What you love most in life is bringing the joys of the sea to people around the world. You own a small tinning company on the coast of Spain where you make simply the best conservas for everyone to enjoy. You are responsible for the whole process, from managing the boats that go out in the morning, to catching the fish and finally selling your tinned goods. You have special goals each month, but it isn’t always about making the most money. Having a sustainable impact on the sea is very important: if you harm the ocean by overfishing, then you will fail in your mission. Maintaining a balanced relationship with the sea is vital as you work hard and continue to make the best conservas in the world!
In each game of Conservas, you begin each season with a single boat and a little money. The sea is represented by a bag of chits full of fish and water tiles. In each round you will fish from this bag, taking some back to your facility for tinning while leaving others at sea to breed.
In order to win, you must maintain a delicate balance between fishing and allowing populations to grow. Each month will have a unique set of objectives, and your sustainability goals are as important as your financial targets. Each market is also unique with specific rules and strategies for making a profit. With 12 different scenarios, randomized decks of boats and upgrade cards, every game will offer a different challenge as you grow your company.
—description from the publisher
- engaging theme and accessible rules
- solo play option adds versatility
- setup can be somewhat involved
- conservation through resource management
- ocean fishing and canning
- puzzle-feel with strategic tension
- Oceanos
- Pax Porfirio
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- bag_building — draw fish and water tiles to fill quotas
- resource_management — balance fish, water, and canning resources
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- We love Santorini. It is so much fun.
- Lightning Train is a bag builder.
- Mystery Flux is fun, but it has player elimination quickly.
- The cover art is amazing.
- Earth Abundance expands Conservas with seeds and sprouts.
- Message in a Bottle is a unique packaging idea.
References (from this video)
- easy to set up with a clear core loop
- highly variable with a rich upgrade deck
- numerous scenarios across months/years add replayability
- strong solo-designed puzzle with scalable difficulty
- ethical/sustainable theme integrated into gameplay
- rules and card text can be unclear in spots; occasional rule lookups needed
- some interactions and upgrade effects may not be immediately intuitive
- ethical harvesting vs profitability; sustainable fisheries as a game objective
- Coastal Portuguese fishing towns with a focus on canned fish production
- practical, demonstrative narration during a hands-on tutorial
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- bag-building — Players draw tokens from a bag and allocate to boats or the open sea to simulate resource collection.
- market and upgrade system — On-land phase lets players buy boats and upgrades using tokens and fish resources.
- place-and-resolve token placement — Tokens placed on boats and open sea cards determine spawning and income; limitations per card exist.
- resource management and upkeep — Boats require upkeep points; players balance investing in new boats/upgrades with ongoing costs.
- scenario/monthly variety — The game includes a full year of scenarios with different setup, goals, and market conditions.
- spawn mechanics and population growth — Spawning rules generate more fish tokens into the bag/ocean based on existing tokens and upgrades.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- this is a nasty little solo bag Builder and I'm very very fond of it
- this is basically a finished game this looks really really good
- ethical capitalism is not exactly a cinch in this game
- I personally like the puzzle that it gives me
- there's a whole year worth of scenarios in the marketbook
- Salt and Pepper has chosen another really nice small box solo game
- it is extremely challenging but very simple to learn
References (from this video)
- colorful components
- high variability
- approachable
- colorful may be visually overwhelming
- some players may find scoring too diffuse
- resource allocation and scoring through card play
- canned goods and culinary themes; factory-style scoring
- abstract, kitchen-table thematic feel
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- point-salad-style scoring — multiple scoring avenues yield points across a single round
- set collection / drafting flavor — cards and tokens interact to score, including political or flavor choices
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- it's called Forever home so instead of fishing for fish you're fishing dogs
- it's like a farm it's foster home
- Cyber Punk is a real time game which means we do actions on a strict time limit
- it's one of the best Real Time games I played
- this is a deck building race game
- it's a point salad game
- it has revived my belief in Euro games