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| Photo by Meeples to Go |
Think back to the last time you played an average board game (hopefully recently). You were in a tense competition with your friends. You had a master plan and were trying to execute it. But suddenly, another player rolled a “12” on two die, giving them the resources needed to win the game. Everyone else looked on helplessly while they made the final move to get a victory. However, in a way you were glad. The game had been going on for a long time and you were anxious for it to end.
Sound familiar?
This scenario will often occur when playing boardgames, especially ones which take a few hours or more to play. Despite this, there is a boardgame which takes several hours to play, yet you will not want it to end. This boardgame is Terraforming Mars. Here are the details:
Designer: Jacob Fryxelius
Publishers: FryxGames (2016), Stronghold Games, + 11 others
Players: 1-5
Setup Time: 10 min
Playing Time: 2 hours - 3 hours + (depends on the number of players and if Corporate Era Cards are used)
My Rating: 92/100
Overview
Terraforming Mars is a game in which the players ... well ... terraform Mars. Each player is the head of a corporation which has special abilities and strengths, and seeks to terraform Mars into a habitable place for humans, while completing projects and developing new technologies.
In this game, there are three aspects of Mars which must be changed in order to make it habitable (although in real life, there are many others): average surface temperature, percentage of oxygen in the atmosphere, and amount of liquid water/oceans on the surface. These are called Global Parameters and by increasing them, players increase their terraform rating (which starts out at 20). This increases a player’s basic income and score.
The game board features an image of Mars divided into tile spaces, a tile space for the Phobos Space Haven, a tile space for the Ganymede Colony, the Global Parameter tracks, a list of milestones and
awards which can be achieved/earned, and a track for the generation number and player’s terraforming ratings.
On the Mars tile spaces, ocean, greenery, city, and special tiles can all be placed. These can increase a Global Parameter, increase a player’s Terraform Rating and score, or have some other effect. Tiles are placed during actions.
Additionally, there are also project cards in the game. They allow players to complete projects and develop technologies. These can increase a player's resource production, increase a Global Parameter, or have some other effects.
To play a card, you have to pay its Mega Credit cost, as well as meet any requirements which it has. These include the Global Parameters being at a certain level or higher/lower, and having a minimum total amount of a specific type of tags on your cards. Each card has a tag, which relates to its title (for example, a card dealing with space will have a space tag.
There are three main types of cards: event cards (red), automated cards (green), and active cards (blue). Event cards are flipped over once they are played (so their tags aren't counted), automated cards have instant effects but their tags still count, and active cards have instant effects, their tags still count, and they have effects/actions which can occur on future turns.
Terraforming Mars consists of generations, or rounds. Each round has four phases:
1.) Player Order Phase: The First Player Marker is passed clockwise and the Generation Marker (which marks what generation it is) is moved up one space on the generation track.
2.) Research Phase: Each player draws four project cards and decides which to keep. For each card kept, they have to pay 3 Mega Credits (the game’s currency) to the bank. Each unkept card is discarded.
3.) Action Phase: Players take turns doing actions (up to two per turn). These include playing a project card, increasing a Global Parameter, building a city, and funding an award. The person with the First Player Marker goes first. If a player doesn’t want to take any more actions (or if they can’t), they pass and don’t take anymore turns in the current generation. When all players have passed, the Action Phase ends.
4.) Production Phase: During this phase, resources are produced. First, all of a player’s energy is converted into heat. Then players receive resources based on their production value for each.
Moreover, there are several resources (Mega Credits, Titanium, Steel, Plants, Energy, and Heat). Players receive them in the production phase based on each of their resource production values, and during the action phase, they can be spent.
The game ends when all of the Global Parameters are increased to their maximum.
There are many other features in Terraforming Mars, including awards and milestones, standard projects, and game variants. For more information on the game, read the rulebook here.
