1. Get to know the missions
2. Print and cut out the game materials
3. Get familiar with the gameplay
4. Go alone or play with a friend
5. Pick a destination to explore
6. Modify your deck and draw your cards
8. End the round and get a new challenge
10. Check back for new missions and planets to explore!
In this strategy card game, you'll work individually or collaboratively to build a spacecraft that can explore destinations throughout our solar system. The object is to fully explore your destination while withstanding the challenges thrown your way.
Printer (for printing game materials)
6-13 sheets of 8.5x11 paper (depending which materials you'll be printing out)
Starter Pack of game cards (requires 6 sheets of paper) – Download PDF
Sticky notes, coins, OR other markers for tracking damages to spacecraft
Pen and paper for tallying points
(Optional) Outer Worlds Expansion Pack (requires 1 sheet of paper) – Download PDF
(Optional) game mat (requires 6 sheets of paper) – Download PDF
(Optional) tape for assembling game mat
In this game, you’ll lead a mission to explore some of the most interesting environments in our solar system including the Moon, Mars, and Jupiter's moon Europa. Before getting started, read on to learn about some of the current and future NASA missions exploring the same destinations you will soon encounter with your fleet of spacecraft.
About the image: From left to right: An artistic depiction of the Artemis program's Gateway space station; a selfie taken by the Perseverance rover on Mars; and an artistic depiction of the Europa Clipper spacecraft orbiting Jupiter's moon Europa. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech | + Expand image
Print out the following on 8.5x11 paper or card stock:
Cut out the game cards.
If you're using the game mat, assemble it by taping together the pieces, as shown below. The mat includes a place for the deck, discard pile, and spacecraft.
This game is very similar in structure to strategy card games you may already be familiar with. Whether the architecture looks familiar or not, it may help to watch this tutorial video before getting started.
Learn to play NASA Space Voyagers, a strategy card game in which students design a robotic space mission to explore the Moon, Mars, and beyond. | Watch on YouTube
You can play by yourself or with up to three other players, collaboratively. If you play alone, some of the more challenging destinations may prove difficult. Playing on a team will allow you to pool your resources toward your common goal.
The destination cards, such as the Moon or Mars, have an exploration value, or a number of points you will need to earn to complete your mission and win the game. Each round, you will roll the dice to determine which of the challenges on the destination card you must overcome.
Before you shuffle the rest of the cards, you may want to modify the deck to ensure that all cards are helpful to the environment you’re setting out to explore. A submersible won’t provide much help on the Moon, for example. Feel free to personalize your deck to ensure success.
Now, each player draws seven cards from the shuffled deck. Note: You can choose to replace up to two of your drawn cards.
Each turn, you can take a number of actions to start building your mission, buying spacecraft and instruments and deploying them to start exploring your destination, including:
Be sure to tap all used resources, spacecraft, and instruments at the end of your turn. These cards cannot be used again until the next round.
At the end of your turn, draw one new card from the deck.
Once all players have had a turn, it's time to end the round:
To win the game, you must fully explore your destination (subtract the total research value) before running out of cards. Remember, playing with others will prove beneficial as your destinations get more advanced.
Our solar system is full of exciting mysteries to uncover, and NASA is building new and more complex spacecraft all the time. Check back often to see when new expansion sets are released.