Escape from the Aliens in Outer Space is a card game of strategy and bluff set on a badly damaged deep space research ship. On-board systems have failed, plunging the ship into darkness. But even worse: A mysterious alien plague has crept aboard and is transforming the human crew into horrendous monsters! The remaining crewmen desperately try to save their lives by escaping from the derelict spaceship, but in the darkness the aliens are lurking...hungry for human flesh.
The game is played on a hexagon-based map that represents the spaceship. Each player is given a map sheet and a pencil. Map sheets must be of the same zone, and every zone has its specific name. Starting from the first player and continuing clockwise, every turn, each player must make a movement. To do so, the player must write on their map sheet the coordinates of the sector to which they are moving. Every time the players move to the gray (dangerous) sectors they have to draw a card; these cards make the players tell the others their position or lie about it, depending on the card. Every card is kept secret from other players.
The humans' objective is to save themselves using the escape hatches, while the aliens' objective is to hunt down the humans. Each player's identity and position is kept secret; you will need to interpret the movements and behaviors of the other players to learn who and where they really are.
- engaging social deduction on a modular spaceship board
- learns quickly and provides surprising moments
- rule complexity can confuse first-timers
- social deduction and deduction-driven movement
- Spaceship with aliens among humans
- chaotic, humorous
- Nemesis
- Blood on the Clock Tower
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- asymmetric roles — different roles and abilities for aliens and humans
- Hidden movement / deduction — aliens vs humans; players deduce identities and move on a grid-based map
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- Rebel Princess is fantastic.
- The premise is it's kind of like a slight social deduction setting.
- it's a tableau building game
- the end-game via last tile is clever
- the cutest little game
- Dune Imperium is my number one
- hidden roles add tension and intrigue
- the eight rounds
- tiles and shared space create intense competition
References (from this video)
- dynamic hidden movement with tension
- flexible maps and difficulty levels
- works well with larger groups (up to 8 players)
- alien vs human stealth and deduction
- Space environment with hidden movement and opposing allegiances
- bluffing and deduction with hidden roles and evolving goals
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- asymmetric roles — Different players have different goals or information to manage.
- bluffing / deduction — Players deduce others' goals and locations based on actions and cards.
- Hidden movement — Players move unseen or concealed, creating tension and uncertainty.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- it's freaking sick dad
- Between two castles is a perfect mashup of its predecessors between two cities and castles of mad king ludwig
- i love the working together with your neighbors aspect of between two cities
- these cards represent the influence of irish gods and heroes so it's only fitting that they could turn the tides
- ambush cards being able to tamper with your opponent's map from time to time really gives cartographers a much needed dose of player interaction
- nobody knows what anybody else's role is
References (from this video)
- High tension
- Minimalist design
- Captures Alien movie suspense
- Hidden movement survival horror
- Spaceship
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Hidden movement — Players move secretly on a shared map
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- These games capture different aspects of the Alien franchise