Cosmic Encounter, by Bill Eberle, Jack Kittredge, Bill Norton, and Peter Olotka

Play It Again, Sam

In this golden age of gaming we're enjoying, new releases hit our local game stores like a heavy rain pounding on so many windshields. With each blockbuster, those classics we grew up with are pushed back farther into the recesses of our shelves, left to gather dust and retain fond memories as we buy new Star Wars minis and wield our new-found authority as Sheriffs.

I've been told that Cosmic Encounter is "a game that should have meant even more than it did." I'm not sure exactly how to interpret that, but I assume it means that if CE were released today, in our surge of attention for games, that it would be an instant classic.

But wait... it's already an instant classic! From all the way back in 1977, Cosmic Encounter continues to be a fantastic game. Read on, intrepid gamer!