Pondscape - Croaking Bad
Posted: 21 August 2026, 13:01
Let’s leap from cats to frogs for a minute during the 2026 Summer of Games.
In Pondscape, your goal is to create natural habitats for various frog species. Space is limited so you need to be careful. Choose the right combinations of frog species, food, and habitats, and come up with the richest ecosystem.
Each round, you choose cards from a shared display and add one card to your pond, aiming to fulfill specific conditions set by different frog species to earn points, with larger groups of the same frog type yielding even greater rewards. The core mechanism is a mix of grid building and card management, with pond construction.
A unique shared mechanism revolves around the "Jumper Frog", better known as Croaker, a central figure that hunts insects and other food. You and the other players influence Croaker’s actions and compete to gather insects that can provide bonus points during the final scoring. Careful planning and resourceful play will lead to the most balanced and flourishing pond!
Once everyone has placed their 15th card, the game ends and we will take care of the scoring.
In the solo mode, yes there is one, and it is something most of you like, you play against Croaker. The latter doesn’t build a pond but takes cards from the pile so you can’t use them.
Build the right frog groups, create the habitats they need, collect lots of useful food symbols, and use the Jumper Frog to turn that food into points.
https://boardgamearena.com/gamepanel?game=pondscape
A big croak of thanks to Tomáš Holek, the game designer, as well as the jumping frogs from Capstone Games, the publisher, for letting their pond join ours. And we’re hopping with joy with MGoulet’s port for BGA! Thank you.
This was your Friday release.
Ribbit-ribbit! Ribbit-ribbit! Or in simpler words: take care and play fair…