Pack Mentality: DS9 Fluxx

An avid fan of the first two versions of the game, it was a no-brainer to get hold of Deep Space Nine Fluxx when it landed in the UK.

First of all let's refresh. Fluxx is a game whereby you are aiming to complete a Goal first. Simple? Nope; because as you play the rules change. You might have to draw four cards and play three, have the rules reset, be able to steal another player's Keeper (cards you collect to complete the Goal), play one card and draw five, be able to dispose of a set number of cards, have a free Action to play each round... the options go on and on and even better is that every time you play the game will turn out differently.

Looney Labs have already released The Original Series and The Next Generation packs plus the stroke of genius which was the Bridge Pack Expansion and you can read about those elsewhere. For now we're focusing purely on the latest version to arrive.

At the core it's very, very similar in style to the other two packs. The artwork on the cards is fantastic, offering unique perspectives on the full crew (minus Ezri Dax most notably) as well as the array of guest characters, nemeses, starships and of course the station itself. The goals play out the same as before however there are two big differences.

First of all we have Equipment and Starfleet Personnel with an additional category - Visitors - which encompasses a lot of the guest cast including Rom, Nog, Morn, Dukat and Garak plus some others. There are a few of the pink-edged Goal cards which need a larger combination of said Visitors or Equipment which can lead to a more lengthy game as you struggle to find that last one in the pack. 

The other big change is the removal of the Ungoal card. While the two earlier sets had a way to "Unwin" the game by comboing the Enterprise with either the Doomsday Machine or the Borg Cube dependent on what was in play, had been played and was on the table, Deep Space Nine Fluxx has totally removed this element leaving only a win as the method to bring about the end of the game.

You do notice with this that a lot of the characters bear identical features to their Original Series or The Next Generation counterparts leading to a sense of disappointment that there wasn't more variety introduced. In each edition all the captains allow you to steal another Player's Keeper however there are some new twists - speaking during your turn will lose you the Morn card to another player for example. Also new specifically for this box and previously only included in the Bridge Expansion Pack is the Meta-Mission card allowing you to discard four Goal cards during your turn to take a new four from the deck. Trust me when I say that this comes in very handy when you’re drawing five cards and playing only one.

Deep Space Nine Fluxx is the one I would turn to now if I wanted a quicker game since I generally leave the other two packs mixed with the Bridge Expansion. As a big fan of the series it's cool to see a lot of the aspects honoured here - not just characters but the Orbs, the wormhole, even latinum gets a look in so you can be sure that the topic is something the game creators are very familiar with.

If you've played Fluxx before and are happy with the previous two Star Trek versions this might not be a necessity purchase as it plays the same as the others. If there's a Voyager set in the future or perhaps a second Bridge Expansion to being it more into the bigger Star Trek Fluxx circle then I'd count it as an essential.

Well presented, great fun and easy to dip in and out of - definitely one for the bag at Destination Star Trek - see you there for a game!

You can check out our (updated) review of The Original Series and The Next Generation Fluxx (and Bridge Expansion) HERE!

Which pack or way to play are you preferring? Would you want a new expansion to draw all three packs together? What about a Voyager or Discovery set?

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