Board game "Evolution" - everything you wanted to know about animals, but were afraid to ask. "Evolution. Natural selection": Darwinism and board games Board game evolution rules of the game

18.08.2023

Game description

Since September 2015, the rules of the new edition of "Evolution" include an addition - the scenario "Evolution. Cataclysm", developed with the participation of the game masters. You can familiarize yourself with the new version of the rules on our website.

Forum

You can leave your review (liked/disliked and why) just below in the Reviews and comments section, and ask questions about the rules and just talk about the game, we invite you to the Forum »

Video review of the board game Evolution from Igroveda!

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Reviews and comments (296)

That is, did I understand correctly that having initially laid out animals A and B, I can put animal B between them and connect, for example, A and B through cooperation?

Answer from the Igroved store: Natalya, yes, that's right.

Review | Natalia | 05/26/2019

Good afternoon. A little confused in interpreting the rules. 1. Did I understand correctly that new animals can only be posted as they appear? Or can they be laid out before or between existing ones? 2. Is the player obliged to feed his animals in the order in which they appear during the feeding phase or can he choose any order?

Answer from the Igroved store: Natalya, good afternoon.
1. If you mean the location of the animals on the gaming table, then it does not matter - you can lay them out as convenient.
2. You can feed the animals in any order.

Review | Anastasia, Chernyakhovsk | 25.04.2019

Hello, is it possible to use all the add-ons for the base game? If not, what is the maximum? Are there separate rules for such a game?

Answer from the Igroved store: Anastasia, hello. We believe it is possible. At the end of the rules for add-ons there are clarifications on how to combine them with other add-ons.

Review | Denis, Moscow | 10/28/2018

Hello. Is this the 3rd edition of the game?

Answer from the Igroved store: Hello, Denis. We present a game with rules version 1.4.1 (2015). Unfortunately, we cannot tell you which edition of the game this is.

Review | Rostislav | 10/14/2018

Answer from the Igroved store: Rostislav, hello.
1. Yes.
2. Yes.
3. Yes.

Review | Rostislav | 10/13/2018

Hello! The following kind of question: There is animal A and animal B. Between them is the Symbiosis card (animal A is a symbiont). Animal A has the “Burning” property and is fed, therefore cannot be attacked by a predator. The enemy attacks creature B, the attack is redirected to creature A, but since it is Burrowed and fed, the predator cannot attack it. It turns out Animal A and B are invulnerable and unkillable. Explain this situation!

Answer from the Igroved store: Rostislav, hello.
This situation may well exist. One of the animals is protected from attacks by the “Symbiosis” property, and the second by the “Normal” property. The only thing you will need to make sure is that they are both fed.

Review | Roman | 09/05/2018

Sorry, I was wrong. I meant that during the feeding phase one player did not feed his animals on his turn, but all the other animals were fed. Can this player attack until he has fed all his animals?

Answer from the Igroved store: Roman, during the feeding phase on your turn, you take a piece from the food supply or attack with one predator. Yes, you can attack with all of your predators in turn, but only once with each.

Hello! But what about the answer to Oleg from 01/30/2016: the opponent can redirect to the second creature and the symbiont will not work for the reason that we ourselves do not have the right to attack that creature, but if it has no value for the opponent, he, due to the property of mimicry, can redirect attack him. Based on these considerations, if the second creature has no value, then it is possible to mimic it, and the symbiote has the right to eat it. Where is the truth?
Overall, the game is wonderful! I REALLY like it! It’s impossible to tear yourself away! If there is no one with me, I play with myself: for myself and “for that guy”))
IMHO about the cards: if the player has 0 animals, but there are cards in his hand, he takes not 0+1, but gets to 6.
Regarding the stomper in hibernation: since the red chips represent plant food (apples, mushrooms, berries), apparently the stomper, when sleeping, tosses and turns from side to side))

"is an exciting adventure and an entertaining lesson in biology. Lay out bright cards and chips on the table and you will understand by what laws life on Earth develops!

Purpose of the game

Form the most developed and numerous population of living beings and score more points than other participants.

