Welcome to the world of photosynthesis, the green strategy board game! plant and shape the ever-changing forest as you cultivate your seeds and your strategy. Take your trees through their life-cycle, from seedling to full bloom to rebirth, and earn points as their leaves collect energy from the revolving sun’s rays. Carefully pick where you sow and when you grow, as trees in the shadows are blocked from light, and from points. This game features realistic gameplay and beautiful graphics.
BoardGameGeek Rating: 7.4
MSRP: $32.93
Players: 2–4
Ages: 10+
Playtime: 30–60 Min
Publishers: Blue Orange Games
Designers: Hjalmar Hach
Year: 2017
Concept
Growing trees. Players take turns planting seeds and growing them in to trees by spending light points. Each player is awarded light points for each trees that bathe in the sunlight. As the sun rotates around the board, sunlight shines in a specific directs which causes the trees to cast shadows. Sometimes, trees will block the light to other trees and the taller the tree the bigger the shadow. Trees that are in the shadows don’t collect light points. When a tree grows big enough, it can be chopped down and players can collect Score Tokens. The player with highest score after 3 rounds is the winner.
Quality
Not bad considering it’s a bunch of 3D cardboard punch-outs of trees! Our board wouldn’t lay flat and while trying to fix it the backing tore. The fold of the sun piece feels flimsy too, I don’t see it lasting forever.
Artwork
Fun painted cartoonish trees with cute little animals hiding in them. Each player is a different type/color of tree. It all just works. This one of the most beautiful games I’ve very played.
Difficulty
It’s not a very difficult game. Even the strategy is pretty straight forward. The rules were a little confusing at first considering it was only pages. They just were worded weird so it took us a few reads and playing the first 2 rounds to get it, but once we got it it was easy.
Replayability
— Moderately Low
Our Reviews
My rating: 7
by Aaron KlaserIt’s a fun game that can be pulled off the shelf regularly, but it’s only fun to play once in an evening. It’s doesn’t have enough variety to keep it entertaining game after game. It’s kind of like checkers in way that it always starts the same and you always do that same thing. There is no randomness or chance, but there also isn’t enough strategy either. Don’t get me wrong, there is plenty of strategy and it really is a fun game, just not enough for me to play it more than once a game night.
The really winner is the visual appeal of this game. It’s absolutely beautiful, second only to Santorini. The 3D games trees, the color scheme, the little animals in the trees… it’s just fun and pleasant to look at.
One thing really bother me about this game is they called them light point instead of sun points, and they called the sun’s 6 turns around the board a Revolutions and not Seasons. It’s just a missed opportunity.
My rating: 7
by Beth KlaserWe have played Photosynthesis a handful of times since we picked it up at our local board game store {shout out to The Fantasy Shop}. The goal is to plant seeds, grow trees throughout there life-cycle and collect points.
I was a little disappointed that while there was strategy — there wasn’t a ton of strategy. It was based off the luck of planting your trees in just the right places and hoping your opponent didn’t notice until it is too late. If your opponent places there trees (same size or bigger) near yours when the sun comes around the board, it casts a shadow. No points for you — whomp whomp.
The winner for me is the visual aspects of the game itself. It has a unique theme. The trees are 3D. Each tree has something different going on be it — a rabbit, fox, or birds. The colors have that gorgeous fall touch to them all. The mechanics are simple enough that our eight year old could play, if she wanted too. Overall, I wouldn’t hesitate to grab photosynthesis off my game shelf. But, I would not play it more than once or twice in one sitting.
But what does it all mean? Find out how we review the games we play!
