
- BGG rank
- BGG #5,040
- BGG rating
- 7.3
Darwin's Choice
- 2–6 players
- 60–120 min
- Complexity 2.8/5
- 2019

Rules assistance for Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game – New Shores
Plain-language explanations of turns, card effects and disputed situations, with official source references and saved question history.

What would you like to know?
Answers come from the official rulebook, with the page to check.
Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game – New Shores is an expansion for Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game released in 2025 for 1–4 players, 120–180 minutes per game, and ages 13 and up. It was designed by Marc Dür and Samuel Luterbacher and its main mechanics are Set Collection, Tile Placement, and Solo / Solitaire Game.
Build your dream zoo with more choices than ever with Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game – New Shores! Dive into aquatic worlds featuring manatees, sea turtles, zebra sharks, and more. Feel the cold breeze from the new type of enclosures featuring polar species such as the majestic polar bear, penguins, and muskox. Additionally, the world of Australian wildlife takes center stage: crocodiles, kangaroos, and koalas guarantee you lots of excited visitors. Discover three different biomes with 24 new main species (represented by over 230 beautiful animal meeples) and 10 co-Species. In addition, a large vivarium is now also an integral part of your zoo. Choose from 48 animal species — fishes, reptiles, amphibians, and more — to fill the vivarium according to your wishes. It's up to you again to decide which direction you want to take. Do you design your vivarium with a focus on conservation, education, or popularity? Get the full zoo experience with this first and final expansion of Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game – New Shores. Watch the zoo of your dreams come true, right in front of you! Gameplay New Shores complements the gameplay of Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game without making it more complicated. Since a completely new Animal Exchange with 3 new biomes and over 80 new species is available, there is an enormous amount to discover and familiar strategies to rethink. In addition, reptiles, aquatic/semiaquatic animals, and the vivarium bring exciting changes to the game mechanics. Especially the vivarium provides new strategic options that you should take advantage of. So, the game experience remains familiar but still refreshingly different. With the modular Animal Exchange that comes with New Shores, you can mix and match old and new species for endless combinations of zoo fun. Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game has never been so diverse! —description from the publisher
Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game – New Shores supports 1–4 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 Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game – New Shores is 120–180 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 Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game – New Shores for ages 13 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.
Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game – New Shores has a complexity rating of 3.9 out of 5 from BoardGameGeek players, which makes it a heavy 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.
Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game – New Shores belongs to these categories: Animals, Economic, and Video Game Theme. Its main mechanics are Set Collection, Tile Placement, and Solo / Solitaire Game. 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 Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game – New Shores are: Marc Dür and Samuel Luterbacher. 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 Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game – New Shores as an expansion for Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game. Expansions add new content, rules or scenarios to the base game and usually cannot be played on their own, so you need Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game to use it. Check that your edition of Zoo Tycoon: The Board Game is compatible, as some expansions were revised between editions.