Alien: The Fate of Nostromo is ideal for discovering cooperative board games

The situation is critical aboard the Nostromo since a xenomorph creature prowls the corridors and stalks the crew members. The only solution to get out of it: work as a team to progress, recover equipment, and make objects essential to your survival.

Alien: The Fate of Nostromo is a cooperative game, in which everyone plays together against the game, against the Alien. We embody one of the five characters from the film, including, of course, Lieutenant Ripley. Each of them has their own characteristic, a special action that only they can use.

The object of the game is to complete a certain number of objectives, depending on the number of participants, then, once this is done, to complete a final mission which is not revealed until then.

In turn, you have a few action points to spend as you wish. You can move from room to room, from hallway to hallway, pick up or drop off objects, use one, even make one, using bits of scrap metal found during your travels, etc.

Your survival greatly depends on your ability to craft and use the right items at the right times. Between the flashlight, the motion detector, the flamethrower, even the box to lock up Jones, the cat, to prevent him from hissing, there are a total of seven different objects available.

After each player’s turn comes the Alien’s turn. We simply turn over a card that indicates what to do. We must, for example, place airlocks in certain rooms, which will have to be opened to access them… some are without danger, behind others hides the creature.

It can also move towards the nearest character. At each encounter with the Alien, we have to flee, potentially causing a waste of time, or at least an annoyance in the progress of our plan. But, we also suffer a mental decline. If the latter reaches zero, the crew no longer has the strength to fight, and the game is lost.

Finally, some final missions trigger the ship’s self-destruct sequence, adding extra pressure on players’ shoulders.

Why play Alien: The Fate of Nostromo ?

let’s be honest, Alien: The Fate of Nostromo does not revolutionize the world of board games, or even that of cooperative games. But, it has two essential assets with regard to the target audience, namely beginners, who are discovering contemporary board games: the great accessibility of the rules, and the short duration of the games.

Apart from a few exceptions, or children’s games, cooperative board games (thus excluding small party games) are often either long or complicated, or both. What put off a novice, except to accompany him in his first games.

Alien: The Fate of Nostromo avoid these pitfalls. On your turn, you perform the few simple actions to which you are entitled (move, use an object, make one, etc.), then turn over a card that indicates the behavior of the Alien. And that’s all. With games that do not exceed the hour of play, and a universe known to all, the cocktail is successful.

On the other side of the spectrum, on the other hand, we would rather tend to advise against it for seasoned players, having already cut their teeth on tougher cooperative games… unless they want to play relaxed, without taking the lead. This is also how we lived our games, cool, family. We must admit that it is sometimes good to play a game without having to dive back into the rules every ten minutes.

But beware, the game may be accessible, it does not give gifts. Your first games are likely to end in failure. That’s good, that’s what we expect from a cooperative game. If you win too quickly, you get tired of it, and the box then stays in the back of the closet, gathering dust. In the worst case, you can increase the difficulty by adding Ash, the android who betrays his teammates.

Small thematic disappointment all the same, since the Alien acts only on the morale of the troops, and never kills any crew member. On the other hand, it allows everyone to participate until the end of the game, and not to be eliminated after a few minutes, at the bend of a corridor and an unfortunate encounter with the xenomorph. A blessing in disguise, therefore.

Even if it does not remain in the playful annals, Alien: The Fate of Nostromo will be perfect for a very specific audience: beginners who are new to contemporary or cooperative board games. They won’t be lost, thanks to its accessible rules and fast games. In addition, the full-bodied challenge it offers will serve as a springboard to more beefy titles, once you regularly overcome the game.

In space, no one can hear us scream… but can we be heard playing?

• Alien: The Fate of Nostromois a game by Scott Rogers
• Illustrated by Stefen Koidl and Vladimir Rodriguez
• Published by Ravensburger
• For 1 to 5 players from 10 years old
• For games of about 45 to 60 minutes
• Priced at €43.90 at Philibert

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