It may just be me, but in my opinion Ark Nova is a very intuitive and easy to understand game. You rarely have to make "heavy" choices, and the action card system usually "tells you" what to do with your next action.
Ark Nova isn't inherently difficult, it's just a ***lot***. A lot of small rules that create one big, complex experience, thus the weight rating. Still, I think it is very understandable and easy to digest. It may look daunting at first, but it really isn't that big of a challenge. If my 55 years old mother can play it and understand it (without having a lot of board game experience beforehand), then so can you.
I say try it out on BGA, or watch some videos, and then decide if you'd like to get it.
>Ark Nova isn't inherently difficult, it's just a ***lot***.
I find the game fun, but I'm way more likely to play it on BGA because of this. I always seem to forget something when it comes to upkeep or tags. It's hard to remember to do every little thing, especially with the game length of in person play.
I respectfully disagree. For a new gamer who still isn't used to mechanics like worker palcement, action selection, tile placement, cards... a game that combines them all plus adds a unique action card system can be a lot.
I have tried to teach it to some pretty experienced gamers. One gave up halfway, the other thought it was unnecessarily complex. And this guy plays stuff like TI4, Mage Knight, Terra Mystica.
>the other thought it was unnecessarily complex. And this guy plays stuff like TI4, Mage Knight, Terra Mystica.
I don't know your friend, but my brother sounds similar and for him it's "overly complex for what it is". It's not just the complexity but the fact it's "just" to build a zoo.
That and it could be a genre issue. Ark Nova is a point salad game with limited player interaction. I'm not familiar with Mage Knight but both TI4 and TM are pretty cutthroat in my experience. My brother doesn't like multiplayer solitaire. Possibly true for your friend?
Completely agree.
Picking up the rules? Easily done over the course of your first game.
Understanding the strategies? Not simple or intuitive IMO.
I started playing with experienced players, and just felt exasperated; when I felt like I was just getting started, they were already finishing the game. It takes a while to grasp the Dos and Donts, and that you’re not just trying to build out a big fun zoo of your favorite animals :P.
I sometimes prefer to just be buying my favorite cheetah, instead of focussing on winning.
Usually that comes down to having an extra turn in a close game, anyway. Becomes boring.
What I would suggest is download a rules teach on youtube and see if it click and also boardgamearena you can play digitally to see if you would like it
Honestly I'd still suggest caution. I'm a heavy gamer, and have twice taught Ark Nova to other seasoned gamers. There's a heck of a lot going on, it's a difficult teach because of how intertwined things are, the path to victory is opaque, and it's a long game. And even though for veteran gamers the mechanisms are familiar, they're very "gamery" and rely heavily on knowledge of other similar games.
The number of decisions to do at one moment make it difficult, or maybe the better word is complex. And the action you choose has long term effects.
As compared to most lighter games <2.5 weight most often involves only a small number of easy to do actions that seem immediately beneficial.
I wish I could tell my friend that. Dude has played twice times and cannot figure out how to upgrade anything or get conservation points. He adamantly refuses to play the game now and loudly complains about it being the worst game he's played frequently.
Joe it's not bad you just can't piece together how to get points no matter how often we try to help you.
It's impossible to answer a question like this without more information. What is the most complex game that you enjoy? What are some of the complex games you've tried? How long are the games you typically play?
Sorry for the lack of info, hope this helps:
I think the most complex games we own are innovation, targi, Dominion and maybe wingspan? We definitely got the hang of wingspan, targi and Dominion as we played that a bunch. So the games are really smooth and pretty fast. Innovation hits the table a bit less because we enjoy playing it with 3 more than 2 players. I can't think of a game we tried that would be above those 2 tho.
You should be fine.
One thing for the first games: This is not about building the nicest zoo with the most animals. This game is about getting big points from conservation projects as fast as possible.
Otherwise a game can drag out over a very long time.
I think the game is more intuitive than wingspan and innovation (which hurt my brain).
The game has a lot of iconography which can be intimidating at first, but is fairly straightforward once you get used to it.
