Earth | Shelfside Review

We review this popular simultaneous play Euro! This is Earth, a critically acclaimed tableau builder by InsideUp games, where you build up your island, complete with starting Ecosystems/Climates, and the eventual plants/terrain that will be placed. There are even events that are instant activation, which reminds us of CCGs like Yugioh! You will do lots of hand management as well with plenty of card draw, which slightly differentiates this from the popular Wingspan. Does Earth live up to the hype as a tabletop engine builder you can play in under 2 hours? Is the replay value as good as it seems with all of the permutations of pattern building and end game bonuses? How does the point salad-isms work with all of the symbols and card draw?

Table of Contents:
Intro - (0:00)
Game Theory Tables - (1:05)
Overview - (1:38)
How to Play - (2:15)
Pros - (3:41)
Cons - (13:57)
Recommender Score - (15:36)
Daniel's Personal Score - (20:07)
Ashton's Personal Score - (23:40)

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Stuff used:
Music: Spring by Sascha Ende

Music: Lake Placid (Preview) by Sascha Ende

#boardgames #tabletop #tabletopgames

[imnottellingyoumyname]

Your reviews are the gold standard of board game reviews. I really feel like you peel away the "shiny new game with a bajillion cards" that seems to sway so many people and look under the hood for actual depth and substance. Love the separation between recommender and personal scores, too. Big respect

[dold_]

I liked playing Earth but it made me yearn for Race for the Galaxy. And after a decade of Earths, Wingspans, Imperial Settlers, Terraforming Mars, etc., it feels like all those games are still chasing Race. Earth can be a pretty brisk game, but Race is literally 20-30 minutes after 1-3 learning games, and I would argue just as much variety with less than half the card amount that Earth has (mostly stemming from cards in Race having half the functions as Earth's cards).

[moltenbullet]

I get to be a grower AND a show-er? HELL YEAH!

[ericeverstine]

You guys really need to play Puerto Rico. Euro, constant involvement even on others' turns, fits into an hour and a half, and more player interaction than most any Euro I've played.

[MrOgir]

Guys, had to pause and say that that was a very smooth transition into game theory tables haha.

[elqord.]

As always I'm annoyed by your rating system but ok. That aside the personal scores are bang on. This game works and looks ok. I hate how it showers you with VPs. Total inflation. Everything scores. It is so hard to understand how one player played better than the others. Scores are in hundreds, dozens of cards in hand, flooded with resources. It is all so meaningless. It does not feel competitive at all. Every session feels samey and I can barely remember how my last game was different from the one before. Cards are just mild variations of each other, they are completely unremarkable and blend together. Playing this solo and having a bot pick a random action after you just about accomplishes the same thing. How on EARTH this became such a phenomenon is beyond me.

[boardgametotears]

The game feels like a chore to me. I'm trying to squeeze out points by keeping track of 7 or more different objectives. It's an AP nightmare.

[closedchill]

All these nature based card games are blending together. Should I play Wingspan, or Ark Nova, or Earth? Or do I leave the nature theme and play a big franchise card game like Race for the Galaxy or Dominion? Is the choice really just how long do you want your card game to be? It can't be that simple.

[mattiamodena]

Hellooo?! Can someone for the love of God include 51st state in the conversation of the tableau builders? To me it trounces every single one of them. Daniel NEEDS to try it since player interaction is his biggest pet peeve with the genre.

[NathanTalbertWoodworking]

definitely one of my favorite games which is odd because most of my other favorites are super heavy games from vital lacerda.

I rarely buy games when they come out and the prices are super high because of the popularity. This was one of the exceptions I made, and I don't regret it for a moment.

I think a 6/10 from daniel & ashton for this type of game is basically a 10/10

[frankli]

Daniel really should try Battlecon Devastation of Indines

[EngMadison]

Earth...4/10.

Perfectly encapsulates what I hate about the trend in modern euro games. Simultaneous homework where the goal is to make the players feel smart while not doing anything.

Its been a while since I wanted to stop a game and just leave game night, but this came close.

[wmarclocher]

Great intermediate between Wingspan and TM. Also really liked the solo mode. Wish the trunks fitted together a little tighter (you know like Legos): "Hey I'm finally going to put a canopy on my Sequoia Red Wood. What? Oh, no....TIMBER!"

[AdvayBasavaraju]

Oh dang, this game looks pretty good in what it's trying to accomplish. I think, however, over time I've become more like Daniel: if I'm sitting down to play a game with friends I don't want all of us to just be hunched over our islands instead of interacting. Still a cool game in the genre its trying to fit in and a great review of it!

[xtearing]

The toppers with questionable shape did it for me

[St_M_]

Earth is pretty neat! And our home planet is rather okay as well, I guess :)
Have to say though, even though your video on your scoring process was very enlightening the occasional disconnect between recommender and personal scores never fails to catch me off guard. But it really is good that you differentiate and compartmentalize your own preferences from what a game offers on its own. Well done once more!

[boardgamemusic]

Solid down-to-earth and entertaining review.

[arepasaxo]

Dont you get old of playing games based on victory points?

[pfefferle]

One of the reasons I'd much prefer the less complex Wingspan over this game is that I actually don't mind the downtime as much since I like watching other player's engines grow and work during their turn too. Earth neither gives me the time nor the readability for that. The other players really just exist as an RNG machine picking secondary actions and deciding how much points I get for scoring public goals. They might as well be replaced by dice rolls.

[Rmac]

what's the worst board game expansion you've ever played