Game description

The game uses a deck of 84 cards, 25 colored food tiles, and two dice. “Evolution” is designed for participants over 12 years old and lasts from 30 to 60 minutes. It involves from 2 to 4 players when using one deck of cards and up to 8 when connecting two decks.

In the process, participants combine the properties of living organisms, regulate their numbers and obtain new useful characteristics. The player strives for the population to survive and take a dominant position by the end. The game consists of 10-15 rounds or moves until the cards in the deck run out.

Preparing for the game

The deck is shuffled and each player receives 6 cards. The player who goes first is then chosen by rolling the dice.

Progress of the game

Each round consists of several phases: development, determining the food supply, feeding and extinction. Players walk one at a time, one after another, clockwise.

If desired, the participant can play his card or skip a turn. When no one at the table is able or willing to act anymore, the phase is considered over.

Development . During the first phase, everyone places cards on the table one at a time.

The picture is placed face down or face down. In the first case, it reveals some property, in the second, it denotes an animal. The property card is placed under the animal for which it is played.

The properties “Cooperation”, “Symbiosis” and “Interaction” must be played on two individuals at once, that is, these properties are paired.

Some cards have two characteristics indicated, but only one will play, and you cannot change it during the game. One animal cannot have two identical properties, with the exception of “Fat reserve”.

When a player no longer wants to create a new animal and does not want to add distinctive features to it, he passes and does not play any more cards. The participant is also required to say “pass” if there are no more cards in his hand. A phase is considered completed when no participant can make a move.

Determination of food supply . The available food depends on the roll of the dice and the number of players taking part in the party. The resulting food supply constitutes the food supply for this turn.

If two people are playing, 2 is added to the value rolled on the dice. When playing with three people, two dice are thrown and the resulting numbers are added up. For four players, add 2 to the sum of the numbers on the two dice. Then the required number of red chips are placed in the center of the table.

Nutrition . The next phase consists of several circles. Players take turns taking one red chip and placing it on one of their animals.

By default, each animal has one unit of satiety, so it only needs one token to “get enough.”

Each new property of a creature requires additional food.

When it is the participant’s turn to take the chip, and his animal has already been fed, he can put a square on the “Fat reserve” parameter.

If you are the owner of the “Predator”, then you have the right not to take a food chip, but to attack unprotected individuals on the table.

This could be an animal belonging to another player, your own, or another “Predator”. After the attack, the prey is considered destroyed, and the carnivorous creature receives two blue chips from the food supply.

The phase ends when all the animals are fed and their fat reserves are replenished, when there are no chips left in the food supply, or when all players pass.

Extinction . Living organisms that do not have food tokens die out, that is, they are discarded along with all their properties. After this, players are dealt as many cards as they have left animals plus one card on top. If the unfortunate selector has no survivors, he receives six cards. Then all food tokens, except for the “Fat Reserve”, are removed from the animals, and the next player begins a new round of the game.

End of the game

The last round occurs when the deck runs out of all cards. Upon completion, points are tallied. The player is awarded two points for each surviving animal and one for each property. Additional points indicated on the cards with properties are added to the amount. The winner is the one with the highest result.

It has already been discussed more than once that if you manage to overlay an animal with a large number of properties, then it becomes practically invulnerable and nothing can be done about it, only home rules to limit properties and cards.
Plus, there are really awesome cards, for example, throwing away the tail (and 5-7 properties on top), metamorphosis with a lack of food.
You can also not play cards during the game, but play them only on the last turn and get over100500 points.
There are a lot of mistakes in Evolution, which is a pity

And in what way does the commentator above not stick to the topic?) The topic is stated as “the game is good, but it’s a shame there are a lot of shortcomings.”
They tell you - there is the same game, without the mentioned shortcomings.