My Opinion
Pros:
In my opinion, Terraforming Mars is a great game. But don't just go by me. Multiple lists have named it as one of the best games of 2016 and 2017 and on Board Game Geek, a website in which thousands of members rate games, it holds the very coveted rank of 4th overall (out of more than 15,000 games)! Terraforming Mars contains a lot of strategy, almost no luck, is very thematic, and like I said before, you don't want it to end.
Terraforming Mars has a lot of strategy. Players have to make lots of careful decisions throughout the game including when to play a card, when to save money, and what actions can't be put off and need to be done immediately. The best strategies are tailored to a player's corporation and include cards that build off of each other. Players also have to outmaneuver their opponents, especially when competing for increasing Global Parameters, for terraforming certain areas on Mars, and for winning awards (of which there is a limited number of).
Furthermore, the game has almost no luck. It doesn't have any die and the only mechanics which involve luck are which corporation cards and project cards a player receives. However, the best player can win with any corporation and can adapt their strategy to their cards. There is also a large number of project cards in the game (208), so the cards are very varied.
Additionally, Terraforming Mars feels very thematic. Its futuristic theme can be seen by the cards. Besides looking futuristic, the cards also have excellent art, as well as flavor text. This tells you about what the card's project or technology might do and what its use might be in real life. In addition, when playing the game, you will really feel like you are terraforming Mars.
Finally, there is the simple fact that you won't want the game to end (if you like strategy). Because the game is so strategical, players will constantly be making new plans, as they buy new cards. A new plan will be formed nearly every turn, and every player will be excited to see just how far their plan will get them and how much terraforming they will be able to crank out. Consequently, no one wants the game to end. When the Global Parameters are nearly maxed out, players will avoid increasing them, to make the game last longer. In fact, some players may even be mad at the player who ends the game!
Cons:
While Terraforming Mars is a great game, it does still have a few downsides. Chief among these are that it takes a long time to play, individual turns can take a while, and that it isn't a good game for people who haven't played any Eurogames before.
According to the box, Terraforming Mars takes around 2 hours to play. However, Corporate Era Cards, long player turns, and the amount of players can all increase this. Corporate Era Cards are a set of cards and corporations included in the base game which are less focused on just terraforming; they add more to the game. They are how the game is intended to be played, however they increase the playing time. In addition, the more players in the game, the longer it will take.
Moreover, because the game is so strategical, individual turns can take a long time as players will spend large amounts of time planning. This makes the game progress slowly and makes it boring for players whose turn it isn't currently. For this reason, I highly recommend that when playing, you set a turn time limit (ideally around 1 minute to 1 minute 30 seconds per turn).
Lastly, again because it is so strategical and takes so long to play, Terraforming Mars isn't a good introductory game for people who haven't played Eurogames (or boardgames in general) before. They will be used to less strategy-dependent games (such as Monopoly and Risk), and thus Terraforming Mars might be too overwhelming for them. Instead, they should play gateway games (boardgames which introduce European-style boardgames), such as Ticket to Ride and Pandemic. These are less complex, strategic, and take less time to play.
Expansions and Spin-offs:
Terraforming Mars is a relatively recent game (it was published in 2016), so there aren't many spin-offs of it. There is a video game version published by Asmodee Digital on Steam (a computer video game platform), but it isn't that well rated.
There are currently four expansions to Terraforming Mars, with more, including a legacy version, in development. The four are (in order of publication): Hellas and Elysium, Venus Next, Prelude, and Colonies. These add, among other things, new corporations and project cards. Hellas and Elysium adds two new maps (different sides of Mars) to play on, Venus Next allows players to on a small scale terraform Venus, Prelude adds Prelude cards, which gives an initial start in the terraforming process, and Colonies add moon and planet colonies which players can develop.
Additionally, there are also many promos for the game, which contain new corporations and project cards, some of which are fan-made.
Final Thoughts
Terraforming Mars is a great game which shows the true potential of European-style boardgames. It is incredibly fun to play, especially for those of you who enjoy strategy. Allowing 1-5 players to play, it allows one more person to play than the typical Eurogame and can also be played solo. However, it isn't a good option for people just starting out playing boardgames or Eurogames. Overall, Terraforming Mars is an excellent game and there is a reason why it is rated so well everywhere.
