Galaxy Trucker review

Czech Games | Space exploration | 2-4 players | 60 minutes | www.czechgames.com 

Galaxy Trucker showcases the less glamorous side of space exploration. You compete with other truckers to build your ship out of a selection of spare parts then take the resulting hotch-potch of components on an odyssey through one of the dodgiest parts of galaxy. There are big bucks to be earned, providing your ship doesn’t fall apart first.

Each round of Galaxy Trucker is split into two phases. Firstly, all players simultaneously scrabble around to reveal various components and add them to their spaceship. Once everyone has a complete(ish) ship, players launch into space and test their hastily-constructed vessels against whatever the cosmos will throw at them. To make the most of your journey you’ll need cargo holds for trade goods, lasers to fight off pirates, slavers and smugglers, shields to protect against meteorites, crew to loot abandoned stations, aliens to lend their special expertise and engines to outrun the competition. In reality, you’ll be thankful just to make it to the finish line in whatever’s left of your floating junkyard. Whoever has made the most money after three journeys is the winner.

The first phase is unfailingly tense as you struggle to find just the right piece to finish your ship. Even though there’s a decent amount of luck involved and it’s not always easy to predict a winner, it’s always hilarious to watch in horror as a meteor cleaves your lovingly-crafted ship in two or smugglers pinch your hard-earned cargo. The rulebook is a delight to read - owing more than a little to The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – and adds to the general charm of the game. The components – astronauts, aliens and battery tokens – are all well produced and it’s ultimately just very satisfying to complete a space-themed jigsaw puzzle, even if you have to watch it get blown to bits straight afterwards. (Andrew Wormald)

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