Bee Lives: We Will Only Know Summer (2019)

About this game

Bee Lives: We Will Only Know Summer is a game designed to run 1-4 players through a year of managing a wild bee hive. Players of this medium-weight Eurogame utilize resource management and worker placement mechanisms to be the hive that sets up the best possible path for its survival. In more detail, in Bee Lives you manage your own hive by interacting with both your internal hive player board and the shared external board that is made up of tiles and collaboratively built by all of the players. During the game, you swarm to propagate your bees and score victory points, but these newly formed wild hives compete with you and the other players for resources on the board. Can you ensure your hive will make it through winter?

Does it fit your group?

• Group size. Works with 1 to 4. It has a designed solo mode.
• Rules load. At 3.8/5 this is a heavy game — read the rulebook before people arrive.
• Age. The publisher suggests 14 and up. That rates the rules rather than the artwork, so judge the box yourself for younger players.