Even as the days grow shorter and the nights become longer, it’s important to remember that Earth is the only planet we have. Let’s celebrate the best planet we know with these wonderful nature-themed board games.

Earth

Earth is a nature-themed board game that we have looked at closely before, so you can read more about it in our previous coverage. There, I compared the game to Wingspan, and I still believe that comparison holds true. Earth is an engine-building game where players must balance their supply, growth, and expansion all at the same time. By creating symbiotic relationships between their plants and animals, players will discover new combinations and synergies every time they play.

Earth is an open-world engine builder for 1 to 5 players with simple rules and countless strategic possibilities. With its encyclopedic nature and a near-infinite number of tableau combinations, every single game will allow you to discover new synergies and connections, just as our vast and fascinating world allows us to do! Players will create a self-supporting engine of growth, expansion, and supply by drafting from a deck of over 364 unique cards and strategically placing them in their tableau.

Spirit Island

Look, sometimes Earth needs a helping hand to push back those who wish her harm. Wouldn’t that be nice? Obviously, the best way to do that is by embodying the primal spirits of nature itself to wreak havoc on the invading settlers who are ravaging the natural resources.

Spirit Island is a fantastic cooperative game where each player does exactly that. Each spirit has its own abilities, mechanics, and overall strategy. The flow of gameplay means that each player is vital to the team’s overall success, but it is designed well enough that no one player can really drive the whole plan alone. Players need to plan and coordinate together in order to win. It is genuinely one of my favorite board games, and likely my favorite cooperative game.

Spirit Island is a complex and thematic cooperative game about defending your island home from colonizing Invaders. Players are different spirits of the land, each with its own unique elemental powers. Every turn, players simultaneously choose which of their power cards to play, paying energy to do so. Using combinations of power cards that match a spirit’s elemental affinities can grant free bonus effects. Faster powers take effect immediately, before the Invaders spread and ravage, but other magics are slower, requiring forethought and planning to use effectively. In the Spirit phase, spirits gain energy, and choose how / whether to Grow: to reclaim used power cards, to seek for new power, or to spread presence into new areas of the island.

Ark Nova

Ark Nova is yet another one of those games that skyrocketed in popularity when it was released. I admit it does not quite fit the planet theme. But it is a zoo-building theme, and I declare that is close enough.

In Ark Nova, players are building and managing a scientifically minded zoo. Players are competing to build the most successful zoological establishment while accommodating the varied fauna and supporting conservation efforts around the world.

InArk Nova, you will plan and design a modern, scientifically managed zoo. With the ultimate goal of owning the most successful zoological establishment, you will build enclosures, accommodate animals, and support conservation projects all over the world. Specialists and unique buildings will help you in achieving this goal.

Cascadia

Cascadia is as much a puzzle as it is a game. Players take turns building their own region of terrain and populating it with wildlife. It is a game about placing the terrain tiles and the wildlife tokens as intelligently as possible in order to maximize the groupings. Each type of wildlife wants certain things and does not want other things. Maximize points by appealing to everyone!

Take a journey to the Pacific Northwest as you compete to create the most harmonious ecosystem in Cascadia! Turns are simple – select a tile/token set and place each into your expanding ecosystem. Earn points by fulfilling wildlife goals and creating the largest habitat corridors. With variable scoring goals, each game of Cascadia brings a new spatial puzzle to your table!

Wingspan

Wingspan was a game that became an immediate success upon its release. It is easy to learn but has a shocking amount of strategy for a game about birds. Plus, with the many expansion packs, there is always more to learn. On top of the fantastic gameplay, the pastel shading and color of the game itself would absolutely be Boss Ross approved.

You are bird enthusiasts – researchers, bird watchers, ornithologists, and collectors – seeking to discover and attract a beautiful and diverse network of birds to your wildlife preserve. Gain food tokens

Canopy

In Canopy your goal is to help grow a rainforest. But this is a competitive game, so you are working to grow the biggest, most beautiful, most diverse rainforest to ever thrive on the planet Earth. This game utilizes a good mixture of luck and strategy, and features many species of animals who live in real rainforests. Games are quick, fun, and come together beautifully.

Canopy is a game where players compete to grow the most bountiful rainforest. The jungle ecosystem is full of symbiosis, and players must grow tall trees and lush jungle plants to attract the most diverse wildlife. Each time you look at a pile, you may select it and add those cards to your rainforest tableau, or return the pile face down, adding one additional card to it. As the piles grow, you must search for the plants and animals that will benefit your forest the most, but choose carefully as the jungle also contains dangers in the form or fire, disease, and drought. By carefully selecting what grows in your forest you can create the ideal balance of flora and fauna and give rise to a thriving ecosystem. Canopy has a solo player game mode as well as a multiplayer option for up to 4 people to enjoy.