Beyond the Sun - An Introduction

 

 Beyond the Sun - An Introduction

Game Specs

• Advertised Player Count: 2-4
• *Actual* Player Count: 2-4, as advertised! The complexion of the game changes with only two players, as it's likely that one player ends up having to chase the other, and it can come down to who went first. But there are enough ways to score points in the game that it's not a deal-breaker. But the game is definitely best at 3-4 players
• Playing Time: 60-120 minutes (fairly accurate - turns move quickly, overall, so the game doesn't feel this long, but I'm pretty sure it usually is)
• Age: 14+
• Premise: Players are developing a shared tech tree in the pursuit of colonizing space for victory points.
  

So if I'm honest, this isn't a game I pick up just 'cause. I really enjoy Rio Grande Games overall, but also hadn't discovered a new Rio Grande game I *needed* to own for a minute. At the point at which I was introduced to this game, I already owned Dominion, Puerto Rico, and Power Grid. Underwater Cities was on my list of games to try because my friend Chad really spoke highly of it, but that was it. This box art is not the kind of art that usually entices me off the bat, and the description of the game wouldn't have sold me on this game as being much more than "another space game."

This is why checking resources like Boardgamegeek or The Dice Tower (YouTube) really can pay dividends, because my assessment of the game couldn't have been more off. I'm pretty sure Beyond the Sun was on a Dice Tower list or two, and the praise they gave it made me think it was worth trying. Plus, it had been awhile since I found a Rio Grande game I really liked, so maybe I was due? Plus, the game was designed by Dennis K. Chan, and I've been trying to spend more money on games made by BIPOC creators. So I put it on my list and didn't think much of it because it wasn't at my FLGS, and it was sold out at Miniature Market. But one day, I was in MinMart looking around and thought I'd check my "Out of Stock" list to see if any of those titles were sitting on the shelves, unaccounted for. Sure enough, I found the last copy of Beyond the Sun and thought I should pick it up, so I did! I would later find out that at least two people (including my friend Chad) apparently checked the shelves for the game a day or so later, so I *just* snagged it in time, as it still hasn't come back in stock!

All of that to say that I think it's a really terrific game. It's a really slick design, and though the art is very minimalist, it really fits with the feel of the game. The components are all quality, and I really appreciate the shared tech tree design. It's a mechanic I've not really seen before, and so while game play is fairly straightforward and moves fast, there's a multitude of strategies you can employ to win the game.

It's just a worker placement game with dice that can represent population or spaceships of varying complexity and power, at the end of the day, and you're trying to use your resources (ore and population) in order to explore and colonize space, as well as develop new technologies. I appreciate the simplicity of the design, and I'm very much a fan of worker placement games, so it's fun to discover a new take on worker placement. I will say that for anyone playing this game for the first time or two, it's easy to get so wrapped up in technological research that you sort of forget about colonizing space, and you don't maximize your scoring opportunities.

Bottom Line: I rarely bother to consider ranking my favorite games within a subset of game mechanics because it so often depends on what I'm in the mood for. But I'm always happy to see Beyond the Sun hit the table, and it's one of my favorite games to teach folks. If you can get your hands on it, don't pass up the opportunity if you're a fan of worker placement games!