ever before in 2020, which served to double the revenue of the Wizards segment of Hasbro between 2018 and 2021, and in 2022, Hasbro released over five times as many Magic sets as it had in 2016. It’s worth noting that both the chart above and the lawsuit itself are somewhat generous in what they consider to be a Magic “set.” For example, the lawsuit also claims Wizards released 39 separate Magic sets in 2022 – that strikes me as a little high, and most likely includes Secret Lair collaborations in addition to every other possible kind of set.
Regardless of how you count them, it is true that the card release volume has gone up lately, as anyone who’s grouchy about the number of Universes Beyond collaborations in 2026 will tell you. But the issue the shareholders have is that the volume, they claim, is exceeding consumer demand, and that Hasbro leadership is only releasing this many to get quick cash to cover up shortfalls elsewhere in the Hasbro business.
The lawsuit itself is 76 pages long, but there are two major accusations that stand out. One is an allegation that Hasbro management used something called the “Parachute Strategy.” Allegedly, leadership plotted to “parachute in” new Magic sets whenever there was a shortfall somewhere else in Hasbro. These parachute sets initially consisted of “Masters” sets – largely reprints with low production costs. However, as it grew, more sets got involved, including the aforementioned Secret Lair collaborations and the Commander Legends: Battle for Baldur’s Gate set. Per the lawsuit, “As such, the explosive growth in the Magic business noted just prior to and during the Relevant Period [September 2021 – October 2023] was in fact the result of the Parachute Strategy. Notably, in 2022 such ‘parachute’ Magic sets accounted for 46% of all Magic releases.”
The second, and perhaps even spicier, accusation is the allegation that Hasbro management essentially faked being out of stock of the controversial, extremely expensive Magic 30th Anniversary Set in order to encourage demand. If you’re not familiar, this was an unhinged $999 box that contained four booster packs of non-tournament legal reprints of original Magic cards, some of which Wizards had sworn it would never reprint. This box garnered massive criticism due to its price, the fact that the cards weren’t even usable, and the seemingly broken promise on the part of Wizards not to reprint classics such as, say, Black Lotus.
According to testimony from several members of leadership shared in the complaint, following the negative reaction from players at this announcement, management made a plan to “pause” sales of the set if it became apparent that they were weaker than anticipated. The company said the “sale has concluded, and the product is currently unavailable for purchase,” in a post on X (then Twitter), implying they had sold out, effectively making it look like the product was far more popular than it actually had been. In the lawsuit, plaintiffs accuse the company of claiming the product was “out of stock.”
What happened to the unsold cards after sales were paused, then? The lawsuit goes on:
“[Former Employee 6] likewise stated that the Company paused its sales of the Magic Anniversary Set less than an hour after its release, only selling a portion of its available inventory. FE 6 further noted that shortly after the set’s release, he and other Wizards employees viewed photographs of Magic Anniversary Sets dropped off at a Texas landfill alongside older Magic products.”
The plantiffs are asking the judge to rule that they, as shareholders, are adequate representatives of Hasbro and therefore can sue on behalf of the company itself, and that each of the individual defendants failed in their fiduciary duties. They are also asking that Hasbro be awarded damages from each individual defendant, and that the shareholders be given significantly more power on the board of the company.
IGN has reached out to Hasbro for comment.
This is far from the first time shareholders have expressed displeasure with Hasbro’s handling of Magic. Mentioned multiple times in the suit is a deep dive done by Bank of America back in 2022 on this exact issue of overprinting, which prompted analysts to claim Hasbro was hurting its long-term value with so many frequent set releases.
This year’s first set, Lorwyn Eclipsed, is doing all right at least, having seemingly sold out in most places amid excitement at a return to a beloved plane from Magic’s history. It’s even got a host of super expensive rare cards, topped off with a Showcase Fracture Foil version of Bloom Tender that’s going for over $600 at the time this piece was written.
Rebekah Valentine is a senior reporter for IGN. Got a story tip? Send it to rvalentine@ign.com.
