Planet Unknown - An Introduction

 Planet Unknown - An Introduction

Game Specs

Advertised Player Count: 1-6

*Actual* Player Count: I've only played with 2 players so far, but it definitely works well at 2 (when games advertise 1-6, it often means 3-5 or something along those lines). I personally wouldn't bother playing it solo, but I can see how one could.

Playing Time: 60-80 minutes. I will need to play this a couple more times before I'm convinced, but the advertised time is probably pretty accurate with people who have played once or twice. The simultaneous play really speeds up the game.

Age: 10+

Premise: We've explored the stars and each player is a company that has discovered a new planet and is in the process of building and developing the best planet. We do this by drafting and placing polyomino shapes on our respective boards.

There are two things that jumped out at me about this game at the start of the first play, and I'm guessing that'll be true of a lot of people. The first is that the rule book feels pretty heavy. Not huge by any stretch, but it's an over-sized rule book, so it looks like it can be a lot. Especially because they're pretty thorough when discussing different resource types, like biomass. I cannot stress this enough: don't let it intimidate you! First thing you should do is flip through the rule book. I say that because only about half the book is actual rules. The second half is a glossary of different corporation and planet rules that basically functions as an FAQ or reference guide. So there aren't as many rules to slog through as you might first think. The second thing that jumped out at me is the Lazy Susan from which players draft polyomino tiles. This thing is awesome. Components can't save a bad game, and they can often sabotage an otherwise good game. Sometimes we as players find crappy components charming if we like the game enough, but other times, that's enough to make us want to put the game down and never pick it up again. Sometimes, though, components really just make a game. This is one of those instances.

Basically, the Lazy Susan (a space station) has 12 different compartments for the 12 different polyomino shapes; the inner ring features smaller tile pieces while the outer ring features larger ones. The first player is the one who turns the space station until they're happy with what's in front of them, and then each player selects either a large or a small piece from the "pie slice" of the space station that is sitting in front of them. It's a really fun, really cool design, and it's something that (as far as I know) makes this game unique.

As I think I mentioned previously, I really hadn't anticipated caring much for this game. Colonizing space as a theme isn't particularly likely to catch my eye, especially as it's pretty commonplace. Nor am I naturally drawn to polyomino games. And honestly, the player boards looked a little busy to me at first glance. I do enjoy heavy games, but to me, "busy" is different than "heavy." When I call a game busy, I am referring to a game featuring elements that are overwhelming, confusing, and some that are simply ineffective design. But after playing just a couple of turns, I quickly understood that the player boards definitely aren't busy, nor is the game. It's actually about as straightforward as you can get with so many elements and choices in the game. Additionally, this game rewards synergistic choices, which means a bunch of icons on the tracks that can look intimidating and confusing until you've actually started playing the game.

Finally, it's absolutely worth noting the strong design space in which players really can take different paths to victory. At least, I know this to be true in games utilizing the asymmetric sides of the planets and corporation boards. I suspect the same would be true of the symmetrical side, but I've not played with those yet. The rule book suggests playing with the symmetrical side of both if it's your first time playing the game. I don't dispute the notion that such a choice will make for a smoother learning and playing experience the first time around. But I will say that if you are an experienced gamer, then you really don't have anything to fear from starting with the asymmetrical side of either or both; I suspect playing that way is both more challenging and more fulfilling. I know it is for me, anyway.

Bottom Line: The game is absolutely worth playing. I was very pleasantly surprised by how much fun I had and how engaging it is! It's not like anything I own and so had I not won a copy, it was absolutely on my list of games to buy. I think it's worth adding to a collection, but if nothing else, it's a great puzzle game on a number of levels and it plays like a medium weight game while offering more complexity and depth than one might otherwise anticipate from a "medium weight" game.