Wingspan Pocket Review
Advert: this game was gifted by Stonemaier Games, this has not affected our opinion.
First there was Wingspan, then there was expansions, European, Oceania, Asia, then along came Wyrmspan, followed by Finspan. That sparked a series of memes, my favourite being Wingedspam, and now there is Wingspan Pocket!
Now the cynical among us would say that perhaps Stonemaier Games are cashing-in on a popular brand. In fairness, Wyrmspan was harder, and Finspan was a more accessible version and so they did appeal to a different market. The expansions added birds you might actually recognise from your homelands and other… stuff! Wingspan Pocket boasts a streamlined and quick play time.
So with only a small hint of cynicism and no clickbait, here are my thoughts…
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Setup
Give each player a player aid and feather in the colour of their choosing. Also give each player a nest card with an egg placed on it. Shuffle the bird cards, and deal six cards to each player. Each player then chooses two of the cards to keep as potential birds to place, and four which would be resources to spend on birds.
Form four roughly equal decks with the remaining cards with their resource side facing up, then flip over the top card of each deck to reveal four birds.
I would recommend using the advanced contract cards, and if you heed my advice, those will need to be selected too.
Place the eggs in easy reach and you are set up nice and Swift-ly!
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Gameplay
You only have three possible actions on your turn. The first is to play a bird, paying any costs stated in the top left corner. This played birds goes beside your nest.
Alternatively, you can draw two cards to your supply, these could be two bird cards, two resources, or one of each. However, when drawn a bird card is always a bird card and resource cards are the same, i.e. you can never flip a card over.
Finally, you can lay up to three eggs on different cards, which is different from the original where you could lay eggs on the same bird if you wished.
Once a player has carried out that action they may activate any brown bird abilities starting from the first bird card they played.
The game continues until one player has played six bird cards. That round ends and players can then tally their points. The player with the most points wins.
Points are gained from played birds, eggs on cards, and tucked cards. If using the advanced contract cards these will also grant points for every egg on a bird that qualifies for the condition required.
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What it’s like
Wingspan Pocket all feels quite familiar but without being the same. The activation of brown abilities every turn makes the benefits on your first few birds really important. That’s why I like the advanced set up of choosing your birds and resources as it gives you a bit more agency from the get-go. You could say the early bird catches the worm!
The pace of the game is nice and just like the bigger sibling you can get frustrated if the right food isn’t available or someone snaffles the card you were hoping to get before your turn. That’s part of every version of Wingspan I have played, although it was heavily mitigated in Finspan.
The twenty to thirty minutes of game time is enjoyable and although it doesn’t reach the dizzy heights of satisfaction playing the bigger box versions does, it’s entertaining enough to keep you amused. It certainly competes with the bombardment of other quick and good card games that have appeared on the market in recent times.
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Table Presence
Let’s be honest, the only pocket this Pocket edition is going to fit into is the front pouch of some dungarees or MC Hammer’s trousers… assuming those gold spangling wonderments, I cannot touch, had pockets. It will however handily fit in a rucksack and will be a lot easier to take abroad than the original bigger box, especially if you have upgraded to the mahoosive ‘nesting box’.
You’ll recognise the artwork too, as all cards re-use existing illustrations rather than commissioning anything new. I understand why that would be the case and I don’t think it bothers me as much as it will others. It’s infinitely preferrable to AI slop! The text on cards has pretty much been replaced with iconography, which is okay once you’ve mastered it, but can be a bit tricky on the first few plays.
I think in terms of looks, I would’ve liked to have an improved first player marker. The card that does this echoes the artwork on the box but certainly could have been improved.
The eggs are glorious in their pale pink with gold flecks. Mind you, the eggs in Wingspan games are always the best bit! Oh and the rulebook was generally good, although when I did struggle with iconography, I had to work out the answer literally on the Player Aid after scouring the rules with no joy.
There is a solo mode, unsurprisingly, I haven’t tried it.
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Final thoughts on Wingspan Pocket
When I played it, I really enjoyed the dragons of Wyrmspan and enjoyed the additional challenges it brought to the gameplay. I equally enjoyed Finspan but both other versions I sold as I was always going to reach for Wingspan ahead of them.
As it is so different, I almost see more point to Wingpan Pocket existing than the other two. Although I will be waiting to see if there is a streamlined Wyrmspan Pocket in due course as I think that would be my preference. Pocket doesn’t scratch the same itch as the other board games in the family. It is considerably lighter and shorter.
Arguably it is edited down to the bare minimum. This refinement is successful and the card game you are left with is fun. Our games have consistently been fairly close too, despite often opting for different strategies. I like that there are different routes to victory that you can shape with the birds available. I’m enjoying Wingspan Pocket much more than I expected to – it’s a fun card game!
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Key Facts
Number of players: 1 to 5
Board Game Review Recommended Age: 8+
Publisher’s Recommended Age: 8+
Playing Time: 25 minutes
Setting Up and Take Down Time: 1 minute
Designer: Elizabeth Hargrave
Publisher: Stonemaier Games
RRP: £18.00
Summary
Wingspan Pocket may not be the flyaway success of its predecessors but it is a very pleasant and playable card game. While you won’t need deep pockets to afford it, you will if you actually want it to fit with its name!
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Artwork and Components
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Complexity
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Instructions
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Interaction
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Value for Money
Overall
Pros
- Simple to pick up
- Early birds important
- Pink and gold eggs
- Different paths to victory
Cons
- Iconography can be a bit tricky to learn
- Luck of the cards
- Unlikely to fit in your pocket!
Need more games?
If you already own Wingspan Pocket and enjoy it, or are looking for other inspiration, you might also like these similar games:
Buy Wingspan Pocket
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Reviewer’s Note
For clarity: we don’t get paid for our reviews. However, we were kindly gifted this game by Stonemaier Games. We have tried not to let this affect our review in any way.
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