MLEM: Space Agency: Cats, Rockets and Meowths in Space!

Publisher(s) : Rebel Studio
Designer(s) : Reiner Knizia
Artist(s) : Joanna Rzepecka
Players : 2–5
Playing time : 30 - 60 Min
Weight BGG : 1.72

What's this?

In this game, you play as mission commanders who send reckless felines in rockets to explore the universe and collect victory points. With stop-or-continue mechanics and strategic placement, this game offers an accessible adventure for the whole family.

How do you play?

Expedition progress

➡️ Takeoff Phase: Players place Chastronauts in the rocket.

➡️ Travel Phase:

The expedition commander rolls the dice and chooses those that match the accessible squares.
He advances the rocket according to the dice chosen.
If no die matches, the rocket explodes and the expedition ends immediately.

➡️ Landing Phase:

Players can choose to land on a planet, a moon, or continue the expedition.
The further you go, the more VP you can score, but there is an increased risk of explosion.

➡️ End of game conditions

The game ends when a player places all of his Chastronauts in space or after 11 rocket explosions.
The player with the most VP wins the game.

➡️ Game Variants

The game offers several advanced variants:

Secret Missions: Hidden objectives to score more VP.
Exploration: Exploration tokens add special events.
UFO: A UFO marker disrupts the expedition.

Is it good?

MLEM: Space Agency is a family-friendly and accessible game. The mix of risk-taking and light strategy makes it interesting without being too complex. The theme of astronaut cats, reinforced by funny illustrations, adds a touch of originality and humor.

Its flaws? A part of chance that can frustrate players who prefer more controllable experiences. The game relies heavily on the chance of the dice. And its main flaw, in my opinion, is the presence of Celestia, another stop or encore game, more fun with bluffing, faster games with less downtime and more controllable chance.

However, if you are a casual or family player, that you love stop or encore games, MLEM: Space Agency could still please you.

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Review MLEM: Space Agency

7.0To try

MLEM: Space Agency is an accessible family game that mixes risk-taking and light strategy, with a fun astronaut cat theme. While the randomness of the dice may frustrate some players, it remains a nice option for those who enjoy stop-or-encore games, despite competition from Celestia, often considered more fun with bluffing and more dynamic.

Positives