Games like Spirit Island

01

Horizons of Spirit Island(2022)

★ 8.11–3 players90 minWeight 3.6

ISO Match

76/100

A near-perfect match, and no surprise: Horizons of Spirit Island shares action retrieval, area majority, automatic resource growth, cooperative play, simultaneous action selection, hand management, a modular board, variable player powers, and variable set-up with the original. At 3.56 weight versus 4.07, it trims some depth without losing the shape of the puzzle. It supports one to three players and, like Spirit Island, sings at two. What you lose is the deck-, bag-, and pool-building layer; what you gain is an events system and set collection. If you want the closest thing in feel, this is it.

02

Frosthaven(2022)

★ 8.71–4 players90 minWeight 4.4

ISO Match

67/100

Heavier than the original — 4.41 weight against 4.07 — Frosthaven shares the campaign/battle card core, cooperative structure, deck/bag/pool building, hand management, modular boards, simultaneous action selection, solo support, and variable player powers. It runs one to four players like Spirit Island but peaks at three rather than two, so bigger groups may actually prefer it. The divergence is where the drama lives: instead of area majority and automatic resource growth, you get a legacy campaign with scenario missions, hex-grid movement, multi-use cards, and communication limits. Same tight, coordinated card play; a much longer narrative arc wrapped around it.

03

Mage Knight Board Game(2011)

★ 8.11–4 players60 minWeight 4.4

ISO Match

65/100

Best played alone, Mage Knight Board Game is the pick here if solo is your main mode. It shares cooperative play, deck/bag/pool building, hand management, a modular board, solitaire support, tags, and variable player powers with Spirit Island. At 4.38 weight versus 4.07, expect a somewhat heavier rules load. It handles one to four players, though the community rates it best at one — a contrast with the original's sweet spot of two. In place of simultaneous action selection and area majority, you get hex-grid movement, dice rolling, multi-use cards, and open drafting in an adventure-and-fighting frame.

04

Gloomhaven(2017)

★ 8.51–4 players60 minWeight 3.9

ISO Match

65/100

At 3.92 weight to the original's 4.07, Gloomhaven sits at almost exactly the same depth. The shared systems run deep: action retrieval, campaign/battle card driven play, cooperation, hand management, modular boards, simultaneous action selection, solo play, tags, and variable player powers. It handles one to four but hits its stride at three players, one seat wider than Spirit Island's ideal duo. What changes is the frame: you trade area majority and automatic resource growth for a legacy campaign with grid movement, multi-use cards, narrative choices, and role playing. The turn-to-turn card decisions feel familiar; the scenario-driven adventure structure around them does not.

05

The Lord of the Rings: The Card Game – Revised Core Set(2022)

★ 8.41–4 players30 minWeight 3.6

ISO Match

64/100

Shares Automatic Resource Growth + 5 more

06

Gloomhaven: Jaws of the Lion(2020)

★ 8.41–4 players30 minWeight 3.6

ISO Match

63/100

Shares Action Retrieval + 6 more

07

Oathsworn: Into the Deepwood(2022)

★ 8.81–4 players30 minWeight 3.7

ISO Match

62/100

Shares Cooperative Game + 4 more

08

Gloomhaven (Second Edition)(2025)

★ 8.41–4 playersWeight 3.7

ISO Match

62/100

Shares Action Retrieval + 8 more

09

Renegade(2018)

★ 7.61–5 playersWeight 3.7

ISO Match

61/100

Renegade brings over a surprising amount of the original's engine room: area majority, cooperative play, deck/bag/pool building, hand management, a modular board, solo support, and variable player powers. Its 3.70 weight makes it lighter than Spirit Island's 4.07 — easier to get to the table without going shallow. It stretches from one to five players, adding a fifth seat the original can't offer, though no best count is listed. Where it departs: simultaneous action selection and variable set-up are gone, replaced by action points, dice rolling, and push-your-luck moments on a hex grid, all in a science fiction skin rather than mythic fantasy.

10

Too Many Bones: Unbreakable(2023)

★ 8.81–4 players60 minWeight 3.9

ISO Match

61/100

Shares Cooperative Game + 4 more

11

Middara: Unintentional Malum – Act 1(2019)

★ 8.51–4 players60 minWeight 4.1

ISO Match

61/100

Shares Cooperative Game + 4 more

12

Etherfields(2020)

★ 7.81–4 players90 minWeight 3.6

ISO Match

61/100

Shares Cooperative Game + 4 more