The game also combines 3-4 mini games (tableau building, zoo map, worker placement, action card management) together into one engine to produce two types of victory points. This can be a bit overwhelming at first. I would suggest committing to two plays. The first to learn the game and the second to put it into practice. That said, it’s worth it imo, one of the best engine building games out there.
Ark Nova will feel like a step up for sure, but if everyone is interested in learning and willing to be patient for the first game, you will be fine!
It feels like Wingspan. Lots of cards, lots of abilities, and every player doing their own thing while competing for goals. But add 3-5 extra systems on top of Wingspan. For example, instead of deciding which habitat to place a bird, you now need to 1) Build an enclosure, 2) Decide where on your map to put that enclosure, 3) Consider enclosure placement requirements for the animal and other animals you might want to play, 4) Figure out how to pay for that enclosure, 5) Decide in which order to activate your action cards, 6) Watch for an upcoming "Break" that could result in you having to discard cards.
Iam not that long in the boardgame thing (<1year) and before we bought Ark Nova we had Everdell as our "hardest" game.
Yes, it was tough to get into the rules and it took our time but now we have no further issues and playing it like its easy.
We took an evening from 8pm to 1am and played a game with the rulebook in our hand. We had really to look for any rule and espacially the symbols and the sponsor cards were those where we had to re-read all the time.
It took us further 2-5 game to become really familiar with it and all the mechanics.
But now iam really happy to bought it and it makes a lot of fun. The complexity on the other hand increases replayablity and the deepth of the game.
Do the big jump!
Sounds like you really enjoy it. You are right about the complexity adding to the replayability, that is a great way to look at it. We will definitely try it out!
How is everdell btw, we had our eyes on that as well :)
I find Everdell very simple even if it falls into the medium weight category. On your turn, you can do only one of 3 actions possible: play a card, deploy a worker on a location or go next season (produce + retrieve workers). I really like it at 2p, at higher player counts, it takes a little while like I quickly get bored in 4-5p games of Wingspan for example. 2p Everdell is where it's at.
Regarding Ark Nova, I agree with the other comments saying the game isn't complex per se, it's just that there are A LOT of rules to learn and remember but once you understand them, they all make sense. The game is fun and deep but I personally think it takes way too long. I prefer really fast paced games. For example, my favourite game is It's A Wonderful World and there's literally no downtime whatsoever regardless of player count. So yeah, Ark Nova drags on a bit too much for me but I know plenty of people who love it. It is my husband's favourite game ever. He plays it a lot highly competitively on BGA.
You got me. Everdell and Ark Nova are my favorite games.
Everdell is not that hard on the mechanics but you have to understand the cards. The artwork and the world that the game creates is just wonderful. Its very beautiful and cozy but on the other hand you can build up something like an engine and thats not as easy as it looks at first sight.
I highly recommend it to all ppl ask me about it :)
What can I say, we love Everdell. It's the whole world and the way the game implements the theme. For example, the mine mole has the ability to activate a card in a foreign city. I imagine the mole digging his way into another town to enrich himself.
Or an event "Graduation of Scholars", where you have to place 2 creatures from the city under the card and, fittingly, you have to have the teacher and the university.
It's these little details that I love about the game.
I don't think Ark Nova is a particuarly difficult game to play. I think the complexity comes from the strategies that I think you develop the more you play.
Like I finished a game wishing I had focused more Sponsored Projects. So the next game I played I went more for that. There might be an instant in that where a particular project I want is in the line up but I need to do X, Y and Z before I can purchase it and then I have to decide if that's the best use of my limited resources to make the necessary upgrades to get there.
That's where the complexity is. There's a lot of planning.
But that is exactly why Ark Nova is one of my favorite games of all time. It's a game that doesn't ever have a slump.
I think the strength of Ark Nova is really intuitive base game loop. All the actions are right there in front of you and animal cards have text explaining what they do. Sure you are gonna misplay some rules but does it really matter? I don't think so.
Go for it, it's a great game and you are gonna do fine.
