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Starship Catan / Similar games

18 games like Starship Catan

The best games like Starship Catan are Star Wars Outer Rim, Xia Legends of a Drift System and Nemo's War (Second Edition) — the closest of 18 ranked alternatives, scored by shared mechanics and category. Star Wars Outer Rim shares exploration, science fiction, space exploration with Starship Catan.

Every alternative below links to its own Starship Catan-style fact page, drawn from MeeplePick’s card game / exploration shelf.

Ranked by shared category (3 pts) and mechanics (2 pts), bonus within 0.7 of Starship Catan’s 2.5 weight, then BoardGameGeek’s Bayesian rating — one entry per series, 18 shown.

As an Amazon Associate, MeeplePick earns from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

  1. 1. Star Wars Outer Rim (2019)
    1–4 players · 120–180 min · ★ 7.7 · Medium-light · games like Star Wars Outer Rim →
    Shares with Starship Catan: Exploration, Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Dice Rolling, Trading · 2 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (50%)
    vs Starship Catan: both play at 2 · plays solo · scales to 4 · ~90 min longer · same complexity
    View Star Wars Outer Rim on Amazon →
  2. 2. Xia Legends of a Drift System (2014)
    3–5 players · 60–180 min · ★ 7.9 · Medium · games like Xia Legends of a Drift System →
    Shares with Starship Catan: Exploration, Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Dice Rolling · 1 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (25%)
    vs Starship Catan: no player-count overlap (3–5 vs 2–2) · scales to 5 · ~60 min longer · +0.7 heavier
    View Xia Legends of a Drift System on Amazon →
  3. 3. Nemo's War (Second Edition) (2017)
    1–4 players · 60–120 min · ★ 8.0 · Medium · games like Nemo's War (Second Edition) →
    Shares with Starship Catan: Exploration, Science Fiction, Dice Rolling, Push Your Luck · 2 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (50%)
    vs Starship Catan: both play at 2 · plays solo · scales to 4 · ~30 min longer · +0.7 heavier
    View Nemo's War (Second Edition) on Amazon →
  4. 4. Android Infiltration (2012)
    2–6 players · 30–45 min · ★ 6.5 · Medium-light · games like Android Infiltration →
    Shares with Starship Catan: Card Game, Exploration, Science Fiction, Dice Rolling, Push Your Luck · 2 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (50%)
    vs Starship Catan: both play at 2 · scales to 6 · ~22 min shorter · 0.4 lighter
  5. 5. Abyss (2014)
    2–4 players · 30–60 min · ★ 7.3 · Medium-light · games like Abyss →
    Shares with Starship Catan: Card Game, Science Fiction, Memory, Push Your Luck · 2 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (50%)
    vs Starship Catan: both play at 2 · scales to 4 · ~15 min shorter · same complexity
  6. 6. Merchant of Venus (Second Edition) (2012)
    1–4 players · 120–240 min · ★ 7.2 · Medium · games like Merchant of Venus (Second Edition) →
    Shares with Starship Catan: Exploration, Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Dice Rolling · 1 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (25%)
    vs Starship Catan: both play at 2 · plays solo · scales to 4 · ~120 min longer · +0.5 heavier
  7. 7. Merchant of Venus (1988)
    1–6 players · 180 min · ★ 7.1 · Medium
    Shares with Starship Catan: Exploration, Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Dice Rolling · 1 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (25%)
    vs Starship Catan: both play at 2 · plays solo · scales to 6 · ~120 min longer · +0.4 heavier
  8. 8. Roll for the Galaxy (2014)
    2–5 players · 45 min · ★ 7.7 · Medium · games like Roll for the Galaxy →
    Shares with Starship Catan: Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Dice Rolling · 1 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (25%)
    vs Starship Catan: both play at 2 · scales to 5 · ~15 min shorter · +0.3 heavier
  9. 9. Relic (2013)
    2–4 players · 180 min · ★ 6.8 · Medium-light · games like Relic →
    Shares with Starship Catan: Exploration, Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Dice Rolling · 1 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (25%)
