Dog Park: Over 200 Breeds at the Table to Take to the Park
Become a successful dog walker with a kennel full of friendly faces in the relaxing and fun game of Dog Park.
It didn’t take me long to fall in love with Dog Park! My constant plays revealed more dogs and fun facts on the cards, all while I worked hard to achieve the highest scoring tier. The experience was quick and fun, yet I found a challenge I was excited to keep working on. Didn’t need to get this to my table… It was already there, staying right where I asked it to!
Game Overview
Game Name: Dog Park
Publication Year: 2022
Designers: Lottie Hazell and Jack Hazell
Artists: Kate Avery, Holly Exley, and Dann May
Publisher: Birdwood Games
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
The simple sequence of events follows along as dogs are recruited and walked, all to earn some breed category awards! I also added in some more variety with a pair of expansions. Nearly 60 more dogs brought new abilities into the mix. Time for some new strategies in the park!
First Play
November 14, 2022
Complexity
2
Latest Play
October 21, 2023
Expansions
2
Setup Time
5 Minutes
Lifetime Plays
14
Play Time
30 Minutes
High Score
64
Game Area
40" x 22"
Low Score
23
That’s a Lot of Dogs!
Finally, all the hubbub about dogs attracted some curious canines from my Calico Critters collection! These puppies had to make an effort to reach the top of the card stack.
With the expansions, that made around 220 unique dog cards. Wow! Even just the base game had abou 160 cards.
Now, that many cards can mean that the draw pool is skewed one way or another. I saw some breed categories rarely in some plays, for instance. Yet it was so much fun!
I enjoyed the challenge of making the most of what I had. At least I didn’t have to climb to draw a card. Ha ha!
Dog Days and Nights
After I bumped up the challenge by moving onto the next difficulty level, I found myself trying to work in a play whenever I could. It was just so enjoyable to see the dogs!
I spotted some dogs from the expansions, too, even though I was far from getting tired of any of them. The same dog could show up every play, and I would be happy.
Little did I know how this slight increase in difficulty would make my scores plummet… I had a lot to learn.
But again, play time was under 30 minutes and I felt like I was making all sorts of decisions. Definitely worth it!
Matching Breeds
With so many purebred dogs around, I knew the Calico Critters would be excited to show off! I had a whole parade of them pose with their appropriate dog cards. So cute!
Can you spot every resource? There was recent mention of putting random things on top of meeples… I took some liberties here, but my master balancing skills helped!
That’s also another subtle thing I love: The different resources for each dog can play into their personalities.
Maybe I should have kept an eye on everything. My resource container is likely missing some treats. Ha ha!
Intermediate Losses
I managed to go in the opposite direction with my scores, which was a little puzzling! But the slight change in requirements made a very big difference.
That’s not a complaint, though. It took me several tries to master the easiest difficulty level. To score well wasn’t something I expected, but rather enjoyed the losses.
Possibly not that time I scored below 30 victory points, though. Whoops! Sometimes, the dogs were obstinate.
Despite the challenge to do well, gameplay was still very lightweight and relaxing. Absolutely perfect for me!
Customizable Difficulty Levels and Solo Fun
Whenever I pick up a new solo game, I almost always start off at the easiest difficulty level. That may sound boring, considering how many games I’ve played during my lifetime! Yet I enjoy easing into gameplay and giving myself a little breather while I focus on learning the rules. That goes for lightweight and heavyweight games: I want to understand!
One of the most important things for a good solo mode is a way to adjust the difficulty level. This isn’t a necessity for every game out there, and it’s sometimes completely unseen. Scoring tiers or modules to add in aren’t labeled as modifiers, yet they provide a sense of working towards a sort of goal. Specific difficulty levels also help, though!
In this case, the solo objectives provide 4 different difficulty levels and a static set of scoring tiers. There is a way to gauge performance based on the total number of stars. Not surprisingly, only the hardest difficulty level and best scores will lead to being the best of the best. But taking a step back, is that my ultimate goal? To get there as fast as possible?
Nope! Although I love challenges and being able to say I reached the best ranking, it means more to me if that takes place over many games rather than a handful. Imagine if I mastered this one in about 10 plays… Then it would still be relaxing, but I wouldn’t have that goal in mind. I’m happy to lose and keep working towards becoming a top dog!
Session Overview
Play Number: 7-12
Expansion 1: Dog Park: European Dogs Expansion
Expansion 2: Dog Park: Famous Dogs Expansion
Solo Mode: Included in the Base Game
Play Details: Intermediate Difficulty Level
Outcome: 32, 42, 49, 36, 23, and 40 (4 Wins and 2 Losses)
Woof! I had a lot of trouble even getting close to 50 victory points. Definitely not a top dog this time! Still, these plays were so much fun with the different dogs. There are a lot of legs left in this game… Both literally and figuratively. It’s earned a spot on my shelf for a long, long time!
%
10 Plays
Affordability
Price & Value
10
Functionality
Challenges & Mechanics
10
Originality
Design & Theme
8
Quality
Components & Rules
10
Reusability
Achievement & Enjoyment
9
Variability
Distinctness & Randomness
7
+ Pros (Positives)
- All of the dog cards are unique with pleasant, adorable artwork and a very colorful watercolor atmosphere.
- Gameplay is quick and relatively lightweight, although the solo scoring tiers can help add a bigger challenge.
- Paying with victory points is a very interesting concept that can lead to tricky decisions from round to round.
- The components fit very nicely inside the included insert, which also houses resource trays to help with setup.
- Everything is high quality, particularly the cards, which show no signs of warping and feel pretty heavyweight.
- Managing resources is another fun layer of play that can open up new strategies during the walking phase.
– Cons (Negatives)
- The large dog walker meeples are beautiful, but they’re a little too big and tend to get knocked over easily.
- Although minor, the expansion dog cards don’t have any icons, so they’re very difficult to split out later on.
- Luck can make or break a play, which can be problematic for high scores, yet isn’t an issue in the relaxing sense.
- It only happens during final scoring, but some dog cards can get overcrowded with leftover resources.
Victory Conditions
Complete the Objective
- Overall Goal Progress 50%
Goals and Milestones
Score at least 62 points at the novice difficulty.
Score at least 62 points at the intermediate difficulty.
Continue the Conversation
Have you had a chance to play Dog Park? Do you have a favorite card in the game? That’s always a horrible question… I love them all, too! After a couple of weeks on my table, I felt like it was time to take a little break, though that’s nothing against the game. I know it will be waiting for me when I want to return for another day of walking adorable dogs!
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