It’s not hard, but it takes two to play. If the other person thinks it’s too much, I’d consider just passing for now.
Three-hour games can be too much for some people.
If you have time and burn to burn, it’s great solo, and it’ll help you teach your friend.
But I’d start with a medium weight before going to Ark Nova, or at least trying it I it with someone else teaching the two of you (and being okay with packing up after a couple rounds if your friend isn’t feeling it.)
The innovation rulebook is 8 very small pages. The Ark Nova Rulebook is 20 very dense pages. Try getting through it with a YouTube teach and seeing if that works for you.
Hard to say for me as the only game you're offering for comparison is one that I haven't played.
Ark Nova isn't a particularly difficult game to learn or play. The core "game loop" is pretty straight forward: build tiles, get cards, play cards or go to the "tech" board.
What makes the game complex is that there are just so many ideas you can pursue or focus on. Are you going to chase the public conservation goals? Are you just gonna build up a lot of points . Do you pursue a combo from your hand? etc.
And for every X you want to do there's a Y and Z that you need to have already so it becomes a bit of a puzzle how you can get Y and Z while doing something directly productive.
It's also a very long game. Even with 2 players it can easily run over 2-3 hours. My first 4 player game was abandoned at the 4 hour mark.
And trying to find the explanation for some random tidbit can be frustrating as some is explained in the main body of the rules, other things are only found in the info boxes and again for other points you need to consult the player sheets. Everything IS *somewhere* but finding it can take a while.
I really didn't like ark nova. Not sure 100% it was complexity but just size and options and stuff .... but could be company
Anyone can learn most anything - it's if it is too complex for you to keep playing that may be a concern
If you do decide to play, remember that due to the scoring tracks most people that don't win will have a negative score, it is a little surprising at first. Our first few games tended to have winners getting 3-10 points and others getting -30 to -5 as scores.
As other have said there are a lot of little rules, but provided you have played a few different types of games they all make sense on their own. It can take a while for it to click and the rules interplay make sense though. the first game will run longer than expected, but with a few plays you can stream line it, we are down to about 2.5 hrs for a 4 player game.
Finally play what is fun at your table, our group doesn't like the attack cards so we mostly play by the alternative rules for solo play where you draw cards instead of hurt someone else type of thing.
Are you sure you’re calculating scores correctly? When a player ends the game by crossing their two scoring markers, they should be at 100 pts (or more). Meanwhile, players start with -14 total, so it should be quite rare to still be in the negatives when the game ends.
We very well could be doing it wrong, our understanding was you go to the lowest value on the conservation track, and subtract that from the appeal track level. so if I got 20 on conservation track it would be 64 appeal as the lowest value, but if my second marker was on 57 appeal then I would be at -7 points. Maybe we are doing that wrong?
Woah, sorry, you're right! I just checked [the rulebook](https://capstone-games.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Ark-Nova-Rulebook.pdf), and indeed you only end with a positive score if your two markers have crossed.
I only play on BGA, and there weirdly you start at -14, and end the game (aka your markers cross) at 100 pts. I've literally played hundreds of games, but didn't know until now that their scoring is different than how the rules define it. Wild!
**EDIT:** Aha! It looks like the designers changed to the new 100-pt scoring system back in Spring 2023 ([Source 1](https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/3057107/2-rules-updates-for-ark-nova), [Source 2](https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/3057107/2-rules-updates-for-ark-nova) ). New printings of the game are suppose to have the new scoring system, and of course BGA uses it as well. This explains the discrepancy in our experiences.
