Panda

About this board game

Panda is a 2024 board game for 2–4 players, played in about 40 minutes, in which players build a shared Giant Panda National Park and compete to score the most points.

The park grows outward from the river running through it. Prey animals come to the water to drink, creating opportunities for predators hiding in the surrounding areas. Players develop the park by placing prey cards adjacent to the river or to other prey animals, giving the growing landscape a connected structure.

Prey cards score points immediately, while predator cards are worth points at the end of the game. This creates a choice about when to act: should you make a predator strike as soon as prey is spotted, or wait for the chance to score more points later?

• Build the national park together from the river outward.
• Place prey cards beside the river or other prey animals.
• Score prey animals immediately.
• Use predator cards for end-game scoring.
• Time your strikes before another predator takes your place.

The park’s thriving areas attract predators, so every promising habitat can become a contested opportunity. Waiting may increase your potential score, but it also gives other players the chance to act first and claim the points for themselves.

In Panda, the shared park creates a common setting while each player weighs their own scoring opportunities. Read the developing landscape, watch for vulnerable prey, and decide when patience should give way to a carefully timed strike.