Cosmic Encounter / Similar games

18 games like Cosmic Encounter

The best games like Cosmic Encounter are Battlestar Galactica The Board Game, Terraforming Mars and Impulse — the closest of 18 ranked alternatives, scored by shared mechanics and category. Battlestar Galactica The Board Game shares bluffing, science fiction, space exploration with Cosmic Encounter.

Every alternative below links to its own Cosmic Encounter-style fact page, drawn from MeeplePick’s bluffing / negotiation shelf.

Ranked by shared category (3 pts) and mechanics (2 pts), bonus within 0.7 of Cosmic Encounter’s 2.6 weight, then BoardGameGeek’s Bayesian rating — one entry per series, 18 shown.

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1. 1. Battlestar Galactica The Board Game (2008)
   3–6 players · 120–180 min · ★ 7.7 · Medium · games like Battlestar Galactica The Board Game →
   Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Bluffing, Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Hand Management · 1 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (17%)
   vs Cosmic Encounter: overlaps at 3–5 players · scales to 6 · ~60 min longer · +0.7 heavier
   View Battlestar Galactica The Board Game on Amazon →
2. 2. Terraforming Mars (2016)
   1–5 players · 120 min · ★ 8.4 · Medium · games like Terraforming Mars →
   Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Hand Management · 1 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (17%)
   vs Cosmic Encounter: overlaps at 3–5 players · plays solo · ~30 min longer · +0.7 heavier
   View Terraforming Mars on Amazon →
3. 3. Impulse (2013)
   2–6 players · 30–60 min · ★ 6.8 · Medium
   Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Bluffing, Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Card Play Conflict Resolution, Hand Management · 2 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (33%)
   vs Cosmic Encounter: overlaps at 3–5 players · goes down to 2 · scales to 6 · ~45 min shorter · +0.4 heavier
   View Impulse on Amazon →
4. 4. The Crew The Quest for Planet Nine (2019)
   2–5 players · 20 min · ★ 8.0 · Medium-light · games like The Crew The Quest for Planet Nine →
   Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Hand Management · 1 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (17%)
   vs Cosmic Encounter: overlaps at 3–5 players · goes down to 2 · ~70 min shorter · 0.6 lighter
5. 5. Frank Herbert's Dune (1979)
   2–6 players · 60–180 min · ★ 7.6 · Medium · games like Frank Herbert's Dune →
   Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Bluffing, Negotiation, Science Fiction, Alliances, Hand Management · 2 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (33%)
   vs Cosmic Encounter: overlaps at 3–5 players · goes down to 2 · scales to 6 · ~30 min longer · +0.9 heavier
6. 6. Race for the Galaxy (2007)
   2–4 players · 30–60 min · ★ 7.8 · Medium · games like Race for the Galaxy →
   Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Hand Management · 1 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (17%)
   vs Cosmic Encounter: overlaps at 3–4 players · goes down to 2 · ~45 min shorter · +0.4 heavier
7. 7. Game of Thrones The Iron Throne (2016)
   3–5 players · 30–60 min · ★ 6.8 · Medium
   Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Bluffing, Negotiation, Hand Management, Negotiation, Prisoners Dilemma · 3 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (50%)
   vs Cosmic Encounter: overlaps at 3–5 players · ~45 min shorter · same complexity
8. 8. Space Alert (2008)
   1–5 players · 30 min · ★ 7.4 · Medium · games like Space Alert →
   Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Hand Management · 1 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (17%)
   vs Cosmic Encounter: overlaps at 3–5 players · plays solo · ~60 min shorter · +0.4 heavier
9. 9. Forbidden Stars (2015)
   2–4 players · 120–180 min · ★ 8.0 · Medium-heavy · games like Forbidden Stars →
   Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Bluffing, Science Fiction, Card Play Conflict Resolution, Hand Management · 2 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (33%)
   vs Cosmic Encounter: overlaps at 3–4 players · goes down to 2 · ~60 min longer · +1.3 heavier
10. 10. Dune (2019)
    2–6 players · 120 min · ★ 8.1 · Medium-heavy · games like Dune →
    Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Bluffing, Negotiation, Science Fiction, Alliances · 1 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (17%)
    vs Cosmic Encounter: overlaps at 3–5 players · goes down to 2 · scales to 6 · ~30 min longer · +1.4 heavier
11. 11. Magic: The Gathering (1993)
    2 players · 20 min · ★ 7.5 · Medium · games like Magic: The Gathering →
    Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Bluffing, Hand Management, Interrupts · 2 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (33%)
    vs Cosmic Encounter: no player-count overlap (2–2 vs 3–5) · goes down to 2 · ~70 min shorter · +0.7 heavier
12. 12. A Game of Thrones The Board Game (Second Edition) (2011)
    3–6 players · 120–240 min · ★ 7.6 · Medium-heavy · games like A Game of Thrones The Board Game (Second Edition) →
    Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Bluffing, Negotiation, Card Play Conflict Resolution, Hand Management · 2 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (33%)
    vs Cosmic Encounter: overlaps at 3–5 players · scales to 6 · ~90 min longer · +1.2 heavier
13. 13. SpaceCorp 2025-2300AD (2018)
    1–4 players · 60–240 min · ★ 7.7 · Medium
    Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Hand Management · 1 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (17%)
    vs Cosmic Encounter: overlaps at 3–4 players · plays solo · ~60 min longer · +0.4 heavier
14. 14. Eminent Domain (2011)
    2–4 players · 45 min · ★ 7.0 · Medium · games like Eminent Domain →
    Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Hand Management · 1 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (17%)
    vs Cosmic Encounter: overlaps at 3–4 players · goes down to 2 · ~45 min shorter · same complexity
15. 15. Not Alone (2016)
    2–7 players · 30–45 min · ★ 7.0 · Medium-light · games like Not Alone →
    Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Bluffing, Science Fiction, Hand Management · 1 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (17%)
    vs Cosmic Encounter: overlaps at 3–5 players · goes down to 2 · scales to 7 · ~52 min shorter · 0.6 lighter
16. 16. Core Worlds (2011)
    2–5 players · 60–120 min · ★ 7.2 · Medium · games like Core Worlds →
    Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Hand Management · 1 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (17%)
    vs Cosmic Encounter: overlaps at 3–5 players · goes down to 2 · about the same length · +0.3 heavier
17. 17. Lord of the Rings The Confrontation (Deluxe Edition) (2005)
    2 players · 30 min · ★ 7.5 · Medium-light · games like Lord of the Rings The Confrontation (Deluxe Edition) →
    Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Bluffing, Card Play Conflict Resolution, Hand Management · 2 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (33%)
    vs Cosmic Encounter: no player-count overlap (2–2 vs 3–5) · goes down to 2 · ~60 min shorter · 0.4 lighter
18. 18. The 7th Continent (2017)
    1–4 players · 5–1000 min · ★ 8.1 · Medium · games like The 7th Continent →
    Shares with Cosmic Encounter: Science Fiction, Hand Management · 1 of Cosmic Encounter’s 6 mechanics (17%)
    vs Cosmic Encounter: overlaps at 3–4 players · plays solo · ~413 min longer · +0.3 heavier

Looking for the original? See the full Cosmic Encounter fact page — players, play time, age and complexity.