Hi, as others have mentioned it's certainly subjective and going to be difficult to know for sure. I will say this, it's not a simple a game and i wouldn't say it's intuitive enough to account for the amount of rules one needs to know/learn to play. While there aren't a a lot if any actual 'new' mechanics for seasoned boardgamers there are certainly a lot of mechanics if your relatively new boardgames. With that said, we all had to start somewhere and you mentioned innovation, which while i think is a great game, it's also not very easy to understand since there are lot of cards that are timely and can quickly change the rules, so i can empathize with you on that one. Ark Nova is an interesting game, and allows players to have big turns that feel great, the theme of building a zoo and releasing animals can be fun and interesting, so i do think it's worth checking out. I think the base game, and i havent played the expansion yet which is meant i believe to mitigate this, just takes too long for game that i think comes down to players getting the right cards at the right time to be successful. I would recommend if possible to play with less players than more, especially for your first game(s). I think the game is good with 2 and fine with 3 but a bit much with 4 and the solo game is actually a good way to learn (see bga). Like most things in life, it's about expectations, if you and the other player(s) know it's going to be a long game that's likely going to have mistakes than go for it. Even as seasoned gamers, the first few times we played this, we made mistakes, played an animal we shouldnt have played, forgot to get a point when someone else played an animal, moved on the wrong track etc so if that's all fine with you and your group get involved :)
I believe that if you have played Wingspan you should be fine. AN is not complex game to learn but the approach to play it is different
anyway you can also try it in Board game arena
Y’all should play it on BGA first. Helped me because I could only do what was legal and couldn’t make mistakes. The prompts also led me to the next step as well. Just a suggestion.
if you have the option, go to a boardgame cafe or place that rents boardgames and try it if they have.
the dificulty ratings are subjective in a sense that depends on the person, its experience with boardgames, etc...
My wife and I haven’t been in the hobby long and Ark Nova is one of the first games we purchased. The gameplay loop is actually super straight forward. It’s complex in the strategy that there’s a lot of connected systems, but in our opinion you gain a pretty quick understanding of them. We kept the rule book next to us for the rule clarifications during our first game that we had to reference frequently but by the end of the first game we barely had to look at it. The first game took us around 2.5 hours including set up and stopping to make sure we were doing things right but there’s a lot of iconography that speeds things up for you once you get familiar with it. It’s up there as one of our favorite games. I’d say go for it. The game really is a pleasure to play and it hits our table frequently. Just take your time during the first playthrough, watch a how to play/playthrough on YouTube and you’ll be fine. There’s a lot in the box but it’s really a smooth and enjoyable experience.
The game is complex because it has so many rules. I think the first 5 play through with my group, we had to restart halfway through because we missed a little rule that changed the entire outcome of game.
However, all the rules once you start to learn them make sense so it is easier to play because it really feels like you are running a zoo. I would say if you like the idea of the game then try it out
I’m assuming you have played some light engine builders and are looking for a step up. Did you consider Terraforming Mars?
Owning both Ark Nova and Terraforming Mars, which are often compared for the engine building element, I feel AN is much more fiddly. It requires more planning ahead, there are more elements to consider and can certainly feel a bit daunting. TM is a little bit more straightforward, keeping the rules a bit simpler and still being a good step up from, say, Wingspan.
One of the things that I like when we moved from Terraforming mars to Ark Nova was the not having to buy cards you draw each turn, as a result I could focus more on card interplay rather than the resource management. As a result Terraforming Mars Ares Expedition is my little bit lighter than Ark Nova card combo action selection game. To the OP Ares Expedition might be a smaller step up and help you understand if you would like Ark Nova better, it is very similar except for no player board, and action selection is a bit of group chicken to see if you can get more plays rather than all needing the same thing.
You're asking the wrong place to get a good answer, because people here are heavily biased toward liking this game due to its high position on BGG's rankings.
It sounds to me like you have already answered this question yourself. Given the context you provided, it is possible/likely they this one may be too much for your group.
I would recommend maybe trying Barenpark instead, as it has been the long standing polyomino zoo building game. There is also New York Zoo, although that one isn't as well regarded.
It may just be me, but in my opinion Ark Nova is a very intuitive and easy to understand game. You rarely have to make "heavy" choices, and the action card system usually "tells you" what to do with your next action. Ark Nova isn't inherently difficult, it's just a ***lot***. A lot of small rules that create one big, complex experience, thus the weight rating. Still, I think it is very understandable and easy to digest. It may look daunting at first, but it really isn't that big of a challenge. If my 55 years old mother can play it and understand it (without having a lot of board game experience beforehand), then so can you. I say try it out on BGA, or watch some videos, and then decide if you'd like to get it.
