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Description
As spring dawns the great thaw begins. Deep beneath the lush meadow grasses the queen stirs in her nest and the colony comes to life. Soldiers venture forth, battling centipedes while clashing with opposing colonies for territory. Workers dig an ever-expanding network of tunnels in their tireless search for food. The first larvae hatch and it is clear this generation will be different: the young colonies rapidly evolve into a multitude of new forms. The ants march out to claim the meadow as their own.
In March of the Ants, you create the shared Meadow board by sending your ants to explore it, revealing and strategically placing two dozen unique tiles like Fern, Pebble, and Nest of Centipedes.
Populate new territory by breeding larvae and marching your ants onto collection sites. Will you engage competing colonies in battle, seeking to claim the land for yourself? Or will you establish peaceful, symbiotic relationships and share the spoils? All of this must be done while carefully managing the resources in your underground nest.
Forage for Event Cards like Strange Appetite, Cold Snap, and Fungal Outbreak to impact the entire board – or just one unlucky opponent.
Mutate your colony with special Evolution Cards like the Trap Jaw head, Weaver thorax, and Leaf Cutter abdomen. What weird and wondrous path will your colony’s evolution take: advanced Workers, fearsome Soldiers, or a fertile Queen?
Emerge triumphant by scoring Colony Points as your ants explore and control the Meadow. Search for Colony Goals like Epic Stores, Followers of the Eyeless, and Extensive Tunnels to plan your route to victory.
March of the Ants takes strategy underground…literally!
Year Published
2015
Featured Videos
Transcript Analysis
Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 4
This page: 4
Sentiment:
pos 3 ·
mix 0 ·
neu 0 ·
neg 0
Showing 1–4 of 4
Video 1iBk24TDLNE
Lit Table game_review at 0:14 sentiment: positive
video_pk 61891 · mention_pk 154520
Click to watch at 0:14 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Thematic depth and strong theme integration
- Accessible core rules with meaningful choices
- High interaction through player reactions on each turn
- Flexible strategies via Evolution cards and colony goals
- Works with 2-5 players and includes variants
Cons
- Prototype status; rules may evolve before final release
- Learning curve for new players and potential downtime with larger player counts
Thematic elements
- ant life, colony management, territorial control, evolution
- Underground ant colonies around a central Great Tunnel with meadow tiles arranged nearby
- procedural evolution and tactical combat within a modular hex map
Comparison games
- Sim Ant
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Area Control — Players vie for control of hexes adjacent to the Great Tunnel via placement of ants on collection sites.
- area_control — Players vie for control of hexes adjacent to the Great Tunnel via placement of ants on collection sites.
- card drafting — Forage action draws cards; players select and upgrade with card text and abilities.
- card_handling_and_drafting — Forage action draws cards; players select and upgrade with card text and abilities.
- combat_and_battle_mechanics — Battles occur in contested hexes; ferocity, army size, and head Evolution bonuses determine outcomes.
- Combat: Damage Based — Battles occur in contested hexes; ferocity, army size, and head Evolution bonuses determine outcomes.
- evolution_and_slot_management — Evolution cards grant permanent bonuses placed in head, thorax, and abdomen slots with stacking effects.
- multi_phase_turn_structure — Turns have worker, soldier, queen phases with reactions from other players; high interaction.
- Resource management — Resources (food, larvae, cards) are managed; feeding dictates survival and end-game scoring.
- resource_management_and_feeding — Resources (food, larvae, cards) are managed; feeding dictates survival and end-game scoring.
- scoring_and_end_game — Points from collection sites, battles, colony goals, and end-of-game bonuses.
- tile placement — Exploration adds hex tiles that connect to tunnels; wormholes connect locations for movement.
- tile_features_and_mechanics — Special tile features (wormholes, centipedes) add variability and strategic considerations.
- tile_placement — Exploration adds hex tiles that connect to tunnels; wormholes connect locations for movement.
- Variable Phase Order — Turns have worker, soldier, queen phases with reactions from other players; high interaction.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- This game is nothing like Sim Ant but it kind of fulfills a spot for me
- Rarely are you looking back through the rule book in this game
- It's not super complicated yet there is a lot of choices and a lot of combos that you can do to change things up
- The game has a great theme
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video 8vQVv0l8Ots
Unknown Channel game_review at 0:08 sentiment: positive
video_pk 32078 · mention_pk 94690
Click to watch at 0:08 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Multiple viable paths to victory that support diverse strategies and counterplay choices across games
- Cohesive integration of exploration, evolution, and combat within a shared tunnel-network sandbox
- Clear, repeatable round structure with distinct phases that ease onboarding for new players while sustaining depth for veterans
- Strong thematic coherence and flavor that reinforce asymmetrical growth between different colonies
- Significant player interaction through reactions, counter-moves, and strategic timing that sustains engagement across rounds
Cons
- Potential learning curve for newcomers due to the combination of card types, evolutionary options, and phase timing
- Ambiguities in early rule explanations around card interactions or edge-case mechanics, which can hinder quick onboarding
- Risk of analysis paralysis if players over-optimize their evolution paths or overthink tile placement and timing
Thematic elements
- Ant civilization as a compact ecosystem of growth, adaptation, resource capture, and intermittent conflict. The game foregrounds colony management, evolution of a modular species, and territorial expansion across a living hex-grid world.
- A meadow environment where a colony of ants awakens in spring, spreads across the meadow rimming with life, and vies for space, resources, and dominance through tactically evolved ants and tunnel networks.
