Draftosaurus is a board game where players build their own dinosaur parks with the goal of attracting as many visitors as possible. Each player receives a player board representing a park with different enclosures where dinosaurs are placed. Each enclosure has its own placement rules, for example:
- Forest of One Species: can contain only dinosaurs of the same type.
- Meadow of Love: dinosaurs must be placed in pairs.
- Island of Loners: meant for dinosaurs that stand alone.
The objective is to strategically place dinosaurs in various enclosures to score as many points as possible.
The game’s core mechanic is drafting, where players take turns choosing dinosaurs from a limited pool and placing them in their parks. At the start of each round, players draw a certain number of dinosaurs from a bag (depending on the number of players). Then each player selects one dinosaur to place in their park and passes the remaining dinosaurs to the next player. In addition, each round a special die is rolled, which imposes placement restrictions, such as:
- The dinosaur must be placed on the left or right side of the park.
- The dinosaur must be placed in the upper or lower part of the park.
The player who rolled the die is exempt from these restrictions and may place their dinosaur anywhere in the park.
The game is popular for its simplicity and quick pace, lasting about 15–20 minutes. It appeals to a wide range of players, including families and younger players, thanks to its easy rules and visually appealing components such as colorful dinosaur meeples. Despite its simplicity, it offers plenty of strategic thinking, as players must plan dinosaur placement based on current and future possibilities and the restrictions set by the die roll.
The game has received international recognition and was included on the 2020 Spiel des Jahres recommendation list. 🦕