If Animal Crossing: New Horizons’ 3.0 update earlier this month wasn’t enough for you, don’t worry, there’s a new hype train you can board. IKEA just recently posted a TikTok with some very familiar sights and sounds, and it has us hoping for a furniture collaboration soon.
As spotted by Polygon, the official TikTok page for IKEA France posted a video two days ago that very much seems to be teasing something Animal Crossing-related. In the video, a very distinctively Animal Crossing leaf floats down from the ceiling of an empty room, before a hand cursor clicks on it and turns it into furniture, cycling through four different types of IKEA furniture (two bookcases in different styles, a dresser, and a couch). The video description, via TikTok’s translation from French, reads, “We still don’t accept cash bells. #ikea #animalcrossing”
The background music, while not identifiable immediately as any specific Animal Crossing theme, certainly has the correct xylophone and according sounds going. And the sound effects of clicking and cycling between furniture are 100% straight from Animal Crossing. To me, that reads that whatever’s going on here at minimum has Nintendo’s blessing.
Furthermore, IKEA and Nintendo have collaborated on Animal Crossing stuff before. Five years ago, IKEA Taiwan recreated one of its print catalog using nothing but screenshots from Animal Crossing: New Horizons. IKEA has also done proper in-game collaborations with games like The Sims in the past, so it wouldn’t be too much of a stretch to see something like IKEA furniture in Animal Crossing, or Animal Crossing furniture sold at IKEA.
Personally, I’m all on board of this means we get Blåhaj in Animal Crossing, or a real-life Froggy Chair. We’ll keep our eyes peeled for any sort of official confirmation.
Queen’s Blood fans, it’s time to celebrate. The addictive Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth card game is making a “powered-up” comeback for the final chapter in Square Enix’s remake trilogy.
Polygon spoke with director Naoki Hamaguchi about the progress of development on Final Fantasy 7 Remake Part 3 and touched on the topic of one of the more popular virtual pastimes of 2024. He says he plans to double down on the card game when its next installment finally launches, promising to “expand” what was seen with its Rebirth launch.
“Queen’s Blood is a very popular and beloved minigame, and I believe a lot of people are still wanting something like that,” Hamaguchi said. “I want to expand on Queen’s Blood so that we are enhancing it, and giving you a more powered-up version of it when you see that third installment… Queen’s Blood is still going to be available in the third installment. We just want to expand on it.”
The director declines to share exactly what a spruced-up version of Queen’s Blood will look like, but it’s easy to imagine an expansion of new cards and new side-quests shaking up the gameplay. However, Hamaguchi’s comments suggest players may be in for a somewhat substantial upgrade.
Hamaguchi adds that the original Final Fantasy 7 mini-game featuring snowboarding is also coming back for Remake Part 3. He teases that “it’s not going to be just a simple snowboarding minigame,” adding that it will be incorporated into the story and its themes, but stops short of providing more details.
The Final Fantasy 7 remake trilogy is jam-packed with a variety of mini-games to keep Cloud and company’s fight against Sephiroth from getting too serious, but most fans are just looking forward to seeing how the retelling will finally finish its story. Hamaguchi and the rest of the Square Enix team is far from ready to share a release date, but he says development is at least “coming along very smoothly.”
“We have set a schedule for ourselves, and I believe we are tracking on time for the milestones we have set,” Hamaguchi adds. “So I’m really thankful for the development team and I have so much respect for them working on this project. I believe that at this point the game is playable, technically, but we are still trying to polish it so it is at a quality where we can deliver it to our players.”
Square Enix has had a lot of luck when it comes to Final Fantasy cards in recent history. Despite the overwhelming number of mini-games present in Rebirth, Final Fantasy 7 fans largely took to Queen’s Blood, all 145 of its collectible cards, and the strategy is added to the overall experience. In the real world, Magic: The Gathering fans spent 2025 obsessing about its Final Fantasy-themed set, which included dozens of references to not only Final Fantasy 7 but all 16 mainline entries, too.
