- Publisher(s) : Zygomatic
- Designer(s) : Julian Courtland-Smith
- Artist(s) : Cloé Dessolain, Stéphane Gantiez, Mr. Cuddington, Umeshu Lovers
- Players : 2–5
- Playing time : 45 Min
- Weight BGG : 1.48
It's what ?
In Survive the Island , your mission is simple: evacuate your adventurers from a sinking island before it’s too late. But between rising waters, lurking sea creatures, and adversaries ready to take advantage of the situation, survival promises to be anything but easy!
How do we play?
1. Implementation
At the start of the game, the 40 Island tiles are shuffled and then randomly placed on the board, landscape side up. They represent three types of terrain: beaches, forests, and mountains.
Players take turns placing their adventurers on the island tiles. This is an important moment: each token has a hidden treasure value beneath its base. Therefore, you must try to memorize your adventurers’ values before placing them, as you won’t be able to see them again during the game.
2. The course of a round
The game proceeds clockwise. On each turn, the active player performs three phases in this order:
- Actions: move your adventurers and rafts, then use your Power tiles.
- Rising water: remove an Island tile and apply its effect if applicable.
- Creatures: Roll the die to determine which creature moves.
3. Action Phase: Move your adventurers and rafts
During this first phase, you have three moves of a maximum of one space, which you can freely distribute between your adventurers and the rafts you control.
Moving an adventurer on foot
An adventurer can move from one Island tile to another, join a raft, or reach a destination island. They can also immediately board a raft on their current tile, provided there is space available.
Each raft can accommodate up to three adventurers.
Swim to reach dry land
It is also possible to swim across a Water space. A move is considered a swim as long as the starting or ending point is a Water space.
Note, however: an adventurer can only make one swimming move per turn, unless a power allows this restriction to be bypassed.
Swimming can therefore help an isolated adventurer, but it exposes him to the marine creatures that patrol the waters.
Moving a raft
You can move an empty raft or a raft you control to an adjacent free Water tile.
To control an occupied raft, you must have at least as many adventurers of your color on board as your opponents.
4. Use the Power tiles
In addition to your movement, you can use your Power tiles during the Action phase. These tiles are acquired when you remove certain Island tiles and can give you a decisive advantage.
Here are the main powers available:
- Oars: Move a raft you control, or an empty raft, one or two spaces.
- Dolphin: Move one of your swimmers one or two spaces in the water. Its movement can end on an Island tile or a raft.
- Dive: Move a creature present on the board to an Open Water space of your choice.
- Creature Dice: Roll the die and move the designated creature according to its movement rules.
- Repellent: Immediately remove a shark or kaiju when one of your adventurers is on the same space. This power can be used reactively, even during an opponent’s turn.
5. Rising water phase: the island gradually disappears
After your actions, you must remove one Island tile of your choice from among the thinnest still present on the board.
The disappearance of the land follows a precise order:
- The beaches disappear first.
- The forests are then swallowed up.
- The mountains are the last to disappear.
6. Creatures Phase: Beware of sharks, sea serpents and kaiju!
To end your turn, roll the Creature die. If the indicated creature is present on the board, it must move according to its rules.
7. End of game and scoring
The game ends immediately in two situations:
- There are no more adventurers left to save.
- The third volcano has been revealed.
It's good ?
Survive the Island offers an easy-to-learn game, based on an immediately understandable idea: save your adventurers before the island disappears.
The gradual transformation of the game board, with the island shrinking beneath our feet and the constant pressure from the creatures, creates ongoing tension and plenty of interaction. The mechanic of hidden values under our adventurers’ feet also adds an element of bluffing: will your opponents eliminate that token thinking it’s worth 5 points, or will they waste their attacks on a simple bluff worth only 1 point? You can also board rafts occupied by other players, take control of them, and thus complicate their evacuation.
This game can quickly become chaotic, depending on everyone’s decisions. If you’re looking for a game where you have complete control, look elsewhere! You also shouldn’t be too sensitive if someone ruins your game: Survive the Island features direct, sometimes even quite nasty, interaction. It’s good to know this before you start playing!
This is part of the game’s identity, but this approach will suit players who enjoy fast-paced games, plot twists, and underhanded tactics more than those seeking highly calculated optimization.
In short, Survive the Island is a family board game that blends tension, bluffing, interaction, and underhanded tactics. With its constant chaos and sometimes improbable situations, it could almost be considered a party game . However, if you’re primarily looking for an expert game where every decision can be precisely calculated, its offering might seem a little lacking.
A big thank you to my online partner store, Espritjeu. To discover their catalog, I invite you to visit their website:
My review of Survive the Island
Positives
- An easy-to-learn game with accessible rules.
- An evolving platform that creates constant tension.
- A bluffing mechanic based on the hidden values of the adventurers.
- Strong interaction between players, with underhanded tactics and plot twists.
- Chaotic and unpredictable games, ripe for unexpected twists and turns.
- Creatures and rafts that multiply the possibilities for disrupting opposing plans.
Negatives
- A chaos that can frustrate players who want to control their decisions.
- An interaction that can sometimes be nasty, which will not suit all profiles.
- An element of chance can disrupt a well-prepared strategy.
- Limited strategic depth for expert players.
