My Lil'Everdell Board Game Review

Everdell, but shrunk down for the younger crowd? Or maybe a quicker version? Yes please. But don’t let the “Lil” fool you—this is still a game with clever decisions, resource management, and crunchy card combos... all in a friendlier, faster format. Plus there's a die!

My Lil’ Everdell is a streamlined version of the beloved Everdell. The game is designed by Will and Clarissa Wilson and published by Starling Games. It’s a 2-4 player game where you build your critter community over four rounds. During each round you place three workers and try to collect resources and play cards to score the most points

Who’s This For? If you’re introducing board games to kids, new gamers, or adults who like the idea of Everdell but not the full hour-long teach—this may be your jam. It’s quick to learn, satisfying to play, and it still comes with squishy berries!

📦 What's in the Box?

• A central game board with beautifully illustrated art

• 54 Beautiful critter and places cards

• Colorful cardboard boxes that become crates to store the game tokens

• Tokens that also come in extra format as cardboard pieces:

  • squishy berries

  • resin

  • twigs

  • pebbles

• 4 token dice

• 16 Parade tokens

• Achievement goals

• Cute critter meeples (just 3 per player = quick turns!)

  • blue butterflies (mine)

  • orange foxes

  • green lizards

  • white mice (I thought they were bunnies but someone pointed out the tail--whoops!)

• Personal home boards where your woodland town grows

• Sun token for first player

• Moon token for round tracking

🧩 Setup

• Place the main board, resource crates, and 8 cards in the meadow

• Give each player 3 critters and a home board.

• Sort and stack Parade tokens above the forest.

• Sun goes to the shortest player 🌞, moon starts on the left 🌚

🔁 How It Plays

Each round, players:

1. Activate Green cards to gather passive resources

2. Roll dice to randomize the forest rewards

3. Take turns placing critters to gather resources from the board, dice, or red cards in your own home

4. Purchase cards from the market to add to your home, paying with the resources you’ve gathered

5. Check for Parade Tokens — unique bonuses for building a diverse or specific town

6. End the round, bring your critters home, pass the sun, and scooch the moon one space right

After four rounds, tally points from:

• Cards in your town

• Parade tokens

• Extra point tokens

• Every 2 leftover resources = 1 point

🏆 Highest score wins. In case of a tie, check who has more points on their cards

🧠 What Makes It Tick?

The streamlined turns make this game a winner for kids and adults new to the hobby. No need for heavy iconography or tight engine-building. Instead, the joy comes from:

• Placing your tiny critter on a dice spot before someone else grabs it

• Playing cards

• Racing to snag that juicy Parade token before your sibling does 🐸💨

🌟 Pros

• ✨ Just like Everdell the art is perfection. Whimsical, bright, and full of personality

• 🚸 Great for young and new gamers: teaches turn order, worker placement, and light strategy. I think this is a good way to see if your friends that are curious about board games could manage a full Everdell game

• ⏱️ Quick turns and limited downtime. Though this can change if playing with 4 players

• 🧩 Easy to teach, even easier to play—very limited text on cards which makes it mostly language independent

🤔 Considerations

• 🧠 Less strategic depth than classic Everdell (by design)—if you’re looking for crunchy combos, this is more bite-sized appetizer

• It may still be too much for some younger players

• 🎯 Limited player interaction

🍄 Bottom Line

My Lil’ Everdell is the perfect introduction to modern board games for kids, with just enough decisions to keep grown-ups engaged too. Whether you're raising the next generation of woodland strategists or just want a quick, cozy game that fits on the coffee table, this one's worth the try. 🐿️ Tiny critters, big fun. Now who’s ready to build the coziest forest town?