Michael Cripe is a freelance writer with IGN. He’s best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).
The Switch 2 library is growing this year, and the Super Mario Bros. Wonder Nintendo Switch 2 Edition is joining the party soon. This upgraded version of the 2023 Switch game includes some fresh enhancements alongside a new expansion called “Meetup in Bellabel Park” and some new characters joining the fun. It’s quite the upgrade, and it’s still a couple of months away (mark your calendars for March 26), but preorders are already live at select retailers.
Similar to other Switch 2 Editions that have released, there’s a digital upgrade pack for those who already have the original Switch version, alongside a standard, complete version of the game’s Switch 2 version for those who don’t currently own the original. We’ve included where you can preorder a full physical copy of the game (for $79.99) and this upgrade pack (for $19.99) below.
Preorder Super Mario Bros. Wonder for the Switch 2 (Physical)
Physical copies can be found at both Target and GameStop, and we’re keeping an eye out to see when other retailers drop it as well. As for the digital version, that hasn’t gone up for preorder yet, for some reason. We’ll be sure to update it once it’s available, though.
Preorder Super Mario Bros. Wonder Switch 2 Upgrade Pack
If you already have Super Mario Bros. Wonder on Nintendo Switch and are just hoping to get the upgrade pack to use it on your Switch 2, that’s currently available to preorder right now at the Nintendo eShop. For $19.99, this will set you up with all of the extras from the Nintendo Switch 2 Edition when the game is released on March 26.
Save on Super Mario Bros. Wonder
Considering the pricey cost of the physical Nintendo Switch 2 Edition, this is a neat little hack you can do to save a little cash. At the moment, Woot is offering the original version of Super Mario Bros. Wonder for $46.99. If you don’t already own it, you can buy from Woot at this good price and then purchase the upgrade pack, which brings your total cost to $66.98. Compared to the $79.99 price tag for the physical Switch 2 Edition, this is a great little deal to take advantage of.
Hannah Hoolihan is a freelancer who writes with the guides and commerce teams here at IGN.
Forza Horizon 6 will launch with a $59.99 Premium Upgrade Bundle that unlocks four days of early access — albeit at almost the same cost as buying the game again.
Last night, Xbox gave its upcoming Japan-set open world racer a stunning full gameplay reveal during its Xbox Developer Direct livestream, though didn’t go into detail on the game’s pricing.
When it arrives on May 19 for PC and Xbox Series X/S, Forza Horizon 6’s Standard Edition will cost $69.99, while its Premium Edition is priced at $119.99. Alternatively — and of note for those planning to play the game via Xbox Game Pass Ultimate — you can purchase that $59.99 Premium Upgrade Bundle, and play starting May 15.
The game’s Premium Edition / Premium Upgrade include other benefits too, of course, though not all of them are available on day one. Effectively, this option lets you pre-order the game’s two upcoming, unannounced expansions, as well as the Italian Passion Car Park, which also does not have a release date. You’ll also get the Time Attack Car Pack, Car Pass (which adds 30 more cars to your game, one per week), plus VIP Membership and a Welcome Pack.
This offering is nothing new for the Forza Horizon series, though is $10 more than the $49.99 Premium Upgrade offered for Forza Horizon 5 — an increase that has not gone unnoticed among the franchise’s fanbase on social media and reddit.
The pricing is even more remarkable in other territories, too — in the UK, the Premium Upgrade is £59.99, the exact same cost as the game itself. In Australia, the Premium Edition is AU $190, up from AU $150 for the Premium Edition of Forza Horizon 5.
“Yeah that’s absolutely cooked,” wrote Aussie Forza fan Pretty_Leather4803 on reddit. “$40 more for basically the same content as last time? Microsoft really thinks we’re made of money down here. At this point I’m just gonna wait for it to hit Game Pass and skip all the fancy extras.”
“Inflation is a real thing,” countered another fan, BrokenClays, in yet another reddit thread. “In November 2021 FH5 Premium was $99.99. Adjusted for inflation, that’s $116.58 in December 2025 dollars. They are charging $119.99. In the UK in 2021 FH5 cost £84.99. Adjusted for inflation, it would be £106.58. They are charging £109.99. I know a lot of people are feeling sticker shock, but the price increase is just a hair over inflation. The world we live in is more expensive.”
Finally, just to cover all bases, there’s the Deluxe Edition of the game — which is less deluxe than the Premium Edition. For $99.99, you’ll get the base game, Car Pass and Welcome Pack, but not the early access, expansions, or anything else included in the Premium Edition / Upgrade.
It’s worth pointing out that last year, a report alleged that Microsoft had pushed Xbox studios to deliver a 30% profit margin — much higher than the industry average. Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier said that Microsoft’s 30% profit margin goal had led to the gaming division’s huge layoffs, canceled projects, controversial price rises, and multiplatform push.
Bloomberg said the average profit margin in the video game industry is 17-22%. Over the past six years, Xbox has hit 10-20%. To put that 30% target into more context, Sony’s PlayStation division achieved a 16% profit margin in the first quarter of its 2025 financial year. Bloomberg said Microsoft Chief Financial Officer Amy Hood enforced the new target in fall 2023 — amid Microsoft’s $69 billion acquisition of Call of Duty maker Activision Blizzard.
Which Forza Horizon 6 edition of the game are you buying?
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
The latest entry in the hugely popular Arknights universe is out now, expanding the IP beyond mobile and introducing cross platform progression. Arknights: Endfield – a free-to-play RPG that builds on the strategic depth of 2019’s Arknights – made an impact with its presence at Japan Expo, Anime Expo and gamescom last year, and had over 35 million sign-ups in its pre-registration phase.
To celebrate the release on PlayStation 5, PC and mobile, publisher GRYPHLINE has announced an array of rewards players can claim, including sign-in bonuses and milestone rewards equivalent to at least 135 pulls across different banners.
The game introduces a 3D world built around exploration, real-time combat and base-building objectives to the original 2D offering, with a new frontier storyline driving the action. Players control squads of up to four characters (Operators), combining their skills, elemental abilities and coordinated tactics in a series of fast-paced enemy encounters.
At the heart of the narrative is the player-character the Endministrator, or Endmin, a legendary guardian who has been roused from a decade-long hibernation. The Endmin has been tasked with protecting the inhabitants of Talos II from catastrophic threats, and, with the assistance of Endfield Industries, has utilised their mastery of advanced energy transmission and the planet’s most valuable resource: an element called Originium. Together, they have developed a variety of industrial technologies including the Automated Industrial Complex (AIC), a backbone of production networks and power grids stretching across the wilderness, in order to forge a future and expand the Civilization Band across Talos II.
But as well as driving innovation and progress, the Civilization Band also faces threats posed by raider clans, hostile entities the Aggeloi, and The Blight – a mysterious dimensional anomaly that infects and taints any matter it comes into contact with.
Arknights: Endfield’s expansion beyond mobile means that exploration, AIC mastery, squad combat and management of Endfield Industries’ orbital HQ can all be enjoyed with native 120 FPS support, realistic snow-stepping, environmental puddle reflections and more. Players can also toggle NVIDIA DLSS Super Resolution and Frame Generation independently, to further bring the expansive landscapes of Talos II to life.
In addition, there is plug-and-play support on both mobile and PC for DualSense, DualShock and Xbox controllers with haptic feedback, providing a premium tactile as well as visual experience.
Arknights: Endfield is available now on PlayStation5, PC via the official launcher and Epic Games Store, and mobile devices via Apple App Store and Google Play Store. Check out our review so far for a comprehensive breakdown of the game’s mechanics and the opening hours of gameplay.
Fortnite fans have gained a first look at how The Office characters Michael Scott and Dwight Scrute will appear in the game, when they become available later tonight.
The pair of new Fortnite skins include the likenesses of actors Steve Carell and Rainn Wilson, and come with a range of alternate styles and accessories. The Michael Scott skin includes the option to wear sunglasses, or unbutton his shirt and wear a backwards cap for his “Date Mike” look.