Thanks for reading this blog post and if you have any questions or comments about Terraforming Mars, please comment below.
This scenario will often occur when playing boardgames, especially ones which take a few hours or more to play. Despite this, there is a boardgame which takes several hours to play, yet you will not want it to end. This boardgame is Terraforming Mars. Here are the details:
Designer: Jacob Fryxelius
Publishers: FryxGames (2016), Stronghold Games, + 11 others
Players: 1-5
Setup Time: 10 min
Playing Time: 2 hours - 3 hours + (depends on the number of players and if Corporate Era Cards are used)
My Rating: 92/100
Overview
Terraforming Mars is a game in which the players ... well ... terraform Mars. Each player is the head of a corporation which has special abilities and strengths, and seeks to terraform Mars into a habitable place for humans, while completing projects and developing new technologies.
In this game, there are three aspects of Mars which must be changed in order to make it habitable (although in real life, there are many others): average surface temperature, percentage of oxygen in the atmosphere, and amount of liquid water/oceans on the surface. These are called Global Parameters and by increasing them, players increase their terraform rating (which starts out at 20). This increases a player’s basic income and score.
The game board features an image of Mars divided into tile spaces, a tile space for the Phobos Space Haven, a tile space for the Ganymede Colony, the Global Parameter tracks, a list of milestones and
awards which can be achieved/earned, and a track for the generation number and player’s terraforming ratings.
On the Mars tile spaces, ocean, greenery, city, and special tiles can all be placed. These can increase a Global Parameter, increase a player’s Terraform Rating and score, or have some other effect. Tiles are placed during actions.
Additionally, there are also project cards in the game. They allow players to complete projects and develop technologies. These can increase a player's resource production, increase a Global Parameter, or have some other effects.
To play a card, you have to pay its Mega Credit cost, as well as meet any requirements which it has. These include the Global Parameters being at a certain level or higher/lower, and having a minimum total amount of a specific type of tags on your cards. Each card has a tag, which relates to its title (for example, a card dealing with space will have a space tag.
There are three main types of cards: event cards (red), automated cards (green), and active cards (blue). Event cards are flipped over once they are played (so their tags aren't counted), automated cards have instant effects but their tags still count, and active cards have instant effects, their tags still count, and they have effects/actions which can occur on future turns.
Terraforming Mars consists of generations, or rounds. Each round has four phases:
1.) Player Order Phase: The First Player Marker is passed clockwise and the Generation Marker (which marks what generation it is) is moved up one space on the generation track.
2.) Research Phase: Each player draws four project cards and decides which to keep. For each card kept, they have to pay 3 Mega Credits (the game’s currency) to the bank. Each unkept card is discarded.
3.) Action Phase: Players take turns doing actions (up to two per turn). These include playing a project card, increasing a Global Parameter, building a city, and funding an award. The person with the First Player Marker goes first. If a player doesn’t want to take any more actions (or if they can’t), they pass and don’t take anymore turns in the current generation. When all players have passed, the Action Phase ends.
4.) Production Phase: During this phase, resources are produced. First, all of a player’s energy is converted into heat. Then players receive resources based on their production value for each.
Moreover, there are several resources (Mega Credits, Titanium, Steel, Plants, Energy, and Heat). Players receive them in the production phase based on each of their resource production values, and during the action phase, they can be spent.
The game ends when all of the Global Parameters are increased to their maximum.
There are many other features in Terraforming Mars, including awards and milestones, standard projects, and game variants. For more information on the game, read the rulebook here.
 |
| Photo by Meeples to Go |
Pros:
In my opinion, Terraforming Mars is a great game. But don't just go by me. Multiple lists have named it as one of the best games of 2016 and 2017 and on Board Game Geek, a website in which thousands of members rate games, it holds the very coveted rank of 4th overall (out of more than 15,000 games)! Terraforming Mars contains a lot of strategy, almost no luck, is very thematic, and like I said before, you don't want it to end.
