Play as an alien race that has the technology to create stars by collapsing gas clouds. Harvest hydogen, helium, and carbon from these stars. Form massive stars and evolve them until they become supernovae to collect heavier elements. Create rocky or gaseous planets to gain resources or points. Let your sun-like stars evolve to become white dwarfs that you can rent out as “space heaters” to earn points each turn, or sell giant space diamonds on the black market for quick one-time-only points. Once you have finished traveling the galaxy by going through the environment deck, the most successful player wins!
Stars, Inc. is a 2-4 player light worker placement and resource management game where each player controls an alien race that has developed the technology to collapse giant gas clouds out in space to form stars. This has proven easier than making cold fusion efficient, and so this is the best way to harvest elements and resources needed to create planets. The game ends when players have toured the galaxy by passing through different environments, and points are scored throughout the game by having gas giant planets, white dwarfs, and space diamonds!
The game board is based on a graph in astrophysics called the Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram, and players have to plan their strategy of what types of stars to form: red dwarfs, sun-like stars, or blue giants: blue giants are more expensive, but they end their lives as supernovae and provide iron; sun-like stars evolve into white dwarfs; and red dwarfs are cheap to make and live nice, long lives as excellent planet hosts.