If you have ever wanted a cosy tile-layer that actually pays attention to how British wildlife behaves, Meadowvale should be on your radar. It is a strategic tile-placement game for 1 to 4 players from Brass Fox Games, a new UK studio, and it leans right into the countryside. Owls hunt by line of sight, rabbits cluster together for safety, badgers forage along the hedgerows, and the rules follow those habits rather than fighting them.
Looking for board gamers near you? Browse local communities and find your next game night.
Find events near youThe game has you laying tiles to grow a shared patch of countryside, then placing animals whose value depends on where they sit and what surrounds them. The setting is unmistakably British, drawing on the landscape and wildlife of the Cotswolds. The art is the part that really stands out: rather than the usual digital illustration, Brass Fox is producing the artwork using traditional etching printmaking, the work of an award-winning printmaker. It gives the whole thing a handmade, almost storybook look that suits a game about quiet country corners.
Brass Fox has been running public playtesting around the UK, and Meadowvale is heading to Kickstarter this autumn. The studio is also working on Herd: The Wintering, a two-player abstract strategy game built on a tight set of rules. Neither has a firm release date yet, so this is one to file under 'watch closely' rather than 'buy now'. If a hand-etched game about the British countryside sounds like your group's kind of evening, it is worth gathering some players in advance. You can find a game night near you on Backseat Gamer while you wait for the campaign.
Stop juggling Meetup, WhatsApp, and spreadsheets. One platform for your gaming group's events, RSVPs, and member management.
See how it worksSources: Brass Fox Games - Meadowvale | Brass Fox Games