But then, maybe “the mice cried and injected themselves, but continued to chew the cactus”)

So this is about the original game: or within each card it is impossible to compare, and even mention other games, and even subsidiary ones? With the same success, as for me, one could say to you: this is a game card, and there are reviews to discuss the jambs.
But oh well, that’s not what I’m talking about, I’m just surprised why they recommend that I behave differently when asked a simple and reasonable question. It seems that everything is simple: you say that you feel sorry for the abundance of problems - I note that these problems are more than fixable if desired. Moreover, note that I was not talking about the successor game, but only about the fact that there are quite good solutions to the problems of the parent one (if desired, the advantages of both games are more than compatible in one). You yourself note this below, that even homerules can make you sick. So why “it’s a pity”? My message was just that - for some there is a straightened version of it, for others - a file, which means there is no point in sighing at the original. That's all

Don't play cards during the game and then get 100500 points. No, really, have you tried this? And they won? I highly doubt that you will answer “yes” to any of these questions. If you don't play cards, you get a smaller increase in cards from the deck over the course of the game. So, if on the last turn, having accumulated as many as (oh my God!) 30 cards in your hand, you play them all, you will not really impress the person who by this moment already has 30 cards laid out on the field, and even a considerable number of them in hand.
And metamorphosis is played 1 time per turn. Why getting one food out of thin air in exchange for a property is better than getting one food out of thin air through specialization for free, I don’t know. And you?

And God created big fish
and every living thing that moves,
whom the water brought forth, according to their kinds,
and every winged bird according to its kind.

And God created the beasts of the earth according to their kinds,
...and every creeping thing on the earth according to its kind.
And God saw that it was good.

Introduction

The board game “Evolution” is a fascinating opportunity to learn how plants and animals evolved, see natural selection in action, and understand how climate and other environmental factors force us to learn to survive.

Like many educational games for children over 12 years old, Evolution will also appeal to adults. After all, the game was originally created for an adult company and was tested with the author’s friends.

What can a hamster mutate into now?

Of course, a game is just a game, and such “evolution” in the process of “natural selection” can lead to completely unexpected results like hamster with wings and gills. But the basic principles still remain the same, and all sorts of strange mutants only add to the fun of the game.

Everything according to the laws of nature

Let us remember what evolution and natural selection actually are. Evolution is the process of development of all living things, which changes through the process of natural selection, acquiring useful traits that help it survive, while those who do not acquire such traits die. In the course of evolution, new species appear, often only vaguely resembling their ancestors, and old ones die out, depending on changes in environmental conditions. Just think: there are now about 9 million species of living creatures on Earth, from amoebas to humans, and throughout history there have been almost half a billion of them!

Biologists, get in line!

As you play Evolution, your species is given random mutations that may or may not help your species survive. Biologists will tell you that true evolution and natural selection work the same way. Players have the opportunity to feel like real scientists simulating the development of the animal world.

Fascinating genetic engineering

Or imagine yourself as genetic scientists studying how evolution and the random mutations that accompany it led to the emergence of existing species. And at the gaming table - and non-existent ones.

World of nightmares or world of dreams

Often in the game "Evolution" natural selection leads to very strange results. Yes, random mutations can be very useful, but in real nature they would never occur in such a combination. Some animals may even turn out to be cute, but you would prefer to stay away from, for example, a saber-toothed horned carnivorous squirrel.

Review

The game "Evolution" was released in 2010. It immediately gained great popularity and was published not only in Russian, but also in three other European languages - English, French and German. By the way, in the game “Evolution” all the names are also given in English, so that, according to the authors’ idea, both Russian-speaking and English-speaking players could gather at one table.

In 2013, the game "Evolution 2" appeared - the board "Evolution: Random Mutations". This is not an addition, but a revised edition of the game, with different maps, and a slightly different strategy. According to the authors, it is closer to natural processes, and mutations now occur not only positive, but also negative, and players can learn a lot of new things about evolution.

There is also a more recent card game called Evolution: Natural Selection. It has a completely redesigned design to make it more colorful, and changes have been made to the rules.

Your partners, or rather your opponents in the game, will try to make you lose your cards, and you will respond in kind to them

The game "Evolution" is suitable for both children from 11-12 years old and adults. She teaches you to build a strategy and not rush into making decisions; a calm person will love her. Play it and see for yourself.

Authors

“Evolution” was invented by the Russian scientist, biologist Dmitry Alekseevich Knorre. He also created all the illustrations, including the stylish lizard on the back of the card, which became a game element. Initially, the game was created by him for friends and, before it got into the printing house, it underwent many changes for the sake of game balance.

