tabletopgaming.co.uk 81can limit the options available to the
leading player by choosing a smaller
reward themselves. e game makes the
most of its stripped-down contents, with
every card having at least two potential
uses – often an ongoing bene t or a more
immediate boost – and playing into a set-
collection element during scoring.
e simpli ed drafting round and
simultaneous park management keeps
the action moving along, with the fast
momentum and moment-to-moment
decisions sometimes more comparable
to the ramping pace of an engine-
building game than Dinosaur Island’s
slower and more methodical long-term
strategy. What Duelosaur loses in depth,
it handily makes up for with speed and
simplicity – and you still get enough of
that incredible theme to sink your teeth
into, even if it’s not quite as meaty.
Where Duelosaur lacks a little is in
the small details. ere are more than
a couple of awkward design decisions- regularly requiring the PR track marker
to be moved to see what’s underneath
it, an illogical placement of visitor
icons on the dinosaur cards, poorly
explained rules, a lack of a player aid on
the boards – that cause the otherwise fast
pace to hitch up at points. ey’re minor
gripes, many of which dissipate once both
players have a couple of plays under their
belts, but they’re gripes all the same – and
ones that could have been easily solved.
Ultimately, Duelosaur Island does
exactly what it sets out to do: give you
a avour of its bigger sibling without
feeling like half the fun. e gameplay
shift and smaller, well, everything
makes it enough of a standalone
experience to enjoy alone, even if you
might nd yourself craving the full park
tour afterwards.
MATT JARVIS
W
elcome (back) to Dinosaur
Island. Oh cripes, the T-Rex
has escaped and gobbled up
all of the meeples – and half of the players.
Yes, Duelosaur Island (honestly,
we can’t decide whether it’s a name
so dumb it’s genius, or so dumb it’s
dumb) is Dinosaur Island with its DNA
recon gured from an up-to-four-player
worker-placement board game to a
two-player-only drafting card game. (A
solo mode is included, though it’s not
the preferred way to play.) ere’s plenty
you’ll recognise if this isn’t your rst
trip to the park: the gaudy neon colour
scheme, each player’s DNA tracks, the
specialists who should really nd a new
workplace and, yes, the endless puns and
Jurassic Park references spread across the
deck of dinosaurs and visitor attractions.
While the meeples – human or dino –
are nowhere to be seen, Duelosaur does
preserve the amber-coloured dice of its
predecessor, which here serve as the
main focus of the gameplay. You bounce
back and forth each round, drafting
either a die – plus its attached bonus,
which might multiply its value or add
other bene ts, such as coins or extra DNA- or one of two specialists into your park.
ere’s no need to worry about arranging
paddocks of Pachycephalosaurus this
time – after you’ve mixed up their
particular DNA cocktail, the dinos from
your hand neatly slot above your board,
one half of the smartly designed double-
ended cards that can function instead as
attractions when placed below the board.
What you will need to concern yourself
with still is the threat of dangerous dinos
breaking out and turning visitors into the
eshy equivalent of Pom-Bears, balancing
your security level against the threat of
your prehistoric menagerie’s inhabitants,
as well as the shifting threat added by
the leftover card or die each round –
something that can be used to screw your
opponent with a potential lawsuit if their
chain fences are looking a little rusty.
Duelosaur leans nicely into its head-
to-head feel with some more direct player
interaction, such as the PR bonuses
granted at the end of each round – the
lowest-scoring player picks rst, and
Dinosaur Island for just a pair-odactyl
DUELOSAUR ISLAND
30-45m 2 10+ £34WHAT’S IN
THE BOX?
◗ Draft board
◗ Eight DNA dice
◗ Six starter
park cards
◗ Two company boards
◗ Main board
◗ 20 player cubes
◗ 22 specialist cards
◗ 44 park cards
◗ 15 plot twist tokens
◗ 27 coins
◗ PR marker
◗ Two 10+ security tokens
◗ Two 10+ threat tokens
◗ Two 50+ visitor tokens
◗ Four lawsuit tokens
◗ Six AI cards
◗ Dice bagTRY THIS IF
YOU LIKED...
DINOSAUR
ISLAND
Duelosaur shares
plenty of DNA with
its prehistoric
predecessor, but
it's a solid game in
its own right, too.(^) PLAY IT? MAYBE
It’s not as good as Dinosaur Island,
but it ain’t half bad either. The
card and die drafting is engaging,
with the clever multi-functionality
of cards providing plenty to think
about in a small package. And
who can resist that theme?
explained rules, a lack of a player aid on
the boards – that cause the otherwise fast
pace to hitch up at points. ey’re minor
gripes, many of which dissipate once both
players have a couple of plays under their
belts, but they’re gripes all the same – and
ones that could have been easily solved.
MATT JARVIS