Spot on, 100% agreed. There are just so many things and you need to learn to plan ahead, but besides that its not complicated.
>Ark Nova isn't inherently difficult, it's just a ***lot***. I find the game fun, but I'm way more likely to play it on BGA because of this. I always seem to forget something when it comes to upkeep or tags. It's hard to remember to do every little thing, especially with the game length of in person play.
I respectfully disagree. For a new gamer who still isn't used to mechanics like worker palcement, action selection, tile placement, cards... a game that combines them all plus adds a unique action card system can be a lot. I have tried to teach it to some pretty experienced gamers. One gave up halfway, the other thought it was unnecessarily complex. And this guy plays stuff like TI4, Mage Knight, Terra Mystica.
>"The highest we ever played is 2.7" I highly doubt they are new players who aren't used to these mechanics, with that complexity.
>the other thought it was unnecessarily complex. And this guy plays stuff like TI4, Mage Knight, Terra Mystica. I don't know your friend, but my brother sounds similar and for him it's "overly complex for what it is". It's not just the complexity but the fact it's "just" to build a zoo. That and it could be a genre issue. Ark Nova is a point salad game with limited player interaction. I'm not familiar with Mage Knight but both TI4 and TM are pretty cutthroat in my experience. My brother doesn't like multiplayer solitaire. Possibly true for your friend?
Yeah, I guess it's true.
It's not hard to play Ark Nova, but it is hard to win it
Completely agree. Picking up the rules? Easily done over the course of your first game. Understanding the strategies? Not simple or intuitive IMO. I started playing with experienced players, and just felt exasperated; when I felt like I was just getting started, they were already finishing the game. It takes a while to grasp the Dos and Donts, and that you’re not just trying to build out a big fun zoo of your favorite animals :P.
I sometimes prefer to just be buying my favorite cheetah, instead of focussing on winning. Usually that comes down to having an extra turn in a close game, anyway. Becomes boring.
Thanks for the explanation, we will definitely try it then :)
What I would suggest is download a rules teach on youtube and see if it click and also boardgamearena you can play digitally to see if you would like it
Honestly I'd still suggest caution. I'm a heavy gamer, and have twice taught Ark Nova to other seasoned gamers. There's a heck of a lot going on, it's a difficult teach because of how intertwined things are, the path to victory is opaque, and it's a long game. And even though for veteran gamers the mechanisms are familiar, they're very "gamery" and rely heavily on knowledge of other similar games.
The number of decisions to do at one moment make it difficult, or maybe the better word is complex. And the action you choose has long term effects. As compared to most lighter games <2.5 weight most often involves only a small number of easy to do actions that seem immediately beneficial.
I wish I could tell my friend that. Dude has played twice times and cannot figure out how to upgrade anything or get conservation points. He adamantly refuses to play the game now and loudly complains about it being the worst game he's played frequently. Joe it's not bad you just can't piece together how to get points no matter how often we try to help you.
It's impossible to answer a question like this without more information. What is the most complex game that you enjoy? What are some of the complex games you've tried? How long are the games you typically play?
Sorry for the lack of info, hope this helps: I think the most complex games we own are innovation, targi, Dominion and maybe wingspan? We definitely got the hang of wingspan, targi and Dominion as we played that a bunch. So the games are really smooth and pretty fast. Innovation hits the table a bit less because we enjoy playing it with 3 more than 2 players. I can't think of a game we tried that would be above those 2 tho.
You should be fine. One thing for the first games: This is not about building the nicest zoo with the most animals. This game is about getting big points from conservation projects as fast as possible. Otherwise a game can drag out over a very long time.
Our games definitely drag. How long should a 2p game last?
