Game Info
Players
1-4
Age
14+
Playtime
120 min
Collection
Ratings
Creator Score
Mechanic profile
Not enough video data yet
Vibe profile
Not enough video data yet
Description
No description available.
Featured Videos
Ask a Rules Question
All mentions
Browse transcript mentions, sentiments, pros/cons, mechanics, topics, quotes, and references.
Total mentions: 5
This page: 5
Sentiment:
pos 5 ·
mix 0 ·
neu 0 ·
neg 0
Showing 1–5 of 5
Video 8omSPve8FCc
Neon Gorilla Interview at 1:59:33 sentiment: positive
video_pk 80211 · mention_pk 194861
Click to watch at 1:59:33 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- finalist for best heavy strategy at Origins
- highly thematic
- aliens seeking knowledge, not conquest
- interconnecting components
- gathering and inputting knowledge
- scoring based on storage containers
Cons
- Not getting as much love as hoped
Thematic elements
- Seeking knowledge
- Alien
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- action selection — It's an action selection game
- Card Drafting — gathering knowledge on their research cards, inputting the knowledge into the database of their ship.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- It's a tough It's a lot of work. It's a lot of work, a lot of uh time, you know, a lot of upfront costs uh and things like that.
- Because in my mind, crowdfunding was, hey, I'm a I'm a person and I had this dream and I want to get my game out. Not, hey, we're a successful company, but we're going to do this thing because, you know, uh we want to use your money to buy to to get our stuff and then we'll do it and you test the the waters for us.
- They'd look at me like, 'Get another job. Get another job. You're you're in the wrong business, man. This sounds like a sucky business, right?'
- I think the fact that you can market that way and you have a platform, it makes it easier.
- the only marketing that there's two that I well three con that I would stand by conventions of course, I would go to retailers uh and do demos like you know just drive around hit a bunch of retailers do demo nights and things like that and and teach the game there and then three would be free copies to retailers to put in their library and push the game.
- I just feel it really should be for the the dreamer that wants wants their game out there kind of thing.
- the paid preview stuff just doesn't do that well.
- I think we're all just kind of collectively numb to a lot of that.
- I believe everyone I mean they have an audience. So, you know, even if they had a hundred people in their audience, but if you know me sending out review copy and I can get, you know, two three people buy it because of that, I feel like I've made you know I've made my my money back psychologically.
- There's a novelty to that tactile experience of and and being around the table with other people.
- I almost wonder actually is are board games going to continue to get more and more popular the further we go into AI tech, everyone being jacked into the matrix and that will be like this this um this haven for people to actually still have real human experiences with each other next to each other.
- Dogs of War will be the the next uh big hit uh of that line.
- It is great and it's an alien. It's a game about aliens, but also different take. They're not looking to conquer or anything. They're seeking knowledge.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video 8omSPve8FCc
Neon Gorilla Interview at 1:59:35 sentiment: positive
video_pk 80211 · mention_pk 194851
Click to watch at 1:59:35 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Finalist for Best Heavy Strategy at Origins.
- Highly thematic.
- Unique take on alien theme (knowledge seeking).
- Components interconnect well.
- Positive press so far.
Cons
- Not getting as much love as hoped.
- People are starting to talk about it, but more press is desired.
Thematic elements
- Aliens seeking knowledge
- Alien planets
- Action selection, card driven research
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- action selection — Players choose actions from a set of available options.
- Card Drafting — Players select cards to use for research and actions.
- Set Collection — Collecting research cards and knowledge contributes to scoring.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- It's a tough It's a lot of work. It's a lot of work, a lot of uh time, you know, a lot of upfront costs uh and things like that.
- Because in my mind, crowdfunding was, hey, I'm a I'm a person and I had this dream and I want to get my game out. Not, hey, we're a successful company, but we're going to do this thing because, you know, uh we want to use your money to buy to to get our stuff and then we'll do it and you test the the waters for us.
- They'd look at me like, 'Get another job. Get another job. You're you're in the wrong business, man. This sounds like a sucky business, right?'
- I think the fact that you can market that way and you have a platform, it makes it easier.
- the only marketing that there's two that I well three con that I would stand by conventions of course, I would go to retailers uh and do demos like you know just drive around hit a bunch of retailers do demo nights and things like that and and teach the game there and then three would be free copies to retailers to put in their library and push the game.
- I just feel it really should be for the the dreamer that wants wants their game out there kind of thing.
- the paid preview stuff just doesn't do that well.
- I think we're all just kind of collectively numb to a lot of that.
- I believe everyone I mean they have an audience. So, you know, even if they had a hundred people in their audience, but if you know me sending out review copy and I can get, you know, two three people buy it because of that, I feel like I've made you know I've made my my money back psychologically.
- There's a novelty to that tactile experience of and and being around the table with other people.
- I almost wonder actually is are board games going to continue to get more and more popular the further we go into AI tech, everyone being jacked into the matrix and that will be like this this um this haven for people to actually still have real human experiences with each other next to each other.
- Dogs of War will be the the next uh big hit uh of that line.
- It is great and it's an alien. It's a game about aliens, but also different take. They're not looking to conquer or anything. They're seeking knowledge.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video uJoySWt1LDc
Review at 0:13 sentiment: positive
video_pk 66721 · mention_pk 162527
Click to watch at 0:13 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Love the theme and how well it's integrated with the mechanisms.
