New Board Games for 2025 Your Family Must Try

Designer:  Brandon Ohmie       Publisher: Tangerine Games

Objective of Nestlings

I found in Nestling, you and your fellow players take on the role of bird parents building nests to raise your baby birds. The goal is to gather resources, build the most successful nest, protect your little birds from various challenges, and gain the most points. 

Overview of Nestlings

Each player takes turns collecting resources like twigs, leaves, and feathers by drawing cards. These resources are used to build parts of your nest and care for your baby birds. However, watch out for predators and other threats that might affect your nest-building progress. Some cards allow you to sabotage other players or protect your own nest, adding a fun layer of strategy.

A game of Nestlings involved four rounds, one for each season. And during each season you will  be involved in a gathering and a feeding phase. You gain points by feeding your nestlings, completing gathering goals and collecting different resources.

First off, what is a biome in Nestlings?

If you’re like me, “biome” isn’t a word we use widely in our house, and I had to find out what it means. So I’ll share in case you need to learn a fun fact for today, like me.

A biome is a large geographical area characterized by specific climate, vegetation, and animal life. Players assume the role of birds competing to gain priority across four biomes: savannah, alpine, freshwater, and desert. The board is divided up into these four areas with different resources.

How to Play Nestlings

In this fun and strategic game, players explore different biomes while trying to feed their baby birds and complete their nest. Each round begins with everyone rolling their special biome dice. Then, one by one in clockwise order, players take turns placing dice into different biomes on the board.

The first player to place a die in a biome gains priority, which means they get to pick a resource first and even discard one to block other players. But if someone else places more dice in that same biome later, they take priority instead.

Once everyone has finished placing their dice or decided to pass, it’s time to resolve each biome. Players collect resources, feed their nestlings, and add matching pieces to their nest rings on their player boards.

Don’t forget the central wild grasslands biome—it gets resolved too and can offer big rewards.

As the game goes on, players face tough choices:

• Should they feed nestlings for quick points?

• Or complete parts of their nest ring to unlock powerful bonuses?

• Should they spend currency to add an end-game goal, or save it for extra points?

Every decision counts. Choosing when to grab resources, how to compete for priority, and when to play it safe or take a risk can make all the difference.

After four rounds, the game ends. Players reveal their secret nest goals and count up their points. The one with the highest score wins — and proves they’re the ultimate nest builder.

Conclusion 

Nestlings is a great new board game for younger children because of its simple mechanics and the cute bird theme. I found it easy to understand, yet it provides plenty of opportunities for strategic thinking, especially as you balance building your nest and defending it. The game encourages cooperative play while still keeping the competitive aspect alive—making it a wonderful choice for our family game night fun.