Board games that model the natural world for Earth Day

Ars Cardboard at Ars Technica recommended a selection of board games that model the natural world and explore ecological themes to mark Earth Day. For younger players, the list highlights Planet, in which players add magnets to a dodecahedron to create habitats and score by prioritizing lots of habitats, large habitats, or large habitats isolated from others.

More experienced players are pointed to Wingspan and Parks, the latter using artwork licensed from the Fifty-Nine Parks Print Series, while Hive is noted as a waterproof abstract ideal for outdoor play, with gameplay focused on trapping the opposing queen using insect pieces. Games that emphasize interconnection include Ecos: First Continent, where players form a shared landmass and balance personal goals with communal ecosystems, and the Evolution series and its offshoots—Evolution: Climate and Oceans—described as featuring sharp card play and competitive feeding that fuels an evolutionary arms race.

Photosynthesis is featured for its plant-focused play, as players grow trees, compete for space and sunlight, and score as sunlight direction shifts each turn. The coverage also includes heavier, more detailed titles such as the Bios trilogy—Bios: Genesis, Bios: Megafauna, and Bios: Origins—which trace life from chemical beginnings through megafauna competition to human civilizations, each entry differing in mechanics and focus.

Key Topics

Culture, Earth Day, Planet, Wingspan, Photosynthesis, Bios Trilogy