Dominant Species is an evolution-themed competitive board game where players control different animal classes (mammals, reptiles, birds, amphibians, arachnids, or insects) trying to survive and dominate during an encroaching ice age. It combines heavy worker placement mechanics with area control as players adapt their species to changing environmental conditions and compete for dominance across various terrains.
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The Verdict
based on 19 reviews
The reviewer highlights Dominant Species as one of their top 'normie' games, suggesting it's a highly recommended and well-rounded game suitable for a wide audience.
The reviewer highly recommends Dominant Species, calling it an absolutely fantastic game that excels in components, rulebook, and gameplay. They appreciate its unique blend of conflict-heavy gameplay with Euro-style mechanisms, despite acknowledging its potentially long playtime.
“The reviewer describes Dominant Species as a brutally strategic and brilliantly designed game that offers an epic and intensely dramatic experience with impressive decision density, making it one of the most satisfying worker placement games they've played.”
“Dominant Species offers incredibly purposeful gameplay where every decision feels impactful within its worker placement and area control mechanics, although game length can be considerable.”
The reviewer finds 'Dominant Species' to be a tightly balanced and highly interdependent game that effectively simulates the brutal competition of nature, offering constant tough decisions and strategic trade-offs for players.
“I think this is a great game for players who are willing to invest an evening in playing a single game. But for those of us who enjoy a good dose of strategy, with just a smidgen of luck involved, this is a must buy!”
“It’s imposing, big, crunchy and long but has simple enough rules with a large decision space and choices that have long term ramifications. It’s very mean and has incredibly sharp teeth, but is also extremely engaging and keeps all the players in the game and involved.”
“Dominant Species offers superb game design, creating a rewarding and tactical experience of survival of the fittest with streamlined yet intuitive worker placement mechanisms, despite its mean and often frustrating nature.”
“In conclusion, Dominant Species is a highly recommended board game that offers a captivating and immersive experience for players. With its rich gameplay mechanics, dynamic player interaction, strategic depth, and thematic immersion, the game stands out as a must-play for board game enthusiasts.”
“Despite its length, brutal unpredictability, and unappealing components, Dominant Species offers a deeply satisfying experience, especially for players who enjoy endless strategic study and intense thematic immersion in a struggle for survival.”
“Quinns and Paul describe "Dominant Species" as a profoundly strategic wargame and evolution simulator. While acknowledging its deep gameplay, they also note its high cost and unappealing aesthetics.”
The reviewer highly regards "Dominant Species" for its significant strategic depth and excellent replayability, emphasizing that players will consistently find new elements to learn even after numerous sessions, despite the game's noted mechanical complexity and the extensive counting involved in certain aspects.
“You play a class of animals (mammals, insects, etc), and your goal in this worker placement game is to breed, migrate, and fight your way across the continent before the ice age comes. Incredibly chaotic, swingy fun.”
The reviewer finds 'Dominant Species' to be a fun, tight, and mean game with an enjoyable programming system, expressing a strong desire to continue playing it despite some fiddliness and the need for constant power recalculations on the board.
“I’ve played each of our top 35 vote getters at least once, and among those, I voted for Pandemic Legacy and Dominant Species 1 and 2, with lower votes going to Codenames and Heaven & Ale.”
Tom Vasel considers Dominant Species an absolute gem, praising its strong theme, interesting blend of tactical and area control elements, and replayability, despite its potentially lengthy playtime.
“While rather simple mechanically, DS is strategically deep. There are many paths to victory, and players will need to adapt constantly to their strategy in response to what their opponents are doing.”
Rahdo found Dominant Species to be a brilliantly designed and highly strategic war game with extensive calculation, which he acknowledged is excellent for players who enjoy those elements, despite it being too long, violent, and complex for his personal taste and that of his wife.
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