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Game Info
Year
2026
Players
1-6
Age
13+
Playtime
105 min
Complexity
2.2/5
Collection
Your Tier
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Description
An expansion for Earth that adds 36 animal cards with unique personal and global abilities to increase asymmetry and strategic depth.
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All mentions
Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 7
This page: 7
Sentiment:
pos 4 ·
mix 0 ·
neu 0 ·
neg 0
Showing 1–7 of 7
Video MDA2JJ36kGQ
Tantrum House Discussion at 1:58
video_pk 85734 · mention_pk 220396
Click to watch at 1:58 · YouTube ↗
Pros
none
Cons
none
Thematic elements
- Animal Kingdom
Comparison games
- Earth
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Tableau Building — Expand the awardwinning game Earth with the Animal Kingdom expansion, which introduces 36 new animals, each with powerful asymmetrical abilities that change how you build your tableau.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- This video is sponsored in part by Studio Midhall.
- So, those are some of the games coming to crowdfunding this second half of April.
- Thanks again to our sponsor, Studio Midhall.
- Be sure to check out their game Hollow Pack coming to Kickstarter on April 29th.
- And as always, let me know in the comments which games you are excited about. and are thinking about backing and if I have missed any of your favorites coming to crowdfunding.
- And until next time, aloha
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video 7NjSvVtTvdI
Foster the Meeple Review at 2:00 sentiment: positive
video_pk 85737 · mention_pk 220405
Click to watch at 2:00 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Introduces cute and appealing animal meeples.
- Significantly increases variability and replayability.
- Adds new strategic layers through animal and global abilities.
- Can be combined with the base game or other expansions.
Cons
- Requires the base game to play.
- Some cards require the 'Abundance' expansion to be used.
Thematic elements
- Animals
Comparison games
- Earth
- Abundance
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Action activation — Animal abilities can be activated by using leaves, and global abilities activate at the end of a round.
- Card Drafting — Players draft animal cards through a process of flipping, dealing, selecting, and passing.
- Endgame scoring — Some animals provide opportunities for endgame scoring.
- Resource conversion — Some animal and global abilities allow for the conversion of resources.
- Set Collection — Players collect 'anameles' (meeples) that match animal cards.
- Variable player powers — Each animal card provides a unique global ability and an animal ability.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- In Earth, one to five players take on the role of planetary caretakers building out biodiverse environments using cards that represent things like flora, terrain, ecosystems, and climate.
- Earth is a true engine builder.
- Animal Kingdom is an expansion, so you will need the base game in order to play, and you can also combine it with the other expansion for Earth, Abundance.
- The objective in Animal Kingdom remains the same.
- This expansion introduces animal abilities and global abilities.
- Anytime a player uses a leaf, they may activate the ability of their animals.
- The common loon is going to be collecting sprouts from their tableau, placing them on this card, scoring seven points for every two sprouts on this card for the end of the game.
- The enemle moves exactly x cards away from its starting position, meaning partial movement is not allowed.
- There are four types of animal abilities.
- One global ability card is used per game, activating for all players each time the active player token is passed from the last player in turn order to the starting player.
- There are four types of global abilities.
- Please feel free to join the Foster and Evil Discord.
- And don't forget to please be kind to the earth because it's the only one we got.
- Be nice to cows and beavers.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video BeuWzgvhP_0
Rahdo Runs Through Top List at 50:27 sentiment: other
video_pk 85635 · mention_pk 219962
Click to watch at 50:27 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
Makes an excellent game even better
Pros
- Adds new, active animal roles with cool meeples
- Increases game depth without slowing it down
- Enhances the engine building and habitat creation aspects
- Symbiotic gameplay potential
- Makes an already great game even better
Cons
- Slightly increases player time due to animal activation needs
Thematic elements
- Building a habitat for animals
- Island ecosystem
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- action selection — Players choose actions to play cards, gain resources, and activate abilities.
- Area Movement — Animal meeples move around the player's island.
- Resource Management — Players manage resources like leaves to activate animals.
- Set Collection — Players score points based on objectives related to animals and card placement.
- Tableau Building — Players build an engine of cards in front of them.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- It's going to be from my least favorite to my most favorite.
- I hated so much. It filled me with so much raw anger that I rant about it in the gen jog, but I'm not going to talk about it in public cuz I like my channel to largely be a positive, uplifting source of board game news.
- Circle the Wagons, Lone Cowboy. Circle of Wagons um is already a game that was in my top 10 forever games.
- It's a brilliant solo game and that's really no surprise.
- It's the greatest co-op deck builder ever and I'm just continue to be amazed at how the designers keep coming up with new content.
- Everything about it is awesome. Aon's End always continues to be awesome.
- Earth is in my top 10 games of all time.
- Earth is one of the best games of all time, and this just makes it even better without slowing the game down at all, which is uh sometime, you know, and that's one of Earth's great strengths.
- my number one game of the month, the excellent Earth Animal Kingdom.
- I don't have time to film all this stuff myself anymore, folks. There's too many other things going on like stuff that might be going on in this very space soon.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video Wv82gChqknM
Grant Lyon Analysis at 2:41 sentiment: positive
video_pk 80916 · mention_pk 198626
Click to watch at 2:41 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Adds 36 new animals with unique abilities.
- Fun physical component with animeeples.
- Increases replayability.
Cons
none
Thematic elements
- Ecology
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Animeeples — Introduces 'big wooden animeeples' for the new animals.
