Isle of Night (Saturday Review)

When the locals told you the ancient tales of a mysterious island that was said to be strewn with gold, gems and many other treasures, you knew you had to go and discover the island’s secrets for yourself. Even when they warned you that it was home to countless ferocious dragons and that the waters around it were infested with dangerous serpents, you weren’t swayed. So you set off at night, the only time when the island would appear, because it was the Isle of Night by Dustin Dowdle from Red Raven Games with art by Ryan Laukat.

What a glorious introduction to another game that features the gorgeous illustrations by Ryan Laukat. Yet, in a departure from all of Red Raven‘s other games, this set collection card game wasn’t designed by him. Instead, the name of Dustin Dowdle, who previously designed Fox in the Henhouse, which was released six years before Isle of Night, features proudly on the game box and in the rulebook. Yet, when you look at the game, read the rules and start playing it, you wouldn’t think it was created by a different designer. The game feels very much like other games from Red Raven.

Of course, the illustrations play a big part in this. They immediately immerse you in a world that feels very much like Ryan‘s creation, the world of Arzium. I don’t know if it is or if it just feels like it. Either way, if you’ve never played any of Red Raven‘s games, it doesn’t really matter. Isle of Night doesn’t require you to have any prior knowledge of Arzium or any of the publisher’s other games. Like all games, you can play each one independently, but if you know another game, you will feel right at home straight away.

Set Collection at Night

At its heart, Isle of Night is a set collection card drafting game. That will already give you an idea as to whether it’s something you’d enjoy or not. I certainly knew I would like the game, because I enjoy pattern-matching style games a lot.

The thing is, Isle of Night has a couple of twists that make it quite unique. These twists add to the basic card drafting and set collection.

First of all, the way you score for sets changes from game to game and is decided by shuffling the scoring cards and arranging them according to a certain layout. You can vary the layout by choosing from one of three double-sided, so-called island cards. The island cards decide how many points a scoring card in a certain position is worth, and the scoring cards show the object that you need to collect sets of.

It’s a bit hard to explain, but one of the island cards asks you to arrange seven scoring cards in a 1-2-2-1-1 pattern. So, one card at the top, then two cards side-by-side below, another two side-by-side below that and then a single card below that and finally another single card underneath that. The single card at the very top is worth 5 points, for example, the next two below are worth 4 points each, etc.

The position of these scoring cards is very important. It helps you decide what you might want to collect to get the most points. The problem is, the position of scoring cards can be changed during the game by playing certain cards. So there is a certain amount of player interaction in Isle of Night. You can help yourself by making your sets more valuable, while reducing the value of your opponents’ sets.

Isle of Player Interaction

The other form of player interaction is through the card draft. On your turn, you draw three cards from the deck and add them to a public card market. You then choose a certain card type, take all cards of that type and add them to your tableau. So if a set of three beetles is worth 5 points, for example, and there are four beetles in the market, you can take all four and add them to your tableau. Of course, chances are there won’t be four beetles in the market. It’s more likely another player has taken them before you, because they’re so valuable. So, unless you draw three beetle cards on your turn, you might end up with one or two – or none.

As the card market grows, the decision of which cards you take becomes harder. There will be more good options on offer. Whether you are better off taking high-scoring beetles or the cards that allow you to swap the scoring cards and thereby reducing the value of beetles while, at the same time, increasing the value of the other sets you have in your tableau, is usually not an easy decision.

That decision becomes harder, because there are also so-called location cards in Isle of Night, which either give you an ongoing ability, like being able to draw extra cards, for example, or affect end-game scoring for you, like giving you extra points if you have the fewest cards, for example.

There are also other restrictions with certain cards, which, combined with the other decisions you have to make, turn what in many games is often a relatively simple card drafting choice into a much more difficult selection process.

Breezy Isle

Yet, Isle of Night isn’t a brainburner. While the decisions are tough, they don’t require endless consideration. So analysis paralysis shouldn’t be an issue. The amount of thinking power needed is just right in my view for a game that lasts around half an hour. I would say it’s on a par with Eight-Minute Empire, if you have played that.

Isle of Night is also pretty easy to learn, even though the rulebook could do with some restructuring and a couple of clarifications. When I taught the game for the first time, I felt I had to explain every type of card and its effects, and there are nine of them. That’s a lot to take in. In reality though, you just need to explain the basics. As you play, everything quickly makes sense. You may have to refer to the rulebook a couple of times, but on your second game, you should not need it any longer.

The only other niggle I have is the amount of table space it needs. For what is basically a set of cards, Isle of Night likes to spread. It’s more like an archipelago than a single island on the table. However, by stacking cards, you can compress things down. My wife and I were able to play it on a relatively small table this way.

Overall, Isle of Night is a really lovely game, a perfect game to play a few times in an evening or to finish a game night. It isn’t too taxing, so you can still play it after a busy day, but it requires enough brainpower to give you enough of a challenge. I think Red Raven Games has found a gem with this game. Now I wonder what Dustin‘s Fox in the Henhouse is all about.

Useful Links

• Isle of Night: https://www.redravengames.com/isle-of-night/
• Rulebook: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fo/w7f9isvhg6ou96pt7hz55/AAADklDEQzem8AAvT4Lx9KY?dl=0&e=1&preview=Isle+of+Night_rulebook_ver+04.pdf&rlkey=fcm9tckdbzhqct9d340ntgt7u&st=ge7qkdve
• Red Raven Games: https://www.redravengames.com/
• BGG listing: https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/412997/isle-of-night
• Eight-Minute Empire: Legends review: https://tabletopgamesblog.com/2019/12/07/eight-minute-empire-legends-saturday-review/

Transparency Facts

I feel that this review reflects my own, independent and honest opinion, but the facts below allow you to decide whether you think that I was influenced in any way. Please also read my Ethics Statement for more information.

• I was given a free review copy of this game by the publisher.
• At the time of writing, I have not received financial support from the publisher or anyone working on their behalf.

Audio Version

Intro Music: Bomber (Sting) by Riot (https://www.youtube.com/audiolibrary/)

Sound Effects: bbc.co.uk – © copyright 2025 BBC

Music by https://www.bensound.com/free-music-for-videos
License code: HGUUXN5BDOHW43LX
Artist: Theatre Of Delays

Playlist

These are the songs I listened to while I was writing this review: