Board Game Arena

Why are some cards apparently better than others?
eg. https://imgur.com/a/99X7myr
The bottom one is better

I can’t think of a card-driven tableau builder that doesn’t have unbalanced cards, whether Ark Nova, Underwater Cities, Terraforming Mars, Everdell, or Hallertau—some cards are simply better than others. As for the why of it, the emphasis in these sorts of games is on each card being relatively unique, so that each draw is an event of its own, not just a random event but a lucky one.

As for the cards you chose, most players would feel lucky to get either of those cards, as there are only 10 petting zoo animals in the deck, and each player wants not just one, but 3 of those 10 cards. So most would feel lucky to draw either of them, unbalanced or not.

Balance is also relative. The lion is an unplayable dead draw for most zoos but the one time you're rocking predator spam, paying 13 (assuming partner zoo) for a minimum of 13 appeal points is really good value.

I do agree that there are some universally desirable cards (Side Entrance is huge, especially early game) but they often get snapped up when they show up on the card track.

As each Petting zoo animal is only good in numbers (up to three) having some with additional abilities makes all of the regular ones also better

In other words: usually u only start a Petting zoo when already having 2 animals for it. Some might probably consider starting for one of the better ones

I like playing Predators whenever I get the chance to do it. Having 3, 4, 5 of these down quickly spirals into value madness. Add cards like Hyena's Compound (hunt whenever you play a predator) and the option to score 5 green points if you manage to draw an animal with Assertion (while leaving few points to be scooped up by the other players) and you are in a good position.

Long story short: the power of each individual draw relates a lot to your play style. The more you can make any viable draw count, the better your results will be.

Predators are very strong, especially when they are pack predators or Hunters for the card draws, yes. Many of the animals are stronger when you focus on them, such as playing multiple flocking herbivores, as there is no limit to the number or flocking animals in the same enclosure. Upgrading cards helps with this kind of focused strategy, as you can grab the ones of special interest from the card row. Playing towards a good sponsor like cable car or aquarium is another kind of focus.