- Informational, explanatory, and promotional in tone, designed to guide new players through the flow of turns, the sequence of actions, and the strategic aims without heavy narration or fictional storytelling.
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Ant evolution and adaptation — Ant colonies can evolve by modifying head, thorax, and abdomen, enabling new abilities and improved effectiveness in tasks such as movement, combat, or resource gathering. This modular upgrade path supports diverse strategic archetypes and provides a clear, tangible sense of progress that players can tailor to their preferred playstyle.
- Card diversity and utility — Three card types exist: events that trigger immediate or delayed effects, goals that provide scoring opportunities, and evolution cards that unlock new capabilities for your ants. Card play injects timing decisions, risk assessment, and interaction with the evolving board state.
- Direct competition in the Great Tunnel — Ant species may clash in the Great Tunnel, introducing direct competitive interactions that affect territorial control, resource acquisition, and tempo. These confrontations serve as a focal point for player interaction and provide a tangible risk-reward dynamic within the broader strategic framework.
- Exploration and tile drawing — Players draw new hex tiles to add to the meadow, expanding the playable area and creating new opportunities for resource extraction and space for tunnel-building. The mechanic ties spatial expansion to future scoring opportunities, as each newly connected tile can unlock additional actions and resource income.
- hexagon grid — Ant units move across hex tiles and through tunnel connections, with tactical positioning influencing exploration reach, resource access, and combat outcomes. The spatial element fosters planning, disruption of opponents’ plans, and counterplay through adjacency, range, and pathing decisions.
- Movement and positioning on hex grid — Ant units move across hex tiles and through tunnel connections, with tactical positioning influencing exploration reach, resource access, and combat outcomes. The spatial element fosters planning, disruption of opponents’ plans, and counterplay through adjacency, range, and pathing decisions.
- Multi-use cards — Three card types exist: events that trigger immediate or delayed effects, goals that provide scoring opportunities, and evolution cards that unlock new capabilities for your ants. Card play injects timing decisions, risk assessment, and interaction with the evolving board state.
- Phase-based gameplay — Each round comprises four phases, with the worker phase centering on actions such as exploring, foraging, marching, or playing cards. The phase structure gives players a reliable rhythm, supports strategic timing, and creates a cadence that players can learn and optimize over multiple sessions.
- Resource management — As the meadow expands, players accumulate resources that fuel actions, evolution choices, and potential card plays. The flow creates a dynamic economy where timing and reservation of resources matter, since each round’s options are shaped by what has been discovered and what opponents have claimed.
- Resource management and foraging — As the meadow expands, players accumulate resources that fuel actions, evolution choices, and potential card plays. The flow creates a dynamic economy where timing and reservation of resources matter, since each round’s options are shaped by what has been discovered and what opponents have claimed.
- Variable Phase Order — Each round comprises four phases, with the worker phase centering on actions such as exploring, foraging, marching, or playing cards. The phase structure gives players a reliable rhythm, supports strategic timing, and creates a cadence that players can learn and optimize over multiple sessions.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- In March of the Ants, the meadow is a living environment where destiny is shaped by exploration, adaptation, and the battles to defend your tunnel network.
- The game emphasizes a cohesive network of play-to-player interactions, where every action prompts a reaction from opponents and influences the board state.
- Three card types—events, goals, and evolutions—provide a versatile toolkit that drives forward momentum and gives players meaningful choices.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video 8-f9r7ON6_E
Board to Death game_review at 0:52 sentiment: positive
video_pk 13184 · mention_pk 38581
Click to watch at 0:52 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Strong player interaction and fast-paced dynamics
- Thematic and mechanically coherent with ant-life
- High replay value with multiple modes (solo, co-op, advanced)
- Well-designed rulebook with good examples
Cons
- Card balance issue where some cards are clearly better with few drawbacks
- Rulebook can miss steps despite aids, causing pauses
Thematic elements
- ant colony survival, expansion, and battles
- Underground ant colony across seasons with meadow and tunnels
- procedural, emergent gameplay driven by player choices
Comparison games
- Eclipse
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Area control / territory hex control — Players compete to control hex tiles via ant pieces and evolution cards.
- combat resolution — Battles on contested tiles resolved with army strength and cards.
- Deck/building / evolution cards — Use evolution cards to enhance ants and gain abilities.
- Resource management — Manage food, larvae, and cards to fuel actions.
- Variable player powers / evolutions — Body parts (head/thorax/abdomen) grant bonuses.
- Worker, soldier, queen, and slumber phases — Structured phases per round to manage actions and scoring.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- I love how this game could easily have gone with a fantasy or sci-fi theme but it didn't
- it's refreshing and not only that but its theme is very well implemented
- the game play is very solid as well it offers players lots of choice and venues for different tactics and strategies
- we strongly recommended and it's staying in our gaming Library
- March of the ants gets 8.5 Army strength out of 10
- there's no downtime with the great reaction mechanics and player interaction is high
- the imbalance in the game is not overwhelming so strategy and tactics Prevail over luck
- the rule book is extremely well written with great examples
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video eLDUjK7BqUw
Dice Tower unboxing at 1:34
video_pk 509 · mention_pk 1500
Click to watch at 1:34 · YouTube ↗
Pros
none
Cons
none
Thematic elements
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
Mechanics unknown.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- the most boring unboxings on the planet Earth
- Even your life's more interesting than this.
- Until next time, I'm Tom Vassel and this is the Dice Tower.
- What is this? This box really has some heft to it.
- Thanks for watching.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
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Showing 1–4 of 4