designer: Phil Eklund

age: 12+
language: English (with also German rules)
time: 2 – 3 h
player: 2 to 5

“arguably the best game of 2010″ Mike Barnes of Gameshark. (See review http://www.gameshark.com/features/780/p_0 The most scientific sci-fi game ever produced! Recommended for two to five players, ages 12 and higher. Design rockets to explore and industrialize the solar system. You will need to find water out there as reaction mass for your rocket. Points are awarded according to the scarcity of the space-products produced, glory, colonies, and mega-engineering projects.
A boxed game with rocket, freighter, and factory pieces (the reprint has the same plastic and wood components as the first printing), along with rules, patent cards, rocket diagrams, and a unique mounted “delta-v” map of the inner solar system. Box dimensions are 216 X 280 X 43mm.
Download the Living Rules and the VASSAL module at http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/HighFrontier/
When people finally emigrate into space, the motivation will be space nanofacturing using processes possible only in zero-gravity and high-vacuum conditions. The key to economic production is finding water on suitable worlds, for rocket propellent and life support. Also key is designing efficient rockets and the remote-controlled machines called robonauts to do the grunt work. Each space mission must be flexible due to changing conditions and emergencies. A chart keeps track of supply and demand of various space products.
The High Frontier expansion, which extends the map to include Jupiter and Saturn, and adds radiators, generators, and reactors to the design mix, is here for the moment not available.
For a detailed description of how the game plays, and a game report, see the BoardGame Geek thread:
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/539628/any-previews-available
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/580382/up-in-space-without-a-warp-drive-a-review-of-high
“At the start I had to deal with the usual questions – What’s up with that map? What the hell am I supposed to do? Jesus, is Phil Eklund on drugs or what?
“Twenty minutes later I dealing with a barrage of questions such as – so can I do a Hohmann transfer and then aerobrake here all in one turn? Wow, so I can build this kit and then attach it to my new rocket? etc etc.
“None of us wanted to stop even though the hour was getting late. My favourite part was where the Shimizu player landed and claimed Ceres, after years of research and flight, with a thrusters/robonaut combo only to have the PRC player land immediately after and steal it off him.
“All this and it was only the basic game that we played as a learning/training experience.
All the players were dying to move onto the advanced game.

“Comments that I overheard at the end of the evening were `Fantastic game – where can I buy it?’
`Wow how did he fit so much game in such a small box’, and my favourite `I love Phil Eklund games – he doesn’t try to patronise me or smooth things over – S*** happens and you just have to deal with it’

“All this nonsense was just to say thanks to Phil for such a good game and all the best – I hope you sell a million copies. Ross Mortell

Oh – we did have one slight question – the UN player (who won in the end) built a Mag sail from his factory on mars and put it in a freighter. Next turn he went to low Mars orbit and turned it into a rocket. This way he avoided any fuel cost to take off from Mars. Is this legal? I ruled that it was as it would only work with a sail (no fuel for a `normal’ thruster) and it seemed like a clever move.

Sorry for the ramble but, as you may have guessed, we thoroughly enjoyed the game.
Last thing – please Phil, make an expansion – we would love to fly through the Rabbit hole to other Systems.
Go Taikonauts!

Information: Bios Megafauna is a american game with english rules and english text on the game material. For this game is a German rule available.

You can buy the game in our shop.