The cooperative nature of Forbidden Desert is balanced during play by a handful of major factors, but the biggest is that the larger the total number of players in the game (from 2 to 5), the more opportunities the game has to cause problems. While more players means that a greater amount of the map can be explored each round, after every turn each player must pick up a set number of cards from the Sandstorm deck, each of which can cause A) the amount of sand to increase in a specific location, B) increase the number of cards drawn each turn, or C) reduce the total water for players not hidden from the sun. All of these factors lead to a race against time and luck for all the players involved, and thus serves to keep the game consistent and balanced throughout no matter how many players are involved.