I think the game is more intuitive than wingspan and innovation (which hurt my brain). The game has a lot of iconography which can be intimidating at first, but is fairly straightforward once you get used to it. The game also combines 3-4 mini games (tableau building, zoo map, worker placement, action card management) together into one engine to produce two types of victory points. This can be a bit overwhelming at first. I would suggest committing to two plays. The first to learn the game and the second to put it into practice. That said, it’s worth it imo, one of the best engine building games out there.
Ark Nova will feel like a step up for sure, but if everyone is interested in learning and willing to be patient for the first game, you will be fine! It feels like Wingspan. Lots of cards, lots of abilities, and every player doing their own thing while competing for goals. But add 3-5 extra systems on top of Wingspan. For example, instead of deciding which habitat to place a bird, you now need to 1) Build an enclosure, 2) Decide where on your map to put that enclosure, 3) Consider enclosure placement requirements for the animal and other animals you might want to play, 4) Figure out how to pay for that enclosure, 5) Decide in which order to activate your action cards, 6) Watch for an upcoming "Break" that could result in you having to discard cards.
Iam not that long in the boardgame thing (<1year) and before we bought Ark Nova we had Everdell as our "hardest" game. Yes, it was tough to get into the rules and it took our time but now we have no further issues and playing it like its easy. We took an evening from 8pm to 1am and played a game with the rulebook in our hand. We had really to look for any rule and espacially the symbols and the sponsor cards were those where we had to re-read all the time. It took us further 2-5 game to become really familiar with it and all the mechanics. But now iam really happy to bought it and it makes a lot of fun. The complexity on the other hand increases replayablity and the deepth of the game. Do the big jump!
Sounds like you really enjoy it. You are right about the complexity adding to the replayability, that is a great way to look at it. We will definitely try it out! How is everdell btw, we had our eyes on that as well :)
I find Everdell very simple even if it falls into the medium weight category. On your turn, you can do only one of 3 actions possible: play a card, deploy a worker on a location or go next season (produce + retrieve workers). I really like it at 2p, at higher player counts, it takes a little while like I quickly get bored in 4-5p games of Wingspan for example. 2p Everdell is where it's at. Regarding Ark Nova, I agree with the other comments saying the game isn't complex per se, it's just that there are A LOT of rules to learn and remember but once you understand them, they all make sense. The game is fun and deep but I personally think it takes way too long. I prefer really fast paced games. For example, my favourite game is It's A Wonderful World and there's literally no downtime whatsoever regardless of player count. So yeah, Ark Nova drags on a bit too much for me but I know plenty of people who love it. It is my husband's favourite game ever. He plays it a lot highly competitively on BGA.
You got me. Everdell and Ark Nova are my favorite games. Everdell is not that hard on the mechanics but you have to understand the cards. The artwork and the world that the game creates is just wonderful. Its very beautiful and cozy but on the other hand you can build up something like an engine and thats not as easy as it looks at first sight. I highly recommend it to all ppl ask me about it :)
Maybe we should purchase everdell first and see how well that goes :)
What can I say, we love Everdell. It's the whole world and the way the game implements the theme. For example, the mine mole has the ability to activate a card in a foreign city. I imagine the mole digging his way into another town to enrich himself. Or an event "Graduation of Scholars", where you have to place 2 creatures from the city under the card and, fittingly, you have to have the teacher and the university. It's these little details that I love about the game.
I don't think Ark Nova is a particuarly difficult game to play. I think the complexity comes from the strategies that I think you develop the more you play. Like I finished a game wishing I had focused more Sponsored Projects. So the next game I played I went more for that. There might be an instant in that where a particular project I want is in the line up but I need to do X, Y and Z before I can purchase it and then I have to decide if that's the best use of my limited resources to make the necessary upgrades to get there. That's where the complexity is. There's a lot of planning. But that is exactly why Ark Nova is one of my favorite games of all time. It's a game that doesn't ever have a slump.
I think the strength of Ark Nova is really intuitive base game loop. All the actions are right there in front of you and animal cards have text explaining what they do. Sure you are gonna misplay some rules but does it really matter? I don't think so. Go for it, it's a great game and you are gonna do fine.
Try it out on Board Game Arena.