Knorre was joined by his friend Sergei Machin in working on expansions and other variations of the game.

Purpose of the game

The goal of the game is to develop your population as best as possible and at the same time survive, earning maximum points. Well, don’t let your rivals develop - for example, if your abilities allow it, you can simply devour their animals.

Packaging and design

“Evolution” and its additions are published in the “Correct Games” series with a rather strict, almost monochromatic design. The book-sized box is made in the shape of a pencil case with a retractable insert; the box with additions is the same, but smaller in size.

Each card has a schematic drawing of the animal or its properties, name, direction of interaction.

Equipment

The basic set contains a set of 84 cards, two hex dice, 25 food tokens, a booklet with rules and a reminder for the cards with properties. Boxes with add-ons contain only sets of cards, 42 pieces each.

There is also a gift edition for those who want large-scale development of the game. It includes the main set, the Time to Fly and Continents expansions, and several cards with properties that are not yet known. In total in the box you will find: 168 game cards, 18 special cards, continent cards, 4 territory dividers, 62 food chips, 4 dice and rules.

Card categories

All cards can be divided into groups according to their properties (in total, the main set contains 19 ). In this case, cards are used in two categories - as the animals themselves and as their qualities. The card lying in front of the player with the lizard face up is considered an animal. And all the properties are already placed face down underneath it.

Number of players

The main set is designed for two to four players, otherwise there will not be enough cards. With double packing or add-ons, the number of participants can be increased to eight people from 12 to 99 years old.

The game will appeal to those who love calm strategy games in the style of Potions.

How to play Evolution

The rules of Evolution are not very complex, although it is presented as a game with a high level of strategy. The point is to develop animals so that they become the coolest of all and at the same time do not die out in a hungry year or are not eaten by more aggressive rivals.

Since the game is a card game, the entire mechanics of the game are based on the correct use of cards. Some denote the animals themselves, others their properties. The element of randomness is introduced by the shuffled deck and the results of the dice rolls.

Preparing for the game

From a shuffled deck, players are dealt 6 cards per hand. The rest of the cards are placed between the participants. Next to them are three piles of food chips of three colors (they have different functionality). To choose who goes first, a dice is usually rolled.

Turn order

The course of the game is long and divided into certain phases. There are four of them. These are the phases of development, determining the food supply, nutrition, extinction and obtaining new cards.

First, all players go through the first phase in a circle, then the second, and so on until the end of the turn. Moreover, development and nutrition are phases that are repeated several times in a row before moving on to the next one. If someone can no longer do anything in the currently active phase, then he skips it.

Development phase

In the development phase, the cards received at the beginning are placed on the table. First, one card is placed with the lizard facing up - this is the animal itself. Cards with properties are placed under it so that the inscription is visible. Many cards list not one, but two properties. You will have to choose which one you will use and place the card with the desired part facing up.

The number of animals and their properties is not limited, but the qualities should not be repeated, except for paired ones or “Fat reserve”.

At the same stage, cards are laid out indicating interaction. They are placed between your pet cards.

You can play one card at a time. The phase lasts as many rounds as it takes for all players to lay down their cards or say “Pass”.

Mutate or disappear

In the edition of the game "Evolution: Random Mutations" properties are replaced with mutations. They can be useful and harmful. As a result, only positive mutations benefit the player, as during real evolution, helping the animal population to survive.

Determination phase food base

This phase is short, consisting of one dice roll. If there are two players at the table, then roll one hexagon and add 2 to the result. If there are three, two hexagons. Four – two hexagons and add 2. The resulting value will be the volume of the food supply for the current move. It is symbolized by red chips, the required number of which is placed on the table near the deck.

Watch What You Eat Carefully or Eating Phase

The feeding phase, like the development phase, lasts several rounds. Participants take turns taking one scarlet chip to place on their animals. Individual cards allow you to take several chips at a time. There are properties thanks to which you can also take blue additional power chips.

The “Predator” can, instead of taking a chip, eat the enemy’s animal and receive two blue additional food chips for this. But only once per turn.

