I'm going to preface this review by saying that I own many board games and host a weekly game night at my house to play awesome games with my closest friends.
What is this game?
The galaxy is at war. You are the leader of a specific alien race. Use your special species specific powers to take control of your opponents planets and claim them as your own. Ally together and negotiate with others to help and hinder each other along the way. At its crazy heart, this is a card game, plain and simple. Yes, there are neat little planets and colony ships to mark who is winning, to "wager" in fights and such, but the vast majority of the action has to do with the cards in your hand and how you manage them. The strategy has to do with alliances forming and melting throughout the game. Also the crazy variety of different aliens with different powers to end up with ensures that every game will be different than the last one. First one to gain five colonies on five opponents planets wins.
Should you buy this game?
Probably! If you don't mind a bit of randomness. This game provides for some truly epic moments. It's a classic of a game. Strategic yet randomized. The best way to introduce it to new people is: "These are the rules, and this is how your specific power lets you break them." By the way, the rules themselves are at MODERATE so you do have to have at least one person sit down to read through and know them before everyone gets together to play for a smoother teaching and learning experience. (Also, having a sheet with all the different phases of the game written down in order and moving a marker to the current one helps everyone better keep track.)
My thoughts:
What can I say? I have about 50 board games in my collection, and this one is the best of them all (my game group would contest this). It's awesome. Every game is memorable. Every encounter tense. I'm always jumping at the chance to introduce it to new people and play it every time I can. I see a couple of people who have written reviews on here seemingly haven't read the rules on the Alliance Phase. It is crucial to the games strategy and is by far my favorite mechanic. Hmm... trying to convey joy and fun through typed words is hard. Play this game, if you get the chance. That is all.
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This item: Cosmic Encounter 42nd Anniversary Edition Board Game - Classic Strategy Game of Intergalactic Conquest for Kids and Adults, Ages 14+, 3-5 Players, 1-2 Hour Playtime, Made by Fantasy Flight Games
$55.99
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$27.99
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| Cosmic Encounter (Base Game) | Cosmic Encounter: Cosmic Incursion Expansion | Cosmic Encounter: Cosmic Conflict Expansion | Cosmic Encounter: Cosmic Dominion Expansion | Cosmic Encounter: Cosmic Eons Expansion | Cosmic Encounter: Cosmic Odyssey | |
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| Customer Reviews |
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| Price | $55.99 | — | $21.99 | $27.99 | $24.95 | $42.53 |
| Type of Game | Board Game | Board Game | Board Game | Board Game | Board Game | Board Game |
| Number of Players | 3-5 Players | 3-6 Players | 3-6 Players | 3-6 Players | 3-6 Players | 3-8 Players |
| Average Playtime | 1-2 Hours | 1-2 Hours | 1-2 Hours | 1-2 Hours | 1-2 Hours | 2-3 Hours |
| Recommended Player Age | 14+ | 14+ | 14+ | 14+ | 14+ | 14+ |
| Number of Alien Races | 50 | 20 | 20 | 30 | 30 | 42 |
| Featured Aliens | Filches, Amoebas, Parasites and Kamikazes | Fungus, Magician and Locust | Empath, Lunatic and Claw | Joker, Yin-Yang, Tourists and Whirligig | Nightmare, The Cult, Bleeding Heart and Anarchist | Alternate Timeline Aliens |
| Variant | Cosmic Combos | The Reward Deck | The Hazard Deck | New Reward Deck with Intimidates, Variable Attacks and Retreats | Hidden Alliances | Brand New Campaign Mode |
| Sci-Fi Strategy Game | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Fan-Designed | ✓ | |||||
| Expansion Available | ✓ | is an expansion | is an expansion | is an expansion | is an expansion | is an expansion |
Reviews with images
42nd Anniversary Edition Review
Should you buy this if you already own the 2008 edition? The short answer is no. All you're getting here are translucent ships, alien combo cards, and an extra alien card. The rule book has some extremely bad typos which may confuse first time players. This is really a non-issue though since the 2008 rule book is available online as a PDF and does a much better job explaining the nuances of the game. I would also recommend any new player to consult with the Board Game Geek community forum for rules clarification and errata. One last criticism I have of this game is that it is very difficult to discern the purple ships from the blue ships once stacked, which I can confirm. This is exacerbated if you are colorblind or play the game under limited light conditions. However, for my group, we did not have any issues telling the ships apart. Your milage may vary though.So, if you already own the 2008 edition or just prefer opaque ships, do not get this edition.So why the 5 stars? Well, this is one of the best negotiation games out there and, regardless of the edition, is extremely replayable. With 51 aliens in the core set, you can have over 2 million combinations in a 5 player game. That basically means that every game you play will be totally unique.A quick caveat: playing with competitive people who are easy to point out the unfairness of a situation will probably have a bad time with this game. Only consider this game if your group enjoys silly situations. Even though it's not labeled as such, I consider this a story telling game rather than a serious index of skill and mental prowess. You can be born with a silver tongue and still lose.
Top reviews from other countries
Ruben isai Ponce barcelo
Exelente juego para un buen rato
Reviewed in Mexico on September 23, 2023Tomaso yowney
Best board game I’ve played so far!
Reviewed in Canada on July 22, 2021
ssmb212
As described, great quality brand new unopened.
Reviewed in Sweden on January 27, 2024