Finspan Components Overview and Impressions

Finspan is the third game in the -Span line of games from Stonemaier Games. We’ve previously had the chance to review both Wingspan (and its many expansions) and Wrymspan, so to get to try Finspan as well was a real treat! I know what to expect with a Stonemaier production, and based on Wingspan and Wrymspan, I was excited to see what this one would have inside. After all, those two previous games had amazing little plastic eggs to use, which gave the game a premium feel out of the box. I was hoping Finspan would be the same!

Unfortunately, it isn’t, but I’m not sure that is necessarily a bad thing. Finspan is more about cards than anything else, and while you do get nice little wooden divers for each player, all the other components are cards – linen finish and amazing – and cardboard tokens. Let’s remember that the majority of components in Wrymspan and Wingspan are also cardboard, so that isn’t the issue. I would have loved to see them work some kind of egg into this game as well as a “premium component.”

It is worth noting that you can get little squishy fish eggs and wooden fish tokens to replace the cardboard tokens the base game comes with.

Once we get past the lack of a really cool component, everything about Finspan is standard Stonemaier Games production quality. The cardboard is nice and thick, and feels great to handle. You are given more than enough components for a maximum player game, which is nice as well.

But these games are all about the cards, and like with Wrymspan and Wingspan, the quality of the cards is phenomenal. I’ve never sleeved my copy of Wingspan which has received the most plays of any of these games, and those cards still look great after years and years of use. I never am concerned about card quality with Stonemaier Games, and would argue there is NO reason to sleeve these cards, even though you shuffle them often.

The art on the cards is great as well. I love that each fish has detailed information about their length, and information about the fish itself. Like with Wingspan – less so Wrymspan – I was fascinated by all the real-world facts I got to learn, and some new fish I never knew even existed! I love how Stonemaier blends the perfect balance of education and facts with useability. The iconography in this game is phenomenal, and rarely are you left wondering what something means. Within a few minutes of playing you’ll know what drawing cards looks like, what discarding cards looks like, what it means to lay eggs or hatch eggs, etc. Everything is cleanly laid out, and in a game that relies a ton on cards, this is a necessity.

Honestly, outside of the initial disappointment that Finspan didn’t have a really cool “premium” component on the inside, I was once again thoroughly impressed with the production. At this point, Stonemaier Games is in that category of companies I feel “can do no wrong when it comes to production.” While that can change with future titles, I’d always recommend a Stonemaier Game to a friend based on production quality alone.