The Fox in the Forest

Is The Fox in the Forest worth taking on holiday?

Yes. This is now a game we'll be taking away on every holiday.

The Fox in the Forest is a two-player card game in a small box, and it's one of the best things we've found for when there are just two of you. It packs down to almost nothing, plays well on a plane tray table, and has far more to it than its size suggests.

Alongside Hive Pocket, it's one of our two favourite games for two players, and the two we'd choose first for a flight.

What's the game like?

It's a trick-taking card game, so if you've played games like Whist, the basic idea will feel familiar: each round you both play a card, and the stronger card wins the trick.

What makes it special is that it's very hard to predict how a round will go. With a lot of card games, you've got a good idea of how things will play out as soon as you've looked at your hand. Not here.

The odd-numbered cards each have a special action, and they really mix the round up. A hand that looks strong can fall apart, and a hand that looks weak can suddenly come good.

The scoring is the other clever part. Winning lots of tricks is good, but win too many and you score zero for the round. That means you're constantly deciding whether to take a trick or deliberately lose it, which adds a great layer of tactics.

Is it difficult to learn?

We'd rate it around 2/5 for complexity.

Our 13-year-old found it harder to learn than either of The Crew games, mainly because there's more to remember with the special cards and the scoring. Once you've played a couple of rounds, though, it clicks quickly.

Cooperative or competitive?

This is the big difference from The Crew. In The Crew everyone works together. In The Fox in the Forest, it's you against the other player.

Personally, I prefer cooperative games where we're working together. But our 13-year-old preferred this to The Crew, and we think that's because she likes playing against someone rather than with them.

So if someone in your family loves a bit of head-to-head competition, this is a great choice.

Can you play it on a plane?

Yes, and it's one of the best games we've found for it.

It's designed for exactly two players, so it suits two people sitting side by side. It only needs a small play area, so a pair of aircraft tray tables is plenty.

The Fox in the Forest and Hive Pocket are our top two plane games for two people.

Is it good with children?

Yes, from around 10 years old.

Younger children may find the special cards and the scoring a bit much. From around 10, and especially for children who enjoy a bit of competition, it works really well.

How long does a game take?

A game takes around 30 minutes, but it's easy to make shorter or longer by changing the number of points you play to.

Lower the winning total and you've got a quick game to fill a gap. Raise it, or play a few games back to back, and it'll easily fill an evening.

Can you play it outdoors?

Yes, as long as it isn't windy. As with any card game, a breeze quickly becomes a problem.

How easy is it to pack?

Very easy. The box measures 11.4 × 16.2 × 3.4 cm and weighs 197 g, which makes it one of the smaller and lighter games we own.

As with all of our card games, we'd recommend putting the cards into sleeves to protect them while you're travelling. There's just enough room in the box for the sleeved cards, but to save even more space we put them in a Gamegenic Deck Holder and leave the box at home.

Our verdict

The Fox in the Forest is one of the best two-player travel games we've played.

It's tiny, light and perfect for a plane, but most importantly it's a genuinely good game. The special cards make every round unpredictable, and the scoring stops anyone from simply winning every trick.

It takes a little more learning than The Crew, and if you prefer cooperative games you may still lean towards those. But for two players, and especially for anyone who enjoys a bit of competition, it's an easy recommendation.

We'll be taking it on every holiday from now on.