Race for the Galaxy is one of the greatest meatiest card game experiences of all time. <PERSON> tantalized BGG with his designer preview of Jump Drive which is a re-imagining of the RFTG theme in a completely new card game design. Race for the Galaxy utilized simultaneous action selection: exploring, researching developments, settling worlds, and then using those worlds to produce goods which could then be consumed for income (more cards in your hand) or shipped off for victory points. It was the first game I played where I had a hand of cards and these cards could be used for different things. Should I save this card for a later turn? Should I build this development or spend it as currency to colonize this planet card? You had to race against the other players to explore the deck and find cards to chain together into combinations to suit your strategy. What does Jump Drive do differently? Is it worth picking up if you already have Race for the Galaxy?
One of the most notorious reputations Race for the Galaxy got was that it was difficult to teach. There were many symbols. There were symbols that affected other symbols. The actions were symbols. Cards had special abilities that were symbols that might refer to other symbols. Not only did you have to explain the overall objective of the game but you also had to explain how to use six different actions to get there. Cards could give you victory points and cards could BE victory points. There were military worlds, resource planets, and windfall planets. Naturally, this was very overwhelming for new players.
In steps Jump Drive. In Jump Drive, everyone plays simultaneously. You can EXPLORE or you can build 1 or 2 cards out of your hand normally (either placing a development-diamond symbols at top left- or settling/conquering a world-circles at top left of card-). You get a bonus if you just play one card. If you play two cards (must normally be one of each type: development and planet) you don't get the bonus but pay the full cost. Each turn your cards score VPs and give you income. That's it. That's all there is to Jump Drive. There are still some symbols to learn.
Most symbols are aligned on the left side of the card. 697
Once built in your tableau, these add to your abilities and can chain with other cards. Eyes give you the ability to look at more cards when you EXPLORE. Military symbols of the red circles with a red +1 inside add to your military strength which allow you to conquer military worlds without the need to pay cards to settle them. There's some green gene symbols that you can chain with other green gene symbol cards to give you multiplying VPs and/or income. There are different colors of planets that you can chain together. Many of the expensive development cards provide you with an overarching strategy to aim for to maximize VP production. This is really all you need to know.
What is it like to play? It is fast. If Race for the Galaxy is a two lap competition, Jump Drive is a 100 meter dash. It captures the essence of Race for the Galaxy and turns it even more into a sprint by stripping off all the extra weight. You no longer have to produce goods and ship them for VPs. You are racing to get the cards you need out of the deck and onto the table. You are racing to find a viable combination to chain together. You are faced with agonizing decisions each turn to build, spend, or save cards. Or even skip a turn of building in order to explore.
The decisions are just as meaningful as Race for the Galaxy and it preserves the motif of "racing" through the galaxy, discovering planets and technologies, and trying to do it faster than your opponents. In fact, I like it better than its older brother. I find that I can teach this in 5 minutes flat and get someone playing right away. Gamers may crave the bigger game with its more complex chaining and timing that is required to produce goods and ship them. My wife, who has refused to play Race for the Galaxy in the past, gave the most fitting response after playing Jump Drive several times. "I like this game! It gets rid of all the shipping."
Jump Drive is far simpler to teach. It plays faster. It captures the essence of all that I loved in Race for the Galaxy. It is now my go to filler card game! 237