So what is this game about? Basically, the board depicts 7 planetary systems with 3 orbiting 'moons'. Each of these 'moons' has a value. The players have to occupy these 'moons' and when all three 'moons' have been occupied around three of the planets, game ends and the player with the highest points wins.

There are 12 cards for each of the 7 planets, and these 84 cards are shuffled and dealt, 9 to each player. The game is played in rounds and each round consists of four phases.

The card phase in which the starting player deals cards to each player to theri allowed maximum.

The Transport phase in which players may play one of their two transport cards. Transport cards allow a player to either move two stations from Earth to any one planet OR move ALL their stations from a planet back to Earth.

The Trading Phase in which the starting player offers 2,3 or 4 cards for trade. The starting player plays a planet card and the other players then play a planet card which must be different to the first players card. The starting player then plays a second planet card and again the other players must play a different card to both of the starting players cards. He can now trade or offer a 3rd card. The starting player must trade his set with another player. Then that player may keep the trade or trade again with another player.

The Action phase in which the starting player executes three actions from the five possible, then the other players can perform two actions. These actions are:

Trade Planet Cards - discard 1 or 2 cards from his hand and draw the same number from the card supply

Move Stations to Planets - A player may play 3 to 7 cards of the same planet to move half that number of stations from Earth to that planet.

Establish an Economic Centre - The player plays a set of 3 to 7 planet cards and can attempt half that number of tries to establish an economic center using the Planet Ring. The Planet Ring is a circular box with a hole in it. The player covers all the stations on the planet and slowly drags the Planet Ring along until a station emerges from the hole. If it is that players colour he establishes a centre. If it is an opponents colour, the station is returned to Earth.

Spaceship Development - Players begin the game with a Level One spaceship which allows the player to have 9 cards in their hand. By playing Planet card sets, a player can increase the number of cards in their hand each round, from 9 to 10, 11 and finally 13

Technology - All players begin with a Basic Technology Level. By playing sets of planet cards, players can increase their Technology level. The 1st level lets a player trade up to four cards instead of three. The 2nd level lets a player trade up to 3 cards with the supply deck. The 3rd level lets a player round up instead of down when playing planet sets.

In addition to this, when a player plays a set of 4,5,6 or 7 pure planet cards, they can gain a Bonus Credit card, which acts as a wild card, or can be kept until the end to add to the final score.

SUMMARY:
I've played this quite a few times. Each game has been pretty close and has been enjoyed by everyone. Player interaction is extremely good and all players are involved all way through the game. The tension as a critical attempt of the Planet Ring has to be experienced. Recommended

Review by Brian