If you like a board game that unfolds like a storybook, Rebel's The Trial of the Forest is worth a look. It casts 2 to 4 players as animals venturing deep into the Ancient Forest, each competing to be crowned the new Guardian of the Green Valley. The game reaches shelves on 30 July 2026 and gets its first public outing at Gen Con.
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Start organising for freeThis is a proper exploration and adventure game rather than a quick filler. You travel winding forest paths, poke around mysterious locations, meet the wood's quirky creatures and take on quests, collecting resources and playing cards as you go. Those cards build a record of your deeds, so by the end every player has assembled their own little tale of who their animal turned out to be. Moral choices sit at the heart of it. You can play the noble hero or the cunning trickster, and the path you pick shapes both your story and your final score.
It comes from designer Giancarlo Spinelli, with rich artwork by Anna "Mikado" Przybylska that gives the forest real character. Rebel, the Polish studio behind it, has pitched the game as family-friendly but with enough bite to keep experienced players engaged, and a session runs anywhere from one to two hours depending on your group. It plays 2 to 4, ages 10 and up.
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Find events near youStorytelling games and cosy-woodland themes are having a real moment, and a good-looking forest adventure with decisions that genuinely matter should find plenty of tables. If it sounds like your kind of evening, it might be time to round up a group and pick a Guardian.
Sources: Rebel Studio | Asmodee UK | BoardGameGeek