    vs Starship Catan: both play at 2 · scales to 4 · ~120 min longer · same complexity
  10. 10. Space Base (2018)
    2–5 players · 60 min · ★ 7.6 · Medium-light · games like Space Base →
    Shares with Starship Catan: Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Dice Rolling · 1 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (25%)
    vs Starship Catan: both play at 2 · scales to 5 · about the same length · 0.4 lighter
  11. 11. Galaxy Trucker (2007)
    2–4 players · 60 min · ★ 7.4 · Medium-light · games like Galaxy Trucker →
    Shares with Starship Catan: Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Dice Rolling · 1 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (25%)
    vs Starship Catan: both play at 2 · scales to 4 · about the same length · same complexity
  12. 12. Escape the Dark Sector (2020)
    1–4 players · 20–60 min · ★ 8.1 · Medium-light
    Shares with Starship Catan: Card Game, Science Fiction, Dice Rolling, Push Your Luck · 2 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (50%)
    vs Starship Catan: both play at 2 · plays solo · scales to 4 · ~20 min shorter · 0.7 lighter
  13. 13. Tiny Epic Galaxies (2015)
    1–5 players · 30–45 min · ★ 7.4 · Medium-light · games like Tiny Epic Galaxies →
    Shares with Starship Catan: Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Dice Rolling · 1 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (25%)
    vs Starship Catan: both play at 2 · plays solo · scales to 5 · ~22 min shorter · 0.3 lighter
  14. 14. Firefly The Game (2013)
    1–4 players · 120–240 min · ★ 7.4 · Medium · games like Firefly The Game →
    Shares with Starship Catan: Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Dice Rolling · 1 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (25%)
    vs Starship Catan: both play at 2 · plays solo · scales to 4 · ~120 min longer · +0.5 heavier
  15. 15. Space Cadets (2012)
    3–6 players · 60–120 min · ★ 6.6 · Medium · games like Space Cadets →
    Shares with Starship Catan: Science Fiction, Space Exploration, Dice Rolling, Memory · 2 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (50%)
    vs Starship Catan: no player-count overlap (3–6 vs 2–2) · scales to 6 · ~30 min longer · +0.3 heavier
  16. 16. Star Trek Ascendancy (2016)
    3 players · 180 min · ★ 7.8 · Medium
    Shares with Starship Catan: Exploration, Science Fiction, Dice Rolling · 1 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (25%)
    vs Starship Catan: no player-count overlap (3–3 vs 2–2) · scales to 3 · ~120 min longer · +0.7 heavier
  17. 17. Twilight Imperium Fourth Edition (2017)
    3–6 players · 240–480 min · ★ 8.7 · Heavy · games like Twilight Imperium Fourth Edition →
    Shares with Starship Catan: Exploration, Science Fiction, Dice Rolling · 1 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (25%)
    vs Starship Catan: no player-count overlap (3–6 vs 2–2) · scales to 6 · ~300 min longer · +1.8 heavier
  18. 18. Paleo (2020)
    1–4 players · 45–60 min · ★ 7.9 · Medium
    Shares with Starship Catan: Card Game, Exploration, Memory · 1 of Starship Catan’s 4 mechanics (25%)
    vs Starship Catan: both play at 2 · plays solo · scales to 4 · about the same length · same complexity
Check Star Wars Outer Rim on Amazon →

As an Amazon Associate, MeeplePick earns from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

Frequently asked

What game is most like Starship Catan?
Star Wars Outer Rim (2019) is the closest match to Starship Catan, sharing exploration, science fiction, space exploration. It rates 7.7/10 on BoardGameGeek.
What should I play if I like Starship Catan?
Star Wars Outer Rim, Xia Legends of a Drift System, Nemo's War (Second Edition) are the top-ranked alternatives to Starship Catan in the MeeplePick database, matched on medium-light complexity as well as mechanics. All 18 are ranked on this page with the shared mechanics shown for each.
Is Star Wars Outer Rim harder than Starship Catan?
Compared with Starship Catan, Star Wars Outer Rim is same complexity and ~90 min longer (2.5 vs 2.5 complexity on BoardGameGeek's 1–5 scale).

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best 2-player board games · dice rolling games · memory games · push your luck games · trading games

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