Into the Forest to Harvest Tasty Autumn Food with Forage
Collect tasty food from the forest and watch out for the inevitable visit from Edwood Mouse in Forage: A 9 Card Solitaire Game.
The last game in this tiny box trilogy is Forage: A 9 Card Solitaire Game, and it’s the one I’ve spent the least amount of time with. Getting it back to the table was great, though, particularly since I forgot all about Edwood Mouse and the recipes! There is a neat puzzle to work through as cards are stacked and overlapped, and I was eager to get started with foraging!
Game Overview
Game Name: Forage: A 9 Card Solitaire Game
Publication Year: 2022
Designer: Mark Tuck
Artist: Mark Tuck
Publisher: Side Room Games
Solo Mode: Designed for Solo (Included in the Base Game)
Different types of food can be found on the forest floor, from blackberries and chestnuts to mushrooms. Overlapping cards increase the yield, and split spaces offer more flexibility… But watch out for the mice! With recipes to follow for goals and bonuses, the puzzle is quite clever!
First Play
September 2, 2024
Complexity
2
Latest Play
September 24, 2026
Expansions
0
Setup Time
Almost None
Lifetime Plays
16
Play Time
10 Minutes
High Score
54
Game Area
12" x 12"
Low Score
30
Hello, Edwood Mouse!
I found the card patterns to be a little busier than I expected, although I adjusted to everything quickly. At least it’s very easy to tell these different types apart with little effort!
The overlapping card mechanic and ticking up values with dice are familiar, but there are several twists to consider.
Split spaces offer a lot of flexibility, yet don’t increase the yield and can take away victory points at the end. Using them at the right time is important, though not too difficult.
And the mice! Little ones can pop up, and then you’re suddenly welcoming Edwood Mouse to dinner. Ha ha!
Cozy Recipe Cards
There is a feel to this one that aligns with an autumn stroll. Even the recipes lean into warmth and coziness with their titles and illustrations. Just a comforting space to enjoy!
I found this one to be the most challenging of the trilogy without feeling overwhelming. I had more to think about, but also more opportunities to put together neat ideas.
Overlapping split spaces helped immensely when I wanted to overlap a different card without attracting any mice.
It was great! My first impressions put it at the bottom of the trilogy, yet it ticked up just slightly during this session.
Pickled Mushrooms
To match the cozy atmosphere, these Calico Critters settled in to learn about the fabled pickled mushrooms from grandma. Even Edwood Mouse stopped by, and not to eat!
Some of the recipes were rather difficult to achieve, and the different combinations kept me on my toes. Not that it was required to earn the bonuses, yet I always aimed to.
I felt more focused with this one than the others in the trilogy and enjoyed how I often planned a turn ahead.
But just 9 cards made it easy enough to reach the end without getting burdened with plans… Or mice. Ha!
Working Out a Puzzle
Having both of these recipe cards in play was certainly quite interesting! They almost worked together, but I had to adjust my strategy to increase the mushroom dice a lot.
Not placing all of the dice wasn’t the end of the world, yet the scores felt very close, so those 5 victory points were much more valuable than I originally expected. Tricky!
After several attempts, I successfully achieved the bare minimum to count as a victory. Exciting times, indeed!
This was another delightful return to a game I partially wrote off years ago. Glad it has a new chance to shine!
When a Trilogy Doesn’t Have a Clear Winner
After watching the Toy Story trilogy recently, its arc reminded me of this trilogy. The original stands on its own and is like a classic, setting the bar quite high! The second dips down a little bit and is still excellent, although it feels noticeably different. Finally, the finale finds its way and manages to capture the magic of the original with its own unique flavor.
Assigning the title of the best might not capture how closely I rated all of these games. I think they each work very well, and I plan to keep them all! The puzzle changes with each experience. It’s not like the later games simply took the same formula and tossed it into a different food setting. New rules shape each game in neat ways that I’m still discovering!
Grove
2021- Lemons, limes, & oranges.
- Standard mode or recipe mode.
- Groves add some flexibility.
- Squirrel token.
- Feels like a more complex formula.
Orchard
2018- Apples, pears, & plums.
- Standard mode only.
- Simple rules to overlap matches.
- Worm tokens.
- Feels like a comfortable solo puzzle with interesting choices.
Forage
2022- Berries, chestnuts, & mushrooms.
- Standard mode or recipe mode.
- Split spaces add a lot of flexibility.
- Edwood Mouse token.
- Feels like a nice mix of new & old.
Session Overview
Play Number: 5-16
Solo Mode: Designed for Solo (Included in the Base Game)
Outcome: 2 Wins & 10 Losses
Lots to think about with this little puzzle, and it was a rare moment when I achieved a victory. But those were some excellent plays, and I enjoyed how I was often just a few victory points away! In terms of the trilogy, this one was the hardest for me to get into, but offers an interesting mix of mechanics. There are more opportunities to make the best overlaps happen, yet the mice are also apt to show up to steal some food! Definitely a worthwhile experience.
%
10 Plays
Affordability
Price & Value
9
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
10
Originality
Design & Theme
5
Quality
Components & Rules
10
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
8
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
7
+ Pros (Positives)
- Flexibility with the split spaces allows for areas to potentially change, creating better overlapping in future turns.
- A standard mode is simple enough to play, while the recipe mode introduces fun challenges to earn bonuses.
- Dice are easy to distinguish with pips that have a good amount of contrast so they’re easy to count from afar.
- The play area remains very compact with the goal of overlapping the cards in as small a space as possible.
- Mice may be worth negative points, yet they’re quite cute, especially the fabled Edwood Mouse wooden meeple.
- Recipes provide a lot of variety since each pair can change up the play experience in meaningful, clever ways.
– Cons (Negatives)
- The split spaces take a little time to adjust to visually to see how they can match up or change the play area.
- Scoring takes a tiny bit of extra effort to look for any dice that are on split spaces and may be worth negative points.
- Gameplay isn’t necessarily overly repetitive, yet it has the same continuous loop that doesn’t change that much.
- Luck comes into play a lot, particularly for some difficult recipe combinations, which can be slightly annoying.
Victory Conditions
Score 45+ Points or Reach the Victory Threshold
- Overall Goal Progress 50%
Goals and Milestones
Score at least 50 points in the recipe mode.
Score at least 40 points in the standard mode.
Continue the Conversation
What do you enjoy the most about Forage: A 9 Card Solitaire Game? If you’ve played all of the games in the trilogy, do you have a favorite? This was another excellent solo puzzle with enough of a twist to make it stand on its own! I had an awesome time returning to play, and look forward to more adventures foraging in the vicinity of Edwood Mouse. Ha ha!
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