Dwight Scrute, meanwhile, comes with the option to wear his suit jacket or not — and without, the skin can be seen with a holster strapped to his uncovered belt (complete with banana, as seen in the show). Another reference comes in the shape of Dwight’s skin mask option for his face, as worn by the character after he memorably cut it off of a CPR dummy.
Said CPR dummy (without face) is appropriately Dwight’s backbling. Michael’s backwear, meanwhile, is a giant World’s Best Boss mug, as used by the character throughout the show. Further accessories include Dwight’s Broom-Stake and Michael’s Dundee award statue, both used as pickaxes.
There’s even a Megadesk glider, and emotes for Dwight’s convertible (which he leans out of yelling in his megaphone), and Michael’s Scarn dance. Both feature original dialogue from the show.
Today, the collaboration has been decrypted within Fortnite’s files, ahead of the items going on sale via the game’s shop at its next reset. This has allowed the game’s usual leakers such as ShinaBR, whose posts are embedded above, to show off the content early.
Fortnite launched into its Chapter 7 era in November with an Avengers Endgame-style team-up event. Crossovers added since then have included skins for Kim Kardashian, Bleach, and South Park. Next week will bring a skin for Ed from Ed, Edd n Eddy. Today also sees the launch of Fortnite’s 3v3 Fall Guys basketball mode Crown Jam, which is available for a limited time. Take a first look at that just below.
Tom Phillips is IGN’s News Editor. You can reach Tom at tom_phillips@ign.com or find him on Bluesky @tomphillipseg.bsky.social
Ark Nova, a long, complex and richly strategic game of zoo-building and conservation, took board gaming by storm after its release in 2021. When a game gets that popular, while having big barriers to new players, a simplified spin-off is almost guaranteed – and now we have Sanctuary from the same designer. It has the same widely appealing theme and keeps some of the innovative mechanisms of its parent, but how much of its strategic clout can it retain?
What’s in the Box
Sanctuary comes in a big box with considerable heft. When you slide the lid off the reason becomes clear: it contains sheet after sheet of large, punch out, cardboard hexes. Like Ark Nova, these are all illustrated with photos of animals, zoo staff, or pertinent buildings and landscapes. Photo-art in the obviously artificial medium of board gaming can look odd but here it works well, re-enforcing the feeling that you’re building something real and tangible.
Most of the hexes are peppered with confusing icons which initially appear very mysterious but, once you’ve internalized the game rules, you’ll appreciate having all the information on the game state front and center. The game thoughtfully includes a plastic rack for each player to hold their “hand” of hex tiles during play.
Aside from the hex tiles there’s a bunch of other cardboard to pop out, not only tokens but also action “cards” for each player, which are made of thick cardboard rather than playing-card stock. There are two central boards, one for tracking objectives and another for holding the market of tiles which requires a little assembly, as the edges fold in and stick down to keep the tiles in place. Finally, there’s a two-sided hex map for each player to build their zoo on. Unlike the parent game, everyone here uses the same map during play, one side of the board or the other.
Rules and How It Plays
You can get some sense of how much more simple Sanctuary is than Ark Nova simply by comparing rulebooks, which otherwise have similar layouts and fonts. Ark Nova weighs in at 20 pages: Sanctuary a modest eight, with plenty of examples. It jettisons the bigger game’s separation of animals and enclosures, making everything a single tile that you lay onto the hex board representing your zoo.
One thing it keeps, however, is the notion of action card strength. You have four different actions arranged beneath your zoo board in a ranking from weakest to strongest. When you use one, it operates at a “level” equal to its current position in the queue. Then it moves into the weakest slot and the other cards all slide up one rank. All the actions allow you to place tiles into your zoo: three of them are for animals of different habitats while the fourth is for “projects”, which include things like specialist researchers, conservation efforts and the like. All the matching tiles have a strength requirement and the action card you use to lay it must be at that level or higher.
