Nexus Ops

Played Nexus Ops this evening with Caleb and Logan. Picked this up online at TRU for $20 and free shipping. It’s a light science fiction themed war game that is simple to play and works surprisingly well. Each player represents a mining corporation that hires units to explore, mine and take control of the surrounding area. As you play, you accumulate mission cards that award victory points when you achieve the goal on the card. Most of these are related to winning a battle against another player. The first player to 12 points wins.

The actions performed each turn are

• Hire new units
• Move units
• Reveal newly explored areas
• Fight in contested areas
• Collect income
• Draw new mission (and 2 energize cards if controlling the monolith)

Each unit has a different cost to hire and different abilities. A rock strider can move 2 spaces when traveling to or through a rocky space. A crystalline hits on a 4, 5 or 6 when fighting in a crystalline space instead of only on a 5 or 6. Just enough to make each unit slightly different and keep the game interesting.

The boys and I had a blast for the 90 minutes or so it took to play this. Logan hired all of his rubium dragons by the end of the game. They were all sitting on top of the monolith ready to pounce on anyone even thinking about challenging his domination in the middle. Both of them ganged up on me when they saw me pick up several points early in the game. Very enjoyable. Recommended for a light battle style game that can play in very little time.

As an avid gamer, I tend to turn my nose up at the mass-market games that Hasbro pushes at the public through Wal-Mart, TRU, etc. However, their Avalon Hill division is managing to publish a some titles with cross-over appeal. Nexus Ops is certainly one and Vegas Showdown is another. They are also great value when you find them on sale for $20!