YORKTON – There is something about the idea of building a rocket ship and heading to the stars to battle evil that really tugs at the memories of youth.
It’s all undoubtedly tied to Star Trek, Star Wars, Battlestar Galactica, Firefly and maybe most naturally The Last Starfighter, those memories being specially held for many of us. Just maybe those TV shows and movies are the seeds for our gaming obsessions – the desire to explore shrunken to a cardboard world laid out on the gaming table.
Whether that is actually how we become gamers or not, the idea of building a spaceship is just cool, and it brings us to this week’s game Solar Titans.
From designers Phillip Gee, and Xian Wu, and publisher SunnySideUp Games, Solar Titans has players taking command of a ship in the Orion Centauri system and preparing for battle with opposing vessels.
The fun is that in the game you get to upgrade your ship, manage your crew, and ultimately engage in tactical combat.
The concept here is not a new one but Solar Titans does it well with a game not overly complex yet one that achieves a level of fulfilling engagement.
Via email the designers explained, they “are sci-fi and action genre fans, and one of our most played board games was Star Realms. We loved the easy setup, fast pace, and competitive game play, and then we came up with an idea of wanting to create our own game about capital ships facing off. My partner was also inspired by one of his favorite PC games, FTL, so Solar Titans is also a homage to that game too.
“We’re board gamers and also parents of young children, so we wanted to create a game we – and other parents – could also play. This meant Solar Titans needed a quick setup, not too many rules to read, and faster gameplay sessions with a focus on multiple rounds instead of a single longer session that could get interrupted. We also try to be environmentally conscious and want our game to be accessible, so we set ourselves a goal of only using cards and avoided plastic components or molds.”
In terms of mechanics Solar Titans focuses on some tried and true and popular ones; deck building and tableau mechanics.
You are basically building a ship card-by-card. Your ship layout determines its combat capabilities and vulnerabilities. You play crew cards from your hand to fire your ship weapons, modify your ship, or purchase upgrades from a dynamic market.
One aspect of Solar Titans which should appeal is that it has six distinct game modes, Solar Titans offers solo and co-op boss battles against powerful AI ships, and competitive duels for up to 4 players — including an 2v2 format with massive titan-class vessels. It’s a rather broad range of game options which makes this one flexible off the shelf depending on how many players are gathered, and what time they have to invest.
The designers suggest “players can expect Solar Titans to be a fast-paced, tactical duelling game that lasts 20-40 minutes, and suited for one to four players. You will build up a unique capital ship layout, and must strive to keep your ship intact while taking down your opponent’s ship. Expect the gameplay to be competitive and thinky.
“Our favorite part about Solar Titans is being able to truly design a unique ship layout that affects gameplay and acts as a spatial puzzle. Where you place your ship plating, weapons, and support systems have a whole bunch of tactical implications – and you need to be aware of how your opponent is designing their ship as well. Do you prioritize defense or adding new weapons? Do you attack and bee-line to your opponent’s missile weapons, or target a different flank to misdirect them? Do you repair your systems immediately, or wait until you can reconfigure your ship layout? And the best part is that yours and your opponent’s ship will look different each time you play.”
Having tactical variability really is essential in a game like this if it is to have replayability, and Solar Titans again does it well.
There is a lot of in-game choices players will want to explore in terms of both ship building and crew implementation to keep this one fresh for a long while.
Check it out at solartitans.org