Terraforming Mars has a lot of strategy. Players have to make lots of careful decisions throughout the game including when to play a card, when to save money, and what actions can't be put off and need to be done immediately. The best strategies are tailored to a player's corporation and include cards that build off of each other. Players also have to outmaneuver their opponents, especially when competing for increasing Global Parameters, for terraforming certain areas on Mars, and for winning awards (of which there is a limited number of).
Furthermore, the game has almost no luck. It doesn't have any die and the only mechanics which involve luck are which corporation cards and project cards a player receives. However, the best player can win with any corporation and can adapt their strategy to their cards. There is also a large number of project cards in the game (208), so the cards are very varied.
Additionally, Terraforming Mars feels very thematic. Its futuristic theme can be seen by the cards. Besides looking futuristic, the cards also have excellent art, as well as flavor text. This tells you about what the card's project or technology might do and what its use might be in real life. In addition, when playing the game, you will really feel like you are terraforming Mars.
Finally, there is the simple fact that you won't want the game to end (if you like strategy). Because the game is so strategical, players will constantly be making new plans, as they buy new cards. A new plan will be formed nearly every turn, and every player will be excited to see just how far their plan will get them and how much terraforming they will be able to crank out. Consequently, no one wants the game to end. When the Global Parameters are nearly maxed out, players will avoid increasing them, to make the game last longer. In fact, some players may even be mad at the player who ends the game!
Cons:
While Terraforming Mars is a great game, it does still have a few downsides. Chief among these are that it takes a long time to play, individual turns can take a while, and that it isn't a good game for people who haven't played any Eurogames before.
According to the box, Terraforming Mars takes around 2 hours to play. However, Corporate Era Cards, long player turns, and the amount of players can all increase this. Corporate Era Cards are a set of cards and corporations included in the base game which are less focused on just terraforming; they add more to the game. They are how the game is intended to be played, however they increase the playing time. In addition, the more players in the game, the longer it will take.
Moreover, because the game is so strategical, individual turns can take a long time as players will spend large amounts of time planning. This makes the game progress slowly and makes it boring for players whose turn it isn't currently. For this reason, I highly recommend that when playing, you set a turn time limit (ideally around 1 minute to 1 minute 30 seconds per turn).
Lastly, again because it is so strategical and takes so long to play, Terraforming Mars isn't a good introductory game for people who haven't played Eurogames (or boardgames in general) before. They will be used to less strategy-dependent games (such as Monopoly and Risk), and thus Terraforming Mars might be too overwhelming for them. Instead, they should play gateway games (boardgames which introduce European-style boardgames), such as Ticket to Ride and Pandemic. These are less complex, strategic, and take less time to play.
Expansions and Spin-offs:
Terraforming Mars is a relatively recent game (it was published in 2016), so there aren't many spin-offs of it. There is a video game version published by Asmodee Digital on Steam (a computer video game platform), but it isn't that well rated.
There are currently four expansions to Terraforming Mars, with more, including a legacy version, in development. The four are (in order of publication): Hellas and Elysium, Venus Next, Prelude, and Colonies. These add, among other things, new corporations and project cards. Hellas and Elysium adds two new maps (different sides of Mars) to play on, Venus Next allows players to on a small scale terraform Venus, Prelude adds Prelude cards, which gives an initial start in the terraforming process, and Colonies add moon and planet colonies which players can develop.
Additionally, there are also many promos for the game, which contain new corporations and project cards, some of which are fan-made.
Final Thoughts
Terraforming Mars is a great game which shows the true potential of European-style boardgames. It is incredibly fun to play, especially for those of you who enjoy strategy. Allowing 1-5 players to play, it allows one more person to play than the typical Eurogame and can also be played solo. However, it isn't a good option for people just starting out playing boardgames or Eurogames. Overall, Terraforming Mars is an excellent game and there is a reason why it is rated so well everywhere.
Thanks for reading this blog post and if you have any questions or comments about Terraforming Mars, please comment below.
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| Photo by Stronghold Games |
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