- Relatively streamlined actions with fair bit of depth.
- Enjoyed the level of player interaction.
- Enjoyed the puzzle of trying to be as efficient as possible.
- Game lasts a good amount of time with definite tension near the end.
Cons
- Randomness can be frustrating.
- First couple of rounds feel the same.
- Game does not shine at two players.
- Cube economy can be too restrictive for some.
- Component art could look 'snazzier'.
Thematic elements
- Aliens exploring a new planet, gathering intelligence, and bringing back specimens for research.
- A brand new planet
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- action selection — Moving an alien to an adjacent section of the mothership to take an action from that spot.
- Area exploration — Exploring tiles on the planet board.
- End-game trigger — The game end is triggered when a player takes their final cube from the general supply.
- Resource Management — Cubes are the primary resource, and managing their use is critical.
- Set Collection — Collecting samples and matching them to research cards.
- Worker Placement — Placing aliens on the mothership board to take actions.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- So, will this game be like a fantastic newly discovered planet or should it just be passed over while you look on for a new one?
- For the components, they are okay.
- The game is kind of a relatively game in its actions, but does have a fair bit of depth to it, which I really enjoyed.
- I enjoyed the puzzle of trying to be as efficient as possible, getting the right cards with the right container, with being in the right spot on the planet board.
- On the downside, I did find the randomness to be a little frustrating.
- Overall though, I'm going to give Xenology an eight out of 10 and the Dice Tower Seal of Approval.
- This one actually surprised me, and I fear it's going to be overlooked.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video YQ8eZG5Inb0
Rahdo Runs Through Playthrough at 0:00 sentiment: positive
video_pk 40863 · mention_pk 123942
Click to watch at 0:00 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- Strong thematic integration with mechanics (exploration, database, Elders, lockers).
- High interactivity and direct player impact in a two-player game, with meaningful choices each turn.
- Multiple viable paths to victory and flexible card/track interactions keep options open.
- Rich, emergent storytelling potential that rewards efficient cube management and planning.
Cons
- Two-player gameplay can feel less dynamic than higher player counts where interdependency is more pronounced.
- Card-draw luck can influence pacing; some sequences may hinge on hitting the right biology/technology cards.
- Learning curve around several mechanics (archives, lockers, tracks) can be steep for new players.
Thematic elements
- Knowledge acquisition, scientific exploration, and interspecies collaboration/competition in a spacefaring setting.
- A gigantic alien mothership above a planet, with two alien species exploring and studying surface tiles and samples.
- Story-driven, emergent gameplay where players portray managers coordinating alien teams to study, extract, and archive knowledge.
Comparison games
- Trail Stories America
- Far Space Foundry
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- action adjacency and mother ship navigation — Workers must move to adjacent spots on the mothership to access five core actions; proximity matters.
- cubes as managerial resource — Cubes power actions, enable research, and drive endgame; cubes are scarce and getting more is a central goal.
- database archiving / scoring by linking cubes — Completed research is logged into a central database; each cube stored increases points, with pairs also scoring.
- elders council / research logging — Visiting the Elders grants clearance for studying cards and increases research limits, with bonuses tied to tracks.
- endgame by cube tally and rank — Endgame triggers when a player runs out of cubes; rank determines extra turns at game end.
- mission control / shuttle mechanic — Mission control lets aliens on the planet either extract or explore, providing bonuses and card draws.
- planetary exploration vs extraction — Aliens can explore to reveal terrain tiles and gain cards, or extract to bring back samples and fill lockers.
- storages lockers and sample collection — Lockers and container rows store collected samples (artifacts, plants, minerals, animals) and grant scoring bonuses.
- tech powers and transports — Technologies and transport devices (orb transporter, flight suit, deep scanner, etc.) provide one-time or ongoing bonuses.
- Worker Placement — Players deploy alien workers to perform actions on the mothership or on landing sites on the planet.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- How does it work? Well, this is a worker placement game.
- The more cubes you have, the more you could be studying on the surface.
- Getting cubes is everything in this game.
- There is no hand limit for cards.
- I would happily play this game anytime.
- Dan Manfredini has done a phenomenal job.
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Video R5eE_BjXh6g
Rahdo Runs Through Top 10 List at 56:29 sentiment: positive
video_pk 32942 · mention_pk 97625
Click to watch at 56:29 · YouTube ↗
Overall sentiment (raw)
positive
Pros
- strong knowledge-themed design
- clear puzzle and efficient engine
Cons
- theme may be niche for some players
Thematic elements
- knowledge collection over a planet-wide scope
- alien intelligence study of humans
Comparison games
none
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- Worker Placement — two-dimensional worker movement to collect data and score through placement.
- worker/board movement with data collection — two-dimensional worker movement to collect data and score through placement.
Video topics + discussion points
No key topics recorded for this video.
Quotes (from this video)
- solo mode is phenomenal
- the two-player experience I did not enjoy at all
- this is drop dead gorgeous
- the puzzle is sharp
- velocity is fantastic
- the market is better in many different ways
References (from this video)
No references stored for this video.
Transcript Navigation
Showing 1–5 of 5