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Food
Chain Island

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Play OverviewPlay Overview

Food Chain Island (2020) is a single-player strategy game where you combine animal cards to get one of them to the top of the food chain. You can only stack animal cards if their predator number is higher, which leads to a web of decisions with unintended consequences. It's a unique twist on Solitaire where the position of your animal cards matters as much as their value.

To start, you shuffle your animal cards and arrange them into a 4-by-4 grid. Each card represents an animal in the Island's food chain and contains an image, the number of creatures that they can eat and any special rules that you must follow when you move that card.

One at a time, you move one animal card on top of another, provided they are higher up the food chain number on the card. The aim is to carefully plan each of your moves so that you always have the next turn and can make your way to an island with only one animal left.

As you progress, you need to choose each move carefully, considering the impact of each move on the evolving geography of the island and your overall chances of success. What starts as a relaxing Solitaire-like game, becomes a fiendish logic puzzle that takes much head-scratching to complete successfully.

Our examiner, Rob Prior, first checked Food Chain Island 2 years ago. It was re-examined by Jo Robertson and updated 3 months ago.
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Play StylePlay Style

This is a Sequencing and Strategy game with Brain Game elements. This is a single-player game.

 
You can play this game in the following styles:

DurationDuration

Learn to Play: This takes 5 minutes to learn. The key to learning this game quickly is knowledge of the cards and their special actions, so when you first play:
  • Take time to learn the cards and their special abilities.
  • Consider playing with a partner, taking turns to play.

Play Time: This game will take between 10 minutes and 15 minutes to complete.

BenefitsBenefits

This game is good if you want to:

Age RatingsAge Ratings

Skill Level

6+ year-olds usually have the required skill to enjoy this game. Younger children may need to play with someone older at first to get a grasp of the special rules and to think about strategy before starting.

Content Rating

We rate this suitable for 3+ years-olds. The cards contain animals eating other animals, but this is presented in a cartoonish way.

CostsCosts

There are no additional in-game purchases, loot boxes, adverts or subscription costs.
 
There are some expansion packs that can be purchased to add extra creature cards with additional rules, they are as follows:
  • Legendary Creatures
  • Lost Beasts
  • Friendly Waters
  • Tough Skies 
 

DetailsGame Details

Release Date: 26/05/2020, updated in 2021

Skill Rating: 6+ year-olds

Players: 1

Genres: Sequencing, Strategy and Brain Game

Accessibility: 0 features documented (Tweet Developer )

Components: Cards

Developer: Button Shy (@ButtonShy)


Taming Gaming Book Written by parents for parents, the database complements the in-depth discussion about video game addiction, violence, spending and online safety in the Taming Gaming book. We are an editorially independent, free resource without adverts that is supported by partnerships.

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