- BGG rank
- BGG #3,592
- BGG rating
- 7.1
Ecosystem: Coral Reef
2022
Rules assistance for Ecosystem: Coral Reef
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.
- 1–6 players
- 15–20 min
- 10+
- Complexity 1.9/5
For 1 player
Rules assistant for Ecosystem: Coral Reef
What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Ecosystem: Coral Reef is a board game released in 2022 for 1–6 players, 15–20 minutes per game, and ages 10 and up. It was designed by Matt Simpson and its main mechanics are Set Collection, Tile Placement, and Simultaneous Action Selection.
About the game
Dive deep to build your own ecological network in Ecosystem: Coral Reef, a card-drafting game of marine competition. Players choose, pass, and arrange cards representing a diversity of organisms found in the Great Barrier Reef, including coral, clownfish, sea turtles, and sharks. Earn points by aligning animals with the habitats and food sources where they most flourish. Diversify your food web to maximize your bonuses. Each time you play, you build a one-of-a-kind ecosystem as you strive to balance the delicate connections between all living things. Ecosystem: Coral Reef is a standalone sequel game to Ecosystem (2019), featuring a new lineup of organisms, new scoring conditions, and an increased focus on a balanced food web. Players take turns drafting organism cards and arranging them into a 4x5 "ecosystem" in front of them. Once all players have completed their personal grid of 20 cards, players score their ecosystems using the rules for each card type. A food web bonus is given to each player for their lowest score among producers, predators, and prey, then the player with the most points wins.
Categories
Mechanics
Designers
Publishers
- Nasza Księgarnia
- Origames
- Schwerkraft-Verlag
- Genius Games
- Summon Games
Questions and answers
Ecosystem: Coral Reef supports 1–6 players according to the catalogue. This range comes from the publisher’s listed player count, so the game can be set up for any group size within it. Some setups, rules and scoring details may still vary by player count, so check your edition’s rulebook for the exact configuration.
The listed playing time for Ecosystem: Coral Reef is 15–20 minutes. This is the publisher’s estimate for a full game. The actual duration depends on the group, the player count and familiarity with the rules: first sessions usually run longer, while experienced groups often finish faster. Setup and teaching time are not included in this estimate.
The catalogue lists Ecosystem: Coral Reef for ages 10 and up. This is the publisher’s recommendation and reflects reading demands, rule complexity and small components rather than theme alone. Younger players can often join with help from an adult, so check the age guidance on your edition and consider your group’s experience with board games.
Ecosystem: Coral Reef has a complexity rating of 1.9 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a light game. The rating reflects how much rules knowledge, planning and decision-making a typical game demands. Expect a longer first teach for heavier games, and use a preparation guide before game night.
Ecosystem: Coral Reef belongs to these categories: Animals, Educational, and Environmental. Its main mechanics are Set Collection, Tile Placement, and Simultaneous Action Selection. Categories describe the theme and setting of a game, while mechanics describe what players actually do on their turns. Each mechanic links to a catalogue hub with similar games, which helps when you want something comparable.
The credited designers of Ecosystem: Coral Reef are: Matt Simpson. These credits come from the published game data and name the people responsible for the game’s design, not its illustrators or publishers. Designer pages on MeepleRules collect other titles by the same designers, which helps when you enjoy a game and want to find similar ones.
The catalogue lists Ecosystem: Coral Reef as a base game. It can be played on its own with the components in the box and does not require any other title. Expansions, if any exist, add new content or rules on top of it and are listed separately in the catalogue with a link back to this base game.