Mission Red Planet is a masterpiece. I don’t know why this game didn’t make more noise than it did. As modern board games go this one is perfect. I’m not saying it’s the best game ever or that everyone will like it or that every aspect of it is the top of its game. I’m saying its perfect in the sense that it is complete and that it does right in every aspect that makes a game a modern board game.
COMPONENTS
Apart from the sh*t box it’s beautiful. Everything is well illustrated, colorful and drenched in theme. Again it may not have components from a game like Cleopatra and the Society of Architects or Arkahm Horror. However it doesn’t need components like Cleopatra and the Society of Architects, in fact if the components were better they would probably subtract from the game. To illustrate imagine the spaceships were 3D models that you loaded the astronauts on. Cool at first but after a while you’d get tired of loading them on. The cardboard chits that are 2D look great and work well. Again the components form meets their function perfectly in the game. Perfect
THEME
You’re colonizing Mars, while this may not tickle everyone’s fancy the theme is lightened up by the fact that everything is done in turn of the century <PERSON> in a way that non sci fi people will still like and get a kick out of. (who doesn’t like a bull dog in a space suite) The two boards that disconnect Mars from Earth, the different characters that you select from that change spaceships destinations, blow stuff up, cause allegiances to change, and forge ahead exploring Mars just feel cool. The fact that the zones have the real scientific names and that the Mars board looks like Mars helps. Bottom line is that the theme fits the mechanics perfectly as you feel like you are sending men to explore mars. Some people in my game group complained saying that you don’t feel like you are colonizing Mars and to that I say at no point does the game claim that you are colonizing mars, no, the game is in sending men to mars and the perils that lie in that. 304
If you think the game doesn’t convey that, you need to feel more what you’re doing while you’re playing not just thinking about it. The theme is conveyed in this game, Perfectly.
GAMEPLAY/STRATEGY/MECHANICS
This is a light Euro game that has mechanics we’ve seen before and done better on other games but are put together here perfectly (getting tired of that word yet?). The thing that I like about this game is that no two games are alike and you can approach the game differently each time. In fact you need to because a big part of the game is adapting to the way other people play the game and the secret missions you get. For example I may choose to try and win the game by aggressively playing the scientist and winning though bonus points. I might go for the Ice bonus and risk losing because Ice is only worth one point. The game has enough variables that merit multiple plays and can leave you thinking what you want to do next time. The area control along with the variable player/turn order works perfectly here.
TIME/INVESTMENT
One thing that makes a modern board game is the investment to return factor. For example, Monopoly you invest 5+ hours for an enjoyment factor 1 on a scale of one to ten. You put a lot into it and get little out. A game like aforementioned Arkham Horror you invest 3-5 hours in set up, play, and take down and get an enjoyment factor of 8-9. My investment to return scenario isn’t that great but I hope you get the point. Mission Red Planet may not be the most “fun” in board gamming but it’s investment to return factor is perfect. You invest a little more than an hour and get an enjoyment factor of 6-8. As sometimes the game has this randomness that can get frustrating, but it doesn’t leave you with the feeling of “I put three, or sometimes five hours in that just to have it come down one dice roll”. Here you get the perfect bang for your buck.
CRITICISM
You may be wondering why I’m I criticizing a game I’m hailing to be perfect? Well, I don’t have any criticism for the game itself but for the result of what happens to a board game because of its very nature. There is randomness in the game, there’s no dice in the game but you do get random missions, land on mars and get random resources, you get random space ships that fly off. 884