Summary
đĽ A game for 1 to 4 players
âł Play time is 45 – 160 minutes
đ˘ Publisher is Czech Games Edition
Introduction
In the vastness of space, the search for alien life has always been a mystery. SETI invites you to embark on a journey of exploration and discovery, where the unknown is just waiting to be unrevealed. You know alien life exists but your challenge is to find it.
With careful management of your limited resources, you’ll launch probes, explore distant planets, listen to the whispers of the stars, and advance the science of exobiology.
As the head of a space exploration agency, you will rely on real-world technologies and methods to unlock the secrets of the cosmos. Youâll scan the sky, knowing that beyond the darkness lies a million galaxies, each with billions of stars.
Some stars have planets, and some planets may life. Life that could, one day, evolve into intelligence. And who knows?
No matter where you point your telescope, you may just be looking at another civilization, gazing back at you.
Let’s get in on the table
Assemble the main board by connecting the Planetary Board, Solar System Board, and Tech Board.
Place the completed board in the center of the table.
Randomly select two out of the five alien species boards and place them into the slots along the edge of the Planetary Board. Keep them hidden and return the unused species boards to the box. The Solar System Board includes three central discs and four surrounding sector boards. These should start in a random configuration. Make sure the discs are aligned to create eight clearly defined sectors, each containing one nearby star.
Shuffle the main deck and deal three cards face up to create the card row.
Place the credit and energy tokens in a general supply near the board, within easy reach of all players.
Each nearby star receives data tokens equal to the number shown in its data slot. Place the remaining data tokens in a supply near the board. OUR HOUS RULE; In a 2 player game we use 2 markers from a not playing color for a large star, 1 marker at a smaller star and 0 at a small star. This way there is more player interaction with a 2 player game. When it’s completed, we only look at the player that has the most out of the 2 players.
The four gold scoring tiles are double-sided. Shuffle them and place them beside the board with a random side face up.
â¨Place neutral markers above the twenty- and thirty-point spaces on the scoring track.
There are twelve unique technologies to aid your search for intelligent life, four in each of the three colors shown on the Tech Board.
For each technology:
⢠Shuffle the four matching tech tiles.
⢠Place the shuffled stack face down on the corresponding space.
⢠Place a two-point tile on top of each stack.
Prepare four stacks of cards, one for each round, each stack should contain one card more than the player count.
Than the player setup;
Each player chooses a color and takes the corresponding pieces, placing them near their player board. and take the corresponding income card and the indicated resources.
And we’re ready to discover the universe! Let the adventure begin!
Letâs play
The game is played over five rounds. The player with the starting player marker takes the first turn of the round. Turns proceed clockwise, with players skipping any who have already passed for the round. At the end of the fifth round, the final score is calculated, and the player with the most points wins.
On your turn, you must choose one main action:
Launch a probe
Pay 2 credits to launch a probe. Take one of your probe figures and place it on the Earth space of the solar system board.â¨You may move your probes around the solar system during certain actions. For each movement point you spend, move one of your probes to an adjacent space. Asteroid fields are difficult to navigate. To leave a space containing asteroids, you must pay 1 additional movement point.
Orbit a planet
Pay 1 credit and 1 energy to turn one of your probes into an orbiter. This is a main action and can only be performed if your probe is on a space adjacent to a planet. To orbit a planet, remove your probe from the solar system board and place it in the orbit area of that planet on the planetary board. Gain the bonuses shown above the planet. The first player to orbit a planet also earns 3 points. There is no limit to the number of orbiters that can surround a planet.
Land on a planet or moon
Pay 3 energy to turn one of your probes into a lander. This is a main action and can only be taken if your probe is on a space adjacent to a planet (other than Earth).â¨If there is already an orbiter at that planetâregardless of which player it belongs toâthe cost is reduced to 2 energy. Landing on planet is the primary way to find traces of life. To land, remove your probe from the solar system board and place it on the corresponding planet on the planetary board and gain the bonuses shown in the center of the planet. The first player to land on a planet also gains a data bonus. To indicate that this bonus has been claimed, cover the bonus space with your figure.
Scan nearby stars
Pay 1 credit and 2 energy to scan nearby stars using telescopes on Earth. This allows you to map sectors of the sky, listen for signals, by marking sectors with your player markers, and collect data without needing a probe in space. Scanning is the primary way to mark traces of life.
Analyze data
Pay 1 energy to analyze the data youâve collected. This can only be performed when the top row of your computer is completely filled with data tokens. If youâve upgraded your computer with tech cards, you may also have a bottom row. Analyzing data is the primary way to find traces of life. To analyze your data: Discard all data tokens from your computer board.â¨Then, mark one of the two alien species with data to track your progress toward discovery. Your computer is now empty and ready to be filled again.
