Overview
At a glance
Is this game right for my group?
ABG editorial scores on a 1–5 scale.
Easier to teach
High replayability
Highly interactive
Scales well
Deep strategy
More strategic control
How it plays
How does it play?
Plant coral around underwater stations, surface completed reefs for research funds, and balance conservation with the need to keep expanding.
Core mechanisms
Key systems that shape the decisions players make.
Area Majority
Compete to have the strongest presence in areas that award control or points.
Tile Placement
Place tiles to build a shared or personal spatial arrangement.
Open Drafting
Select cards or items from a shared face-up display.
Pattern Building
Place elements to create arrangements that satisfy scoring or action patterns.
Enclosure
Surround spaces or pieces to claim territory, capture, or score.
Read the full game description
Reef Gardens is a tile-placement strategy game in which marine conservationists restore a shared seabed. On each turn, a player either buys an entire row of coral tiles from the nursery and plants them, or closes one or more owned reefs to recover divers and research funds. Stations score the largest neighboring reefs, while shell tiles add tactical bonuses and alternate scoring opportunities. The double-sided board offers a shorter layout for two players and a longer contest for larger groups. Reef Gardens reimplements Citrus with a new theme and a streamlined coral-management economy.
