Title: PARKS
Age Range: 10+
Players: 1-5
Playing Time: 30-60 min
Style: Worker Placement Game
Publisher: Keymaster Games
Review:
A trail of beautiful vistas stretches in front of you. You capture memories as the seasons turn, pausing to share your campfire with other hikers. Stocking up on gear, you prepare to visit some of the most beautiful parks the United States has to offer. Welcome to PARKS, Keymaster Games’ love letter to the United States National Parks system!
National Park Week is April 22-30 2023, and what better way to celebrate with a gorgeous nature-themed board game? Keymaster uses art from The Fifty-Nine Parks Series to bring this game to life, and the result is a feast for the eyes. Players in PARKS take on the role of hikers as they visit trails throughout the year. By moving their hikers strategically through the trail board, players gather resources that can be traded in for National Parks visits, which are worth points at the end of the game. Points can also be earned by achieving personal bonus goals and taking photos. After each season play resets, adding new weather patterns with their own challenges. At the end of the game, the player with the most points wins!
The production value for PARKS is top notch. The game comes with log shaped Gametrayz inserts that perfectly pack in all of the game’s wooden tokens, making set up and take down fast and convenient. The park cards themselves are crisp and vivid prints that are eye catching on your table. Every piece of the game is meticulously themed, bringing the player into the nature theme.
This is a great game for collections that are trying to bring in games that bridge the gap between being lightweight and being strategy dependent. While PARKS is easy to learn with its excellent rulebook, the players have interesting choices to make that require them to watch each other’s moves carefully and manage their resources wisely. PARKS: Nightfall and PARKS: Wildlife both expand on the base game, giving you even more options for play.
If you can’t get out to your closest National Park this April, give PARKS by Keymaster Games a try! It is the best way to bring the beauty of the National Parks to your game table this spring.
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