Cautious Optimism
I was first introduced to Kavango a little late into the game – pun unintended but I’m going to roll with it – at TableTop Scotland 2025. And I must say, when I saw the brightly coloured stall with that green flowing logo and the artwork of elephants and lions I was equal parts intrigued and sceptical.
You see, I’ve noticed a growing trend in board games over the last I-don’t-know-how-many years. It’s probably best described as a trend towards beautification. Now, don’t get me wrong. I love – LOVE – a beautiful game. There’s something about when it’s all laid out and just looks so nice on the table. Something so satisfying. Something so picturesque.
But, and this is a big but, I don’t like when the artwork takes over. You know the type, the games that look stunning on the outside but don’t really fit together well. Maybe I’ve just been burned before. Beautiful games that miss the mark. I don’t know how else to explain it.
So I was cautious. But I also loved the theme so I walked over and said hi. They were so nice and we chatted and chatted.
… Anyway long story short I bought the game (with still a hint of nerves running through me as I unpacked it for the first time and laid it out).
But what is Kavango?
I’ll pause for a second to build suspense and explain what Kavango actually is. I won’t go into much detail as you’ve probably already read the description but essentially you’re card-drafting in order to build the best Nature Reserve. You start with the producers: the grasses and trees and essentially the lowest rungs in the animal food chain. And then you bring in the smaller animals: the bats and birds and frogs and all manner of assorted wildlife. And then finally you bring in the big guys: the elephants and zebras and lions etc, etc.
That is, if you’ve planned enough in advance.
Because behind the beautiful artwork and simple rules of Kavango lies a pretty clean, surprisingly complex logic puzzle. The fact that you’re card-drafting means you know the cards you have access to. But you also know that everyone else has access to those same cards. So what do you go for? Do you hope nobody takes the card you need or do you diversify knowing you may not be able to drop the gazelle – which you need in order to play the cheetah – but maybe you can drop a few smaller animals in order to get that research bonus over there.
Oh yeah, let’s talk about that for a moment. Given the simple structure of how Kavango plays, they’ve done a really good job at hiding a lot of different strategies into the game.
Alongside playing animals, you’re also going to need money to invest in your Reserve. After all, you can’t play a rhino if you don’t have enough security. In fact there are three different ways to invest (Security, Shelter, and Climate), and different animals require different levels of investment in each of these three things to be played. This investment requires money. Research goals are one of the ways you get that money. Yes, you can use one of the cards in hand to make some money, but ideally you want to be playing animals.
This pseudo-collective play creates a sort of shared goal and adds another layer to the game’s strategy.
So is Kavango just beautiful?
I could go on. And to be honest, you probably already know the answer to this question. But all this is to say that while Kavango is definitely beautiful, that is not what makes the game great. Kavango is full of substance, little decisions and competitions that make the gameplay engaging. And the thing is, even if you lose, you’ve still sort of won. You’ve still built something beautiful. Full disclosure, my partner beats me every time we play this game. I have yet to win. And yet, I still love looking down at the end and seeing what I’ve made.
That for me is the mark of a great game.
But is it for you?
I don’t really have any critiques of Kavango. But that doesn’t mean it’s for everyone. If what I’ve said so far has interested you, you’ll probably like this game. But while this is a puzzle and a great deal of strategy is packed into the game, it isn’t a brain-burner. It isn’t Ark Nova or Earth or any of the more complex games in similar genres. I’d call it a mid-weight game with light-weight rules. The complexity here is in how you play, not in what you need to remember to play. And I like that.
Maybe you do too.
Also, the couple who created it are just great.
This is the final thing, I promise. And it doesn’t necessarily tie into the game. But the couple who created it – who actually worked on a Nature Reserve in Africa – are so nice! They were so friendly at the convention and when I opened my game back home there was a defect in one of the pieces (it happens. Production, not design). I reached out and their customer service could not have been better. A new piece was sent immediately.
That, right there, is another mark of a great game.
So that’s it. By now you should know if the game is for you. And if you do end up falling in love with it like I have, make sure and keep an eye out on their Lodges expansion coming out soon.