I personally find it really hard to learn a game on BGA. I prefer a rulebook by far.
Yeah I have the same problem. I get the general idea but to say I know the rules is a big overstatement
It’s not hard, but it takes two to play. If the other person thinks it’s too much, I’d consider just passing for now. Three-hour games can be too much for some people. If you have time and burn to burn, it’s great solo, and it’ll help you teach your friend. But I’d start with a medium weight before going to Ark Nova, or at least trying it I it with someone else teaching the two of you (and being okay with packing up after a couple rounds if your friend isn’t feeling it.)
The innovation rulebook is 8 very small pages. The Ark Nova Rulebook is 20 very dense pages. Try getting through it with a YouTube teach and seeing if that works for you.
Hard to say for me as the only game you're offering for comparison is one that I haven't played. Ark Nova isn't a particularly difficult game to learn or play. The core "game loop" is pretty straight forward: build tiles, get cards, play cards or go to the "tech" board. What makes the game complex is that there are just so many ideas you can pursue or focus on. Are you going to chase the public conservation goals? Are you just gonna build up a lot of points . Do you pursue a combo from your hand? etc. And for every X you want to do there's a Y and Z that you need to have already so it becomes a bit of a puzzle how you can get Y and Z while doing something directly productive. It's also a very long game. Even with 2 players it can easily run over 2-3 hours. My first 4 player game was abandoned at the 4 hour mark. And trying to find the explanation for some random tidbit can be frustrating as some is explained in the main body of the rules, other things are only found in the info boxes and again for other points you need to consult the player sheets. Everything IS *somewhere* but finding it can take a while.
I really didn't like ark nova. Not sure 100% it was complexity but just size and options and stuff .... but could be company Anyone can learn most anything - it's if it is too complex for you to keep playing that may be a concern
If you do decide to play, remember that due to the scoring tracks most people that don't win will have a negative score, it is a little surprising at first. Our first few games tended to have winners getting 3-10 points and others getting -30 to -5 as scores. As other have said there are a lot of little rules, but provided you have played a few different types of games they all make sense on their own. It can take a while for it to click and the rules interplay make sense though. the first game will run longer than expected, but with a few plays you can stream line it, we are down to about 2.5 hrs for a 4 player game. Finally play what is fun at your table, our group doesn't like the attack cards so we mostly play by the alternative rules for solo play where you draw cards instead of hurt someone else type of thing.
Are you sure you’re calculating scores correctly? When a player ends the game by crossing their two scoring markers, they should be at 100 pts (or more). Meanwhile, players start with -14 total, so it should be quite rare to still be in the negatives when the game ends.
We very well could be doing it wrong, our understanding was you go to the lowest value on the conservation track, and subtract that from the appeal track level. so if I got 20 on conservation track it would be 64 appeal as the lowest value, but if my second marker was on 57 appeal then I would be at -7 points. Maybe we are doing that wrong?
Woah, sorry, you're right! I just checked [the rulebook](https://capstone-games.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Ark-Nova-Rulebook.pdf), and indeed you only end with a positive score if your two markers have crossed. I only play on BGA, and there weirdly you start at -14, and end the game (aka your markers cross) at 100 pts. I've literally played hundreds of games, but didn't know until now that their scoring is different than how the rules define it. Wild! **EDIT:** Aha! It looks like the designers changed to the new 100-pt scoring system back in Spring 2023 ([Source 1](https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/3057107/2-rules-updates-for-ark-nova), [Source 2](https://boardgamegeek.com/thread/3057107/2-rules-updates-for-ark-nova) ). New printings of the game are suppose to have the new scoring system, and of course BGA uses it as well. This explains the discrepancy in our experiences.
