Cosmic Encounter

The Fantasy Flight Games edition of Cosmic Encounter includes 50 different alien species in the base box, each with a unique power that breaks or modifies the game's core rules. Iconic aliens include the Virus, which multiplies its combat cards instead of adding them, and the Pacifist, which can win encounters through negotiation rather than force.

Fantasy Flight Games has produced the current edition of Cosmic Encounter since 2008, releasing it along with numerous expansions that add new alien races, technologies, and game variants. The game was originally created by Peter Olotka, Jack Kittredge, and Bill Eberle and first published by Eon Products in 1977, making it one of the oldest continuously relevant sci-fi board games.

When the offensive player reveals a destiny card to attack another player's planet, both the offense and defense can invite other players to ally with them, with allies contributing ships to the encounter. Allies on the winning side receive rewards—either new cards or the chance to establish colonies on the defending planet—making shifting loyalties the heart of the game's diplomacy.

Fantasy Flight Games has released multiple expansions for Cosmic Encounter, including Cosmic Incursion, Cosmic Conflict, Cosmic Alliance, Cosmic Dominion, and Cosmic Storm, each adding approximately 20 new alien species along with additional modules and variant cards. Combined with the base game's 50 aliens, the full collection brings the total number of playable species to well over 150.