- Engine Building — The base game is described as an engine-building game, and the expansion adds new ways to score points and trigger abilities.
- Global and Personal Abilities — Each animal card is double-sided with a global ability (used by all players) and a personal ability (used by the player who owns the card).
- Tableau Building — The base game is described as a tableau-building game, and the expansion adds new animal cards.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- These are the best expansions coming to retail in May.
- So, if you want more of a challenge, then check out Heat Legends.
- So, if you want some more replayability for Earth, then check out Animal Kingdom.
- So, if you're a fan of Lords of Waterdeep, then check out this new edition and new expansion.
- If you like card combos, you know, Race for the Galaxy is a pretty popular game at this point as well.
- So, those are eight expansions coming to retail here in the month of May.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video 8OK5BQbz-F8
The Broken Meeple Review at 0:24 sentiment: positive
video_pk 80697 · mention_pk 197347
Click to watch at 0:24 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Adds variety to the game
- Easy to integrate and remove
- Abilities are not overly complicated, with complexity ranked
- Thematic integration of abilities
Cons
- Limited activation per game (max 5 times)
- May not be missed if removed
- Does not fix existing problems in the base game
- Expansion storage might require an additional box
Thematic elements
- Animals and their abilities
Comparison games
- Earth: Abundance
- Wingspan: Americas expansion
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Animal Abilities — Players select an animal with a unique ability, which can be triggered a limited number of times during the game. These abilities can generate resources, score points, or perform other actions, often requiring specific setup on the player's tableau.
- global abilities — One animal card is flipped to provide a global ability that all players can resolve at certain times during the game. These are described as 'small little things' that help players.
- Objective Fulfillment — Triggering animal abilities is often tied to fulfilling 'fauna objectives' or completing one's tableau, which grants 'leaves' that can be used to activate the animal.
- Resource Generation — Animal abilities can generate resources like 'sprout cubes' or 'soil.'
- Tableau Building — The animal meeples are placed and moved around the player's tableau of cards, with movement often dictated by specific rules related to flora cards.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- Win or lose, I'm going to be honest with you.
- It's just great to pull the game out, whether it's solo or group. I just get a kick out of it.
- The variety is off the freaking chain.
- I will happily play Earth in its base form without any of the expansions, and I'll still have a fantastic 10 out of 10 rated time. It's that good.
- Remember it's only a game, regardless of which one of these animals you want to take with you on your adventures
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video Hyh6kw9CVSc
The Dice Tower Unboxing at 3:07
video_pk 80347 · mention_pk 195454
Click to watch at 3:07 · YouTube ↗
Pros
none
Cons
none
Thematic elements
- animals
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Mechanics unknown.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- Hey everybody, I'm Tom Bassel.
- Thanks for watching the most boring unboxings on the planet Earth.
- I'm Tom Bassel. Thanks for watching another video on the Dice Tower.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video AS4-InXQyI4
Review at 0:04 sentiment: positive
video_pk 79896 · mention_pk 193490
Click to watch at 0:04 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Adds new animal meeples with unique abilities.
- Provides new strategic decisions, particularly around activating animals early by sacrificing leaves.
- Increases replayability through different animal combinations.
- Enhances the theme by making fauna active components of the game.
- Great production quality with many meeples.
- Adds strategic depth and complexity.
- Combos between animals can be very powerful and satisfying.
- Adds more options for players who enjoy paying attention to opponents' moves.
Cons
- Best experienced with the advanced game mode, which adds complexity.
- In the basic game mode (one animal), activating animals by sacrificing leaves might not be worth it, making them less impactful until the end of the game.
- The card drafting mechanism for acquiring animals feels pointless in a two-player game.
- Requires advanced mode to fully leverage the animal combos and strategic sacrifice of leaves.
Thematic elements
- Animals developing an island habitat
Comparison games
- Earth
- Earth Abundance
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- action selection — Players choose actions (e.g., plant, grow, blue action, yellow action) with other players gaining benefits or performing weaker versions.
- Card Drafting — Players draft animal cards to gain personal abilities.
- Engine Building — Players build up their island and animal abilities to create more efficient turns and resource generation.
- Objective Fulfillment — Players work to complete objective cards for points and to activate animal abilities.
- Resource Management — Managing dirt, growth, sprouts, and leaves is crucial for performing actions and activating abilities.
- Set Collection — The host aims to collect four bushes for the Siberian Tiger objective.
- Simultaneous Play — While players take turns performing actions, the benefits and effects can often cascade, and the core game 'Earth' is known for this.
- Variable player powers — Each player gets personal animal cards that grant unique abilities.
- Worker placement (implied) — The animals move around the island and interact with flora, suggesting a form of placement or movement on a board.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- I love the speed. I love the simultaneous play. I love the indirect interaction because people who say, 'Oh, I don't care what anybody else is doing around the table, well, they're going to lose if they play against me because I'm definitely paying attention to what my opponents are doing.
- The beautiful thing here is if you want to gamble and if you want to sacrifice one or more of those objectives, you can trigger them anytime you want by simply sacrificing those leaves.
- And now the fauna comes to life and literally moves around. And that just makes the game that much more charming and that much deeper with that much more replayability because every time you play, you're going to get a different combination of those.
- My only complaint about the Animal Kingdom, well, one is the fact that um really to get the best out of them, you need to play the advanced version of the game.
- In a two-player game, that's just so pointless, just handing cards back and forth to each other.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
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Showing 1–7 of 7