I played Dominant Species yesterday and it was good. It was third time for me - first time I played with two players, second time with 3 players and now with 6. And it was really good, I even raised the rating from 8 to 9. On the other hand I've heard also quite many complaints about DS: it's too random, too AP-prone, cards are too powerful, game itself is too abstract, scoring is too random etc etc. This made me also wonder - why do I like this game?

I'd say that I like the freedom of choices Dominant Species offers. You have always some meaningful moves and actions - sometimes they're more obvious, sometimes you have to find them. But they're there. At least they've been there in those 3 games I've had. I like also the opportunistic behaviour this game enforces. You can't just gather a great pile of your species and then "rule the Earth", no, you have to choose wisely. Some of your species die here and enter the game there, you have to be aware about all the options your opponents are offering to you. Do you want to rule the tundra (and score with Survival) or just hang around in Wetland/Sea? Didn't reach the Domination action? You have always Glaciation or Wanderlust. Plus scores for second/third place. Like I said, plenty of opportunities to choose from - but I admit that you can't have a Cunning Masterplan from Round 1 and follow it throughout the game. And that's why I like it.