Star Trek: Deep Space Nine Fluxx

Fluxx is the long standing card game of lunatic simplicity: Draw a card, play a card, and no one can win until someone plays a Goal. You can play Keepers (items to reach a goal), New Rules (draw more cards, play more cards), Actions (change the game board instantly in some way), Surprises (counter an opponent’s plays, mostly) and get stuck with Creepers (negative effect Keepers that prevent you from winning). It’s great fun, and we have played through many editions and iterations of the game. Today, we speak on Star Trek Deep Space Nine Fluxx.

In The Cards

However, I’m always a bit wary of the themed versions of Fluxx: more often than not, they just feel like a reskin with new art. Whilst sometimes that can, in and of itself, be entertaining – I like that the Doom coming to Sarnath is my goal in Cthulhu Fluxx, or the Black Knight creeping about bleeding on me in Python Fluxx – they don’t often manage to strike a balance between interesting new gameplay mechanics and feeling like the source IP. Marvel Fluxx has its moments (let’s face it, who doesn’t want to only say I AM GROOT) but it still doesn’t quite strike the right balance.

Badda-Bing, Badda-Bing

So could DS9, in many ways the most sombre and serious of the Treks, really make for a good Fluxx? Unashamedly, yes, is the answer: in fact, I’d go so far as to say it’s the best version of the game, possibly even outstripping classic Fluxx itself.

There’s a couple of simple aesthetic changes – using the standard DS9 Bajoran font for the card types – but more importantly there’s some great mechanics in the Keepers: the Orb can be put back into the deck for another turn, Morn forces you to play in silence, Latinum can be used to buy cards off opponents, and the Holosuite can copy an opponent’s Keeper for victory. Similarly, the Goals feel very DS9, using some fan-favourite moments (Jake and Nog for “Chillin’ on the Promenade”, Bashir and Garak for “Lunch at the Replomat”, or Dukat and DS9 for “Terok Nor”) plus the excellent Trek-centric 5-year mission Meta-Rule that allow you to discard 4 goals for 5 cards that you must immediately play.

It’s mechanics like the latter that really speed things up (Fluxx can devolve into a grind sometimes), plus excellent new Actions such as Dabo! (draw 3 cards, and another 3 if you have Latinum in play or your hand) and Rules such as Acquisition (again, buy cards off your opponent at the cost of one of yours). Also, where Creepers can really ruin the fun of many a game of Fluxx, here they are not necessarily a disadvantage – whether it be about a Victory for the Founders (Victory is Life!) or getting Miles to fix your Transporter and letting you steal everyone else’s keepers to your hand.

Wrongs Darker Than Death Or Night

If there are any negatives to the game, it’s that a couple of Keepers – particularly Sisko, who can simply steal a Starfleet Keeper every turn – are very, very powerful. This is however balanced by the usual shenanigans of Fluxx, with plenty of cards to steal, discard and generally meddle with your opponents. Also, I am not really a fan of the art style. It’s oddly angular, which is fine for some characters (the Ferengi and Cardassians) but not others (Humans and Bajorans), particularly as the actors are so familiar.

What You Leave Behind

Overall, this is a really excellent addition to any games collection, whether you’re a Trek fan or not – it honestly doesn’t matter if you’re not into DS9 (point of fact, my 12 year old isn’t, and loves this) though it is equally a tremendous choice for a fan.