Countless visitors to Sanibel Island share memories of collecting seashells from its famously shell-laden beaches. Game designer and naturalist Elizabeth Hargrave has re-created that experience in her latest board game, Sanibel, set for release in January by Avalon Hill, a division of Hasbro. The game has already drawn attention in the tabletop community.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The New York Times\u2019 Wirecutter reviewer James Austin named Sanibel one of his top five games from GenCon 2025, a major North American tabletop gaming convention.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cSanibel feels reminiscent of walking down the beach and engaging with the treasures that the sea brings up, which should make it an easy game to introduce to new players \u2014 perhaps especially kids,\u201d Austin wrote.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Players collect seashell tiles in Sanibel, a new Avalon Hill board game inspired by the island\u2019s famous beaches.<\/p>\n
Hasbro Games<\/p>\n
The game is rooted in Hargrave\u2019s childhood memories of shell collecting along Florida\u2019s west coast. She grew up in Gainesville in the 1970s and 1980s and often visited Venice, while Sanibel was a special destination.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBut for a game about seashells, I knew it should be set on Sanibel,\u201d Hargrave said. \u201cThere’s just nothing like it.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
In the game, the board represents the beach, anchored by the Sanibel Lighthouse at one end. Players stroll along the sand, collecting seashell tiles that have washed ashore. When scores are tallied, Hargrave said, it evokes the joy she felt sharing her finds at the end of a day spent beachcombing.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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Childhood photos of Elizabeth Hargrave on Florida beaches inspired her design for the Sanibel board game.<\/p>\n
Hasbro Games<\/p>\n
\u201cThe inspiration for Sanibel actually came while my family was gathered at my aunt’s place in Venice,\u201d she said. \u201cWe always have a friendly competition over who can find the most shark’s teeth there. At some point my dad suggested that collecting shells and shark teeth would make a good game. I realized I couldn’t think of a game with this theme \u2014 and that seemed like a real gap, because it’s such a feel-good memory for so many people.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hargrave is known for atmospheric, nature-inspired games featuring detailed art. Her 2019 release Wingspan won critical acclaim for its blend of strategy and science. She later designed Undergrove, set in the Pacific Northwest, and Mariposas, inspired by monarch butterfly migrations.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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