Many tiles have additional requirements. The most common is for arrows on the tile edge to line up with empty spaces: you start with a couple in your zoo map but you can add more by playing tiles from your hand face-down. Others need to be adjacent to tiles already in your zoo that carry certain icons. All have at least one icon representing an animal type, a habitat or a continent. Most tiles improve the appeal of your zoo, which is essentially your victory point tally. For many that’s a fixed value, while others depend on how many of a particular icon you have adjacent to that tile or on your map as a whole.
You can get bonus appeal by satisfying conservation objectives. Five are drawn randomly for each game, matching particular animal type and continent icons. To claim one you must simply have the matching number of icons in your zoo; the more icons, the more points. You can also spend conservation markers, in place of a missing icon, making these tokens very powerful. They can be obtained by getting matching male and female animal tiles of the same species next to each other on your map, or from certain project tiles.
These are the parameters of the puzzle that Sanctuary lays before you, fiendishly pulling you in multiple directions at once.
These are the parameters of the puzzle that Sanctuary lays before you, fiendishly pulling you in multiple directions at once. Many tiles reward you for specializing in particular icons. Conservation bonuses, meanwhile, reward you for diversity. Your challenge is to try and decide how, given the limitation of what tiles you pick up and the actions at your disposal, you’re going to balance this problem to eke out the highest score.
To complicate matters, each level of conservation bonus can only be claimed once. So if you claim one with two bird icons, say, and then get more birds in your zoo later, you can’t then go back and claim the bigger-scoring four- or five-icon rewards via birds later on. You need to have four or five of a different animal type or make up the difference with those precious conservation tokens. The whole thing is a mess of competing priorities that can make the game surprisingly tense for what is essentially an un-interactive game where you’re focused on building out your own map.
Because you’re being asked to do so many different things at once, how you pick up and hold tiles is very important. At the start of your turn you have to take one tile from the six in the display. However, you can only take that tile from the queue position up to the current level of your projects action card, making this one particularly important. After that you take an “official” action which involves either using a card to play tiles or you can take more tiles. Animal actions used this way give you two random tiles, while the projects action lets you take one tile of your choice from the display.
Again, given that the game is essentially a race, this results in surprising tension. Play ends when someone either fills their map or collects all five conservation bonuses, both of which are reliant on playing tiles. So missing a turn to take more tiles feels like you’re falling behind. But it’s always so tempting! There are often hexes available that you desperately want because their icons fit with the conservation objectives, or others in your zoo, or even male-female animal pairs but the more you collect them in hope of making combos, the further you risk getting behind in the race for points. The fact you can only hold six tiles at once adds a delightfully frustrating element to these decisions.
Your action order is the final plank in the game’s puzzle. Often, you’ll want to play a given tile and you won’t have the requisite action at a high enough level. So you have to muddle through potentially laying and taking less interesting tiles to get where you want to be. Forward planning your action chains to get cards to the required levels becomes a hallmark of experience when you’re selecting tiles from the display, muddied by the desire to keep projects high to maximize your choices. Cards can also be levelled up to get higher action levels by fulfilling four different criteria, such as claiming your first spot on the conservation track. As is typical for the game’s circular approach to strategy, fulfilling these is yet another competing priority to juggle.
There are times when all the different things going on become an active problem for the game, however. The need for tiles to support each other, and particularly the reward for animal gender pairs, can be frustratingly hard to fulfill if the tiles you want are simply not in the display when it’s your turn. As such, it works better at lower player counts: with five, especially, it feels overlong. The mechanisms also feel very abstract, especially compared to Ark Nova which at least presents an illusion of running a real zoo.
Once the game is finished, everyone has to tally up their points, which is an annoyingly time-consuming process. With the score offered by many tiles being dependent on many other tiles it takes a while to tot them up, and it’s very easy to make errors in what is often quite a tight game. While everyone is raring to know who won, the time and effort it takes to chalk up the scores has the unfortunate effect of deflating whatever excitement has built up during play, leading to the final result arriving as a bit of an anticlimax.