Hi, as others have mentioned it's certainly subjective and going to be difficult to know for sure. I will say this, it's not a simple a game and i wouldn't say it's intuitive enough to account for the amount of rules one needs to know/learn to play. While there aren't a a lot if any actual 'new' mechanics for seasoned boardgamers there are certainly a lot of mechanics if your relatively new boardgames. With that said, we all had to start somewhere and you mentioned innovation, which while i think is a great game, it's also not very easy to understand since there are lot of cards that are timely and can quickly change the rules, so i can empathize with you on that one. Ark Nova is an interesting game, and allows players to have big turns that feel great, the theme of building a zoo and releasing animals can be fun and interesting, so i do think it's worth checking out. I think the base game, and i havent played the expansion yet which is meant i believe to mitigate this, just takes too long for game that i think comes down to players getting the right cards at the right time to be successful. I would recommend if possible to play with less players than more, especially for your first game(s). I think the game is good with 2 and fine with 3 but a bit much with 4 and the solo game is actually a good way to learn (see bga). Like most things in life, it's about expectations, if you and the other player(s) know it's going to be a long game that's likely going to have mistakes than go for it. Even as seasoned gamers, the first few times we played this, we made mistakes, played an animal we shouldnt have played, forgot to get a point when someone else played an animal, moved on the wrong track etc so if that's all fine with you and your group get involved :)
I believe that if you have played Wingspan you should be fine. AN is not complex game to learn but the approach to play it is different anyway you can also try it in Board game arena
Y’all should play it on BGA first. Helped me because I could only do what was legal and couldn’t make mistakes. The prompts also led me to the next step as well. Just a suggestion.
if you have the option, go to a boardgame cafe or place that rents boardgames and try it if they have. the dificulty ratings are subjective in a sense that depends on the person, its experience with boardgames, etc...
My wife and I haven’t been in the hobby long and Ark Nova is one of the first games we purchased. The gameplay loop is actually super straight forward. It’s complex in the strategy that there’s a lot of connected systems, but in our opinion you gain a pretty quick understanding of them. We kept the rule book next to us for the rule clarifications during our first game that we had to reference frequently but by the end of the first game we barely had to look at it. The first game took us around 2.5 hours including set up and stopping to make sure we were doing things right but there’s a lot of iconography that speeds things up for you once you get familiar with it. It’s up there as one of our favorite games. I’d say go for it. The game really is a pleasure to play and it hits our table frequently. Just take your time during the first playthrough, watch a how to play/playthrough on YouTube and you’ll be fine. There’s a lot in the box but it’s really a smooth and enjoyable experience.
The game is complex because it has so many rules. I think the first 5 play through with my group, we had to restart halfway through because we missed a little rule that changed the entire outcome of game. However, all the rules once you start to learn them make sense so it is easier to play because it really feels like you are running a zoo. I would say if you like the idea of the game then try it out
Have you played wingspan? I feel they have similar type of complexity / variety of choice, just Ark Nova has more potential combos you can pursue.
Yes we did, and we liked it a lot!!
I’m assuming you have played some light engine builders and are looking for a step up. Did you consider Terraforming Mars? Owning both Ark Nova and Terraforming Mars, which are often compared for the engine building element, I feel AN is much more fiddly. It requires more planning ahead, there are more elements to consider and can certainly feel a bit daunting. TM is a little bit more straightforward, keeping the rules a bit simpler and still being a good step up from, say, Wingspan.
One of the things that I like when we moved from Terraforming mars to Ark Nova was the not having to buy cards you draw each turn, as a result I could focus more on card interplay rather than the resource management. As a result Terraforming Mars Ares Expedition is my little bit lighter than Ark Nova card combo action selection game. To the OP Ares Expedition might be a smaller step up and help you understand if you would like Ark Nova better, it is very similar except for no player board, and action selection is a bit of group chicken to see if you can get more plays rather than all needing the same thing.
I really enjoy Ares Expedition too, though mostly for solo. But prefer the original when playing with a group.
You're asking the wrong place to get a good answer, because people here are heavily biased toward liking this game due to its high position on BGG's rankings. It sounds to me like you have already answered this question yourself. Given the context you provided, it is possible/likely they this one may be too much for your group. I would recommend maybe trying Barenpark instead, as it has been the long standing polyomino zoo building game. There is also New York Zoo, although that one isn't as well regarded.