There is also the “Fat Reserve” property, which allows you to take extra chips even if the animal has already had lunch. When everyone has received enough food, the fat reserve is full, all properties have been used or the food supply has run out, the phase ends.

Victory Condition

The final phase of the turn and, in the finale, of the game is the extinction phase. At this stage, all hungry animals die from exhaustion and are sent to the player's discard pile, lizard side up, along with all cards associated with them in one way or another. The time comes to receive new cards - one at a time plus the number of surviving animals for each. All food chips, except fat, are put aside. The next move begins, with the right to go first transferred to the left from the previous pioneer.

If the cards in the deck run out, then this move will be the final one. After it, the players count their points. They receive 2 points for each surviving animal and 1 point for each property. If there were properties that required additional effort to feed the living creatures, then points were also awarded for them. The one who scores more points wins. If there is a draw, then the victory goes to the player who has the thickest discard pack.

Additions and editions

Additions to the game “Evolution” came out almost immediately after the game itself, because the author had accumulated a lot of cards that were not included in the basic set for various reasons. And because the game itself worked well and was liked by many people.

Currently released:

add-on "Evolution: Time to Fly",

add-on “Evolution: Continents”,

add-on “Evolution: Plants”,

"Evolution. Random mutations" (reworked version of the game, more reliable from the point of view of biology),

"Evolution. Natural Selection" (colorful edition with completely redesigned illustrations, many additional cards and chips and adjusted rules).

Addition to the game "Evolution. Natural Selection" called "Flight"

"Evolution. Gift edition."

Time to fly

The first addition is the Evolution: Time to Fly set. This includes 42 new cards and additional food tokens and a die. The maximum number of players increases to six people. Many new interesting properties appear. First of all, as the name suggests, you can now learn to fly in the Evolution board game using the Flight card to look down on all predators (except the winged ones). The Intelligence card helps you wisely escape from those who want to dine on you, and helps predators bypass one of the properties of a potential snack. Also, animals and birds have mastered the ability to make ambushes and much more.

What about the continents

The second addition is the “Evolution: Continents” set. Many more properties appear in it, and the game mechanics also change. Continents appear that significantly influence it.

Evolution: Continents is fully compatible with the Core Set, but is limited to up to four players. The set contains 42 cards, 24 chips and a die.

And now my animal is slowly and happily moving to another continent

Now, in order to exist, animals must inhabit certain continents, not counting waterfowl living in the ocean. There are three locations - the continents of Laurasia and Gondwana and the Ocean. Each has its own living conditions.

There are three ways to move from mainland to mainland. Or first become a waterfowl and move to the Ocean, and then lose this ability and again end up on the continent, this time by your own choice. Or use the “Migration” or “Sticked” properties, which are useful, but do not allow you to receive food chips this turn. Or play “Evolution: Continents” together with “Evolution: Time to Fly”, and with the “Flight” property, migrate wherever you want, but only if the animal is not very heavy (has no more than two qualities).

The properties only work within the native location, so if a predator wants to start racing for fish, he must first grow gills.

What has changed

The main difference in mechanics is that each habitat has its own volume and type of food. When distributing cards (10 each), players also receive a territory indicator, which helps them see where their animals are. Maps of the continents and oceans are placed in the center of the table; food chips will be placed on them. Their number is determined by the table in the rules, and it is different for different locations. You cannot feed an animal food from a place other than its habitat.

To my surprise, I did not find a review of the game “Evolution” either in the guidebook or in the posts since the last update of the guidebook, although a fair amount of time has passed since its release. Meanwhile, the game has received a couple of additions and is sold in almost any board game store. Let's try to figure out why.

Not that "Evolution" immediately attracted attention. The box has a discreet design that completely matches the design of the game itself. It doesn't look very secure - the cardboard is quite flimsy, so handle it with care. Inside the box you can find rules, a promotional brochure, dice, food tokens and, in fact, game cards.

They are actually made in one or two colors of varying degrees of intensity, the cover is a pleasant green shade. The game side is predominantly the same color, but there are red, yellow, purple and blue elements. The game was invented by a Russian biologist, which gave it a certain specific taste of academicism and... biologicality? One of the goals of the game can be considered to popularize the logic of evolutionary selection.