If your group fell for the gentle naturalist tile game In the Footsteps of Darwin, here is your nudge to dig out the box again. Its expansion, Correspondence, has won Best Expansion at UK Games Expo 2026, and the people who have played it say they will never go back to the base game without it.
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See how it worksThe original, designed by Grégory Grard and Matthieu Verdier for French publisher Sorry We Are French, casts two to five players as naturalists drafting animal and character tiles to help Charles Darwin gather evidence for the book that would one day make him a household name. It is a clever 20-to-30-minute set-collection game that punches above its weight, and it took home a Mensa Select seal in 2024.
Correspondence bolts on an England board with a Darwin standee that hands out Envelope and Classification tokens. Those envelopes unlock a "Send a Correspondence" action, letting you reach across and buy specific face-up animal and character tiles instead of waiting for the draft to come round. New Advanced Publication tiles reward whoever first completes a chosen row or column, adding fresh routes to victory points.
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Set up your group for freeWriting for Meeple Mountain, the reviewer was blunt: "I can't ever see myself playing the base game without it ever again." High praise for an add-on, and exactly the sort of thing that earns a Best Expansion trophy. It is a painless one to bring to a relaxed game night with newer players.
Sources: UK Games Expo Awards | Meeple Mountain | Board Game Wire
