Everything old is new again, and in the case of board games, that can sometimes be true. Revisiting games is a popular notion allowing companies to change mechanics, add or subtract aspects of the game play or components or just give it a big overhaul. Today we are going to look at a game that is giving it another go and see how it all plays out!
Lift Off! Get me off this Planet! is designed by Eduardo Baraf with art by Nicole Kelley and published by Pencil First Games. It is an original from them and their first Kickstarter. This is a new Expanded Deluxe Edition getting ready to have another go-around on Kickstarter on Tuesday, January 7th 2020!
Objective
In Lift Off, you and your fellow Aliens are rushing to get off your home planet that is about to explode because someone tripped over the coolant cord! As everyone shouts “Get me off this planet!” you all do everything you can to try and escape. The first one to rescue their 10 Aliens off the planet wins!
Gameplay
The main board is made up of the standard planet core, lift off points and the moon that rotates around the planet. During the game players will attempt to move out of the core and to the perimeter of their planet. Once there you try to get your aliens to a lift off point with the correct resources and use action cards to help accomplish that. The gameplay along with the moon proceed counter-clockwise through the whole game.
During a player’s turn, you can do any of the following actions in any order. They include:
Move. This will allow you to take up to two action moves for one Alien or one each for two different ones.
Play. You may play any number of action cards during your turn. These cards are used to pay the cost to join a Launch platform or pay the Lift Off cost from them. These don’t require movement to perform and can be performed at any time in your turn. This is often how you will string together cards with move actions to get your Aliens to the correct Launch Platform to send them off at the right time with the Lift Off cost.
You may also discards two cards from your hand to draw oneWhich can really help you find those cards that you are looking for in the deck. Finally each round ends with the moon moving to the next phase counter clockwise to signal the beginning of the next round. The position of the moon will affect different aspects of card game play as you move more into the game.
The position of the moon will affect what resources may be necessary to get a lift off at the correct time for your characters. Certain areas need certain phases of the moon to be present, these phases are determined by the position of the moon relative to your Lift Off positions. Once the moon goes around once it creates a new day that allows the Sun to move forward on its track as well signaling another round finished.
The game will end as soon as one player saves all their aliens. If this doesn’t happen before the sun hits the explosion point on the Day track, the player with the most saved aliens wins. If there is a tie, the player with the most resource cards wins, and past that the players share a win!
The game also has a few different variants available that can change the overall dynamic. These include Family Fun where players are able to get off the planet and then help the others who have not gotten off the planet escape. There can also be the Team Up option where players work together to escape the planet. I really like the option We Don’t Have Time where the game plays at a faster speed with more cards, fewer aliens and less time. It really moves the game quick. Finally there is the game variant of Cutthroat Planet where play is much more competitive which would allow you to move other player’s aliens.
Impressions
I was also very impressed with the speed of this game. For a family game we put at the table, I’m looking for engaged players but also a speed that allows everyone to have a thoughtful turn that doesn’t become long or taxing. Lift Off allowed for every player to have meaningful turns with thought and planning but didn’t stifle the flow of the game nor make any of the kids or adults prone to overthinking a move set.
Lift Off! provided a fun and interactive gaming experience for our family the moment it hit the table. The artwork really draws you in and gives you the feeling of really being trapped with these Aliens as you all race to get out. The gameplay allowed our family to work together at times but to also work against each other trying to get our Aliens out first. I love the forced co-operation play that is trying to help yourself first but also weighs in the decision to help others.
The replayability on this one will be high, we have played it a few different times and the different lift-off points and exit points provide a variety of terrain that keeps the game board different through each play. Our family enjoyed the variations to the setup for each game. Also the resource and action cards give a good mix as well keeping it a guessing game as to what you may pick up next for your hand. We played this with teenagers but I can definitely see younger kids grade school and pre-teen age being able to pick this up and run with it.
For anyone who has played the original, this game is really a step up in a great direction. This game adds the Garglore and his token along with cards for him to use in solo play. The game now plays up to 6 players with great escape pods for each character. It also adds new tunnels into the game with new mechanics to match them. As mentioned earlier, the lift-off points are such a fun addition to the game really changing up the mechanics and gameplay each time making for some fresh games.
And if you happen to already own the original? No worries, Pencil First Games has got you covered! They will be selling an upgrade kit for players who have the original game. It will have the new components, stickers, rules-everything you need to take your original copy and deluxify it up!
This game shines on the table and is sure to be a hit with wide variety of players. I think this will be a highly anticipated family game and one I personally cannot wait to get some more plays in for! So make sure you check out the Kickstarter for this game and get it on your radar for 2020! Check out the campaign here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ebaraf/lift-off-get-me-off-this-planet-expanded-deluxe-edition?ref=oi7pcm
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