Surplus of Sloths

Surplus of Sloths is a cozy but surprisingly tactical drafting card game for 2–4 players where the sloths you leave behind can matter just as much as the ones you rescue. Players draft numbered sloths from shared river rows, build increasingly long runs of matching types, and compete for the valuable cards that fall into the Surplus Net. Because only those surplus sloths ultimately score, every draft creates a wonderfully backward question: do you take the card that improves your collection now, or leave something valuable behind and hope you can earn it later?

Sometimes the Sloth You Leave Behind Is the Point

The river is flooding, the sloths need rescuing, and apparently even wildlife relief has become a competitive optimization problem.

Surplus of Sloths looks gentle, but the drafting has teeth. You can see which types your opponents are collecting. You can see which card will remain in the Surplus Net after everyone drafts from a row. And you know that building the longest run of a particular sloth type gives you the right to claim the surplus cards of that type at the end.

That means taking the obvious card is not always correct. Sometimes you want a valuable sloth to stay in the river. Sometimes you need to deny an opponent a number that completes their run. Sometimes everybody realizes the same card matters and the table becomes remarkably intense for a game populated almost entirely by sleepy tree-dwellers.

This is an approachable drafting and set-building game with positive interaction, hidden scoring tension, and enough tactical timing to make it especially appealing to gamers who like small boxes with real decisions inside.

How the Game Works

Cards are arranged into shared river rows. The starting player chooses a sloth from one row, and the other players then draft from that same row. After everyone has selected a card, the final undrafted sloth falls into the Surplus Net.

In front of you, you are trying to build long numerical runs within the different sloth types. At the end of the game, players compare those runs. The player with the strongest run of a type earns the corresponding sloths waiting in the Surplus Net.

Here's the twist: the cards you personally drafted are primarily how you establish control. The surplus cards you earn are what generate your points. So every choice has two timelines: what helps your run immediately and what may become valuable if nobody takes it now.

Special X sloths can help fill gaps, while the optional Baby Sloths provide additional flexibility. The result is a clean drafting system where the shared leftovers are never actually leftovers.

Why You’ll Love It

• Turns the usual drafting instinct upside down by making undrafted cards valuable.
• Open river rows make every opponent's priorities visible.
• Numbered runs create an easy-to-understand set-building puzzle.
• Competition for each sloth type encourages tactical denial without feeling harsh.
• Wild and Baby Sloths add flexibility when your perfect sequence refuses to cooperate.
• Plays in under 20 minutes and is easy to teach.
• Cozy artwork and approachable rules make it family-friendly while the scoring puzzle rewards experienced gamers.
• Small, portable format makes repeated plays painless.

Game Details

🧩 Players: 2–4 Players
⏱️ Playtime: 15–20 Minutes
🎂 Age: 8+
🗂️ Genre: Animals, Drafting, Set Collection, Cozy Card Game
🎯 Complexity: Light but Thinky
🔁 Replayability: High
🎮 Great for fans of: Sea Salt & Paper, Scout, Sushi Go!, compact drafting games, and clever card games with shared incentives

What's in the Box

• 50 Sloth Cards
• 4 Baby Sloth Cards
• 1 Sloth Meeple First Player Marker
• Rules