Play a card for its effect
You may play a card to use its effect, shown in the white section of the card. You must pay the cost printed on the card. If the cardâs effect includes other actions, such as launching a probe or scanning nearby stars, player perform those actions without paying their normal costs. After resolving the effect, place the card face up in a discard pile near the main deck, unless itâs a special card type.
Research a technology
Pay 6 publicity to research a new technology. When you research a tech, follow these steps:
- Rotate the solar system.
- Choose a tech you havenât already acquired.
- If you are the first player to take a tech from that stack:â¨Discard the 2-point tile from the stack and immediately score 2 points.
- Gain the bonus printed on the tech tile. Then flip the tile and place it on your player board. Probe techs and telescope techs must go in their designated slots. Computer techs can be placed in any available computer tech slot. If the slot already contains a data token, that token remains in place.
Pass for the round, which means you may still perform free actions on the turn you pass. After you declare that you’re passing, resolve the following steps in order without performing any additional actions:
1. Discard down to 4 cards if you have more than 4.
2. Choose one end-of-round card from this roundâs set. Return the rest to the table.â¨Other players will choose their cards when they pass. The earlier you pass, the more options youâll have.
3. Check for solar system rotation.â¨If you are the first player to pass this round, take the rotation reminder token and place it next to the tech stack. Then rotate the solar system.â¨In Round 5, you still rotate, but discard the token afterward. Once all players have passed, the round ends. The final player to pass selects one of the two remaining end-of-round cards, and the leftover card is discarded.
In addition to your main action, there are other free actions you can take. Free actions can be performed at any point during your turn before, after, or even during your main action.
Once you have completed your main action and any free actions, your turn ends. Then, resolve any milestones or discovered species. After that, the next player takes their turn. Players will continue taking turns until all have passed. When a player passes, they are done for the round, but others can keep playing. The round ends once all players have passed, at which point income is collected. The starting player marker then moves to the next player to begin the next round.
So between rounds;
Everyone gains income; Collect the resources shown on your starting income card, plus any additional resources from cards you have tucked.
Pass the starting player marker one space to the left, the new player will begin the next round.
Move the rotation reminder token onto the stack of end-of-round cards for the next round.
The alien species in the game are represented by two face-down boards.â¨Beneath each board are three discovery spaces, these represent traces of alien life that must be filled in order to fully discover the species. As mentioned earlier, these traces can be discovered in various ways throughout the game.
The Game Ends
The game ends after 5 rounds. Once the last player has passed, it’s time for final scoring:
-Players earn points for any end-of-game scoring cards they played (those with gold boxes).
-Players also score points from gold scoring tiles.
-Some alien species may provide additional scoring.
The player with the most points wins.
Conclusie & eindscore
Difficulty: 3.76/ 5
Re-playability: 7
Our score: 8 out of 10 dice
SETI offers a very fun experience in a search for alien civilization. The game offers you a combination of strategy, careful handling of your resources and exploration of unknown areas. Each round feels like an exciting chapter in an exploration of space. The game unfortunately has few adjustments with different player numbers, this would have been nice e.g. with 2 player numbers to get a better experience. We have come up with a house rule for this ourselves, making space scanning a little more exciting.
Without this adjustment, SETI is in our opinion a game more suitable for 3 and 4 players. This has mainly to do with the interaction between players, and with two players you notice that the interaction and tension is a lot less. You notice that with two players there is less room for blocking or where you can cleverly anticipate the actions of the other players. E.g. when scanning
The Folded Space insert is an excellent addition that simplifies organizing the game components, making set-up and clean-up much quicker. Without this insert, the game takes more time to set up due to the different game pieces, chips and cards scattered around the table which can be tricky, especially when you are eager to get started.
So, isn’t the game fun to play without your house rules? Sure, it is but with 3 or 4 players there is just more tension, and you will have to think even more about every decision. But even with 2 players, you will have to be strategic with your cards, resources and actions but keep an eye on your opponent with the actions the other player does. But then we found the scanning less challenging to do and found that we both started scanning to different areas anyway.
What we do really like is the interaction between players. At higher player counts, especially with three or four players, your decisions always interact with those of your opponents. Whether you are running a race to discover alien life, competing for resources or trying to manipulate the board to your advantage, each turn feels more important. One player’s decisions directly influence the strategies of others, making for an interesting mix of competition and tactics.
Hopefully we have pointed it out well, we really like SETI, Mark even more than Wouter but with our house rule in a 2-player game. Without this house rule it will not be on the table with 2, but well if WE play with 2 then there is no reason not to play with this rule đ. But with multiple players, SETI is and always will be better in our eyes.
Whether you are strategically planning or trying to outwit your opponents, SETI does offer you an exciting journey into the unknown, is there alien life and will you discover it?
Thanks to Czech Games Edition for this review copy and the opportunity to write about this game.
