Asmodee Eclipse Board Game

Despite what you may have read/heard, Eclipse is NOT a Twilight Imperium 3 'killer," "light alternative" (see Exodus Proxima Centauri for that), or "clone." TI3 is a true 4x game; Eclipse isn't. Don't let anybody fool you into thinking otherwise. They either don't know what a true 4x game is, are Euro-game elitists, or Euro-gamers trying to sound cool about like one Ameri-THRASH type game. Despite the VERY thin coat of space theme, Eclipse is, at heart, a Euro-style economic/banking, number-crunching game.However....Eclipse is a VERY well designed-even elegant (?)-Euro-style economic/banking, number crunching game! What it does well, it does VERY well. It even does a few thing better then TI3 (i.e. ship upgrades are way more interesting and customizable; Eclipse actually has a clever exploration mechanic...but it is VERY random.), as well as a few things worse then TI3 ( Weaker production values; BLAND world building/alien races; RANDOM tech-tree?; RANDOM VPs for space battles?? They make no sense.). And, for a Euro-game, Eclipse has a SOLID combat system. The weak space theme might just be icing on the cake for those who like Euro-games AND space themes in general. Finally, Eclipse can also be played in half the time of your average TI3 game.The Bottom line:Get Twilight Imperium 3 IF:-You have LOTS of time-Want to replay an EPIC Space Opera novel (Dune, Lensman, Foundation Series, Star Wars (w/o the IP) Original Trilogy) in board game form.-EPIC battles and political machinations.-Intense player interaction.-Want a true 4x experience.-You have LOTS of time.Get Exodus Proxima Centauri IF:-You want the TI3 experience (see above) with half the rules and half the time.Get Eclipse IF:-Time is an issue, and TI3 seems to AmeriTHRASHY for you.-You want a Euro-game that rewards efficient VP and resource generation.-You like/love engine/resource management style games.-You can take or leave epic warfare/political skullduggery.-If you want all of the above, and don't care about strong theme, or a weak space theme is up your alley!You can't go wrong with any choice. They're all great games.

This is a great 4X space game, but it has some issuesIt plays much quicker than other big name 4X games at about a hour per person. The basic game supports up to six players. So you are looking at five to six hours for a full game with six players.There is a crazy amount of components. Your first time sorting everything is going to take you a long time, especially if you aren't familiar with the game. Once you get things sorted out you'll be ok. Cleaning up after the game will take a bit as well.The player boards can be a real bear to manage in game. You have lots of components to manage and they are easily knocked out of place. It is well worth purchasing the after market acrylic over lays to help keep things from getting disrupted.Actual game play is so much fun and interesting. Lots of different alien species to play. Tons of routes to victory and no two games are the same. That being said this isn't your typical 4X game. It is very much a Euro game and economy is much more important than combat. While combat is definitely a thing in the game, it isn't an absolute and games can be played with very little combat. It is a big epic game that is a wonderful experience.

Frankly, this is one of the best games on my shelf... one of the best board games I've played... with a few caveats.What's great about this game is the _elegance_ of the rules and the flow of play. This game has become something of a paragon for clarity: the way your resources are revealed as you place components is especially satisfying; the iconography means minimal reference to the rulebook after the first read; the hints on the action cards are just right; the tech tree is fun and satisfying, and so on. Superlative.Does it "feel" like you're a futuristic empire struggling to power in a new galaxy? ...No, not really. There are elements of the theme that come through (economic management in particular), but the restrictions on fleet size and movement make things seem arbitrarily restricted. However, it's a sacrifice I'm happy to make for the sake of smoother gameplay. You definitely feel like you are playing a Euro game. BUT: it's a well-themed, enjoyable Euro: one of the best, in fact.Setup time is considerable: if you like the game, plan on spending a little money (or time) creating a system for storing and retrieving tiles. Tear-down is even more work: plan on at _least_ ten minutes to clean things up once you've scored everything--more if you're particular about splitting up types of tech, or splitting out expansions, for example.One of the worst things about this game, though, is pretty much the same curse for any heavy euro: finding players. People who love it will come back for more, but there are bound to be folks in your gaming group who say "I don't feel like something that heavy tonight," and as a result, expect this game to hit the table less than you want. ...And, if you're reading the review this far, I expect you will REALLY want it to hit the table.Lastly, I will add that playing the iPad version of this game is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. It's a great implementation, and it will allow you to bang out a dozen games against the computer until you develop a strategy or three (there are multiple viable paths to victory). You'll get bored of that, though: it will start to feel a little "samey," particularly against the AI (and the human players are too slow to be worth playing against). It's a great introduction to the board game. ...and, at least for me, it did NOT detract from my enjoyment when Eclipse finally does get pulled out on game night. It's just SUCH an elegant game, that you can't help but smile while playing it.One of the best: but very particular in when and how it shines. You'll need a lot more games on your shelf to round out your collection, yes. But this will almost certainly be one of your favorites... when you get a chance to play...

I'm a big fan of board games, and our group's previous favourite game was "Battlestar Galactica." I think this just supplanted it. As a space strategy and empire-building game, I don't think it has an equal - people can harp on about "Twilight Imperium" all they like, but this manages to condense the complexity of managing a galactic empire into a manageable amount of time and rules.The game itself allows you to explore, research technology, build fleets, colonise, upgrade ships and fight wars against your neighbours. It's a long game, but not excessively so. Our first game had to be cut short after four hours, but subsequent games have been much quicker now that everyone understands the rules. I'd say that 30 minutes per player is optimistic (especially if you have people who like to think about their move!) 40 minutes per player is probably about right, plus 10 minutes at the start to set up. Setting up is easy if you're smart about how you bag up the components, so allow another 10 minutes at the end for packing away!Gameplay has a "worker placement" style, each placement allowing you to carry out actions. You have three resources that you need to manage (money, science and production), and a number of ship types you can build and move. Researching technology allows you to upgrade your ships, or gain permanent benefits. The ultimate aim is to have the most victory points, and there are several routes to winning (conquest, scientific advance, preserving ancient knowledge).It's not perfect, by any means. The player boards are very thin, and easily damaged by water or tea droplets. There are a LOT of tiles, cubes and other miscellanea which can be quite fiddly. The rules don't allow for alliances (although the "Rise of the Ancients" expansion provides this).On the whole though, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this to board gamers. The game has an enjoyable flow to it. The rules never feel artificial or contrived, and dovetail nicely with the overall theme. Great!

Very nice game for both 1vs1 and more players. It has mediocre fast gameplay but very easy to get into, with simple rules and a little bit of random hazard :)Also seller was fast, and product was well packed!

Don't be fooled; it takes a while to learn, it takes a while to play a session and it has a certain degree of complexity. Everything makes sense though. Excellent quality pieces, really good gameplay. A few years later and this is still one of my favourite boardgames. It's like playing a strategy video game in reality.

Perfect balance of complexity, freedom to choose your path and conflict with AI and other players. I've not played any other space opera games but I don't think I'll look after loving this one so much.

One of the best board games I've played so far. Enough said.