2021 · Card Game
Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition
Players act as competing corporations investing in projects to make Mars habitable while building efficient production engines. Gameplay centers on drafting and playing project cards, managing money and resources (plants, heat), and raising global parameters—temperature, oxygen, and oceans—to increase each corporation’s terraform rating and income. Rounds proceed by selecting one of five phases that determines available activities; all players carry out the chosen phase (with a bonus for the selector), and many actions can be taken simultaneously. The game ends when the global parameters reach target levels, and the player with the most victory points, including terraform rating and card-driven scoring, wins.
- Players
- 1–4 best 3
- Playing time
- 45–60 min
- Age
- 14+
- Complexity
- 2.9 / 5
About the game
- Publishers
Expansions
See them in Ludoya
Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition – Crisis2023
Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition – Discovery2023
Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition – Discovery · Foundations · Crisis2023
Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition – Foundations2023
Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition – Promo Cards2021
Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition – Promo Cards #22023
Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition – Private Investor Beach Promo Card2022
Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition – Tourism Promo Card2022
Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition – Orbital Outpost MVM Promo Card2023Photos from Ludoya tables
All photos in Ludoya
Where to buy it
Shop prices and second-hand copies, checked every day.
On Ludoya's tables
Full stats in Ludoya- 747
- Plays logged
- 636
- Players
- 1h 43m
- Average play
- 258
- In collections
- 28
- On wishlists
- 1
- Pre-ordered
7.3/10
from 93 Ludoya reviews
Jan Solo7.5 La esencia de TM en una duración muy contenida. Para mi a la altura de su padre si no más alto.
Draw and play all the cards! This game by far hurts by brain more than any game I own. I have never played the original board game. This game offers fun engine-building and strategies that continue to surprise us with accidental bonuses and points. It's a bummer that so many of the original board game lovers don't like this re-implementation. Try it out if you want a challenging game with a great theme! 8/10.
Bracima7.0 Correcte, segueix l univers terraforiming però és un joc molt diferent. Recomanable com a pseudo-filler
Rules questions
Answered from the rulebook by Ludoya's rules assistant.
Can I pick the same phase two rounds in a row?
No — starting with the second round you place the newly chosen phase card rotated on top of the previous one and you are not allowed to pick the same phase two rounds in a row (p.10).
In the Development phase, can I play more than one green card, and what is the “pay 3 MC less” bonus?
During Development each player may play one green project card, and if you chose that phase the cost of the card you play this phase is reduced by 3 MC (p.11).
How do steel and titanium discounts work — do they pay for cards or just reduce the cost, and can they make the cost go below zero?
Steel reduces the cost of cards with the building tag by 2 MC per steel and titanium reduces space-tag cards by 3 MC per titanium (they reduce the cost rather than directly paying it), and a card’s cost cannot be reduced below zero (p.12).
Do I have to spend heat or plants to take standard actions to raise parameters if I can?
Yes — at the end of the action phase, if you are able to spend heat or plants for a standard action you must do so unless the associated terraforming parameter is already at its maximum (p.14).
How much MC do I get in the Production phase — do I add my TR to my MC production?
In Production you gain MC equal to your MC production plus your TR; if you chose the Production phase you also get the phase bonus of +4 MC, and you similarly gain heat, plants and cards according to those productions (p.15).
When I must discard down to 10 cards at the end of the round, do I get 3 MC per discarded card — and can I discard cards at other times for 3 MC?
Yes — during the end step you discard down to ten and gain 3 MC for each card discarded, and the rules also allow you to discard project cards at any time to gain 3 MC (p.16; also p.11).
Free, on web, Android and iOS
Play Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition with Ludoya
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Game facts (players, playing time, age, credits) from BoardGameGeek.