The Best Board Games Set on Mars 2026

Terraforming Mars: Ares Expedition is an engaging engine-building game where players take on the roles of corporations with the ambitious goal of terraforming Mars. The game combines strategic resource management and project development to make the red planet habitable.

Terraforming Mars is a strategic board game set in the 2400s, where players, representing giant corporations, embark on the colossal task of terraforming Mars. Sponsored by the World Government on Earth, each corporation competes to contribute most effectively to raising the planet's temperature, oxygen level, and ocean coverage to make Mars habitable. While players work together in the terraforming process, they also compete for victory points awarded for their contributions to terraforming, advancing human infrastructure throughout the solar system, and other notable achievements.

Players use special dice in a card-driven game to develop their corporations and transform Mars into a new home for humanity. The dice represent resources for playing cards and performing actions, which include increasing production, terraforming, and placing tiles on the board. Players earn victory points by terraforming Mars, placing tiles, and achieving awards and milestones, with the game ending when two out of three global parameters are met.

Mission: Red Planet is a strategic board game set in the year 1888, where Steampunk technology has enabled mankind to reach Mars. Designed by Bruno Faidutti and Bruno Cathala, this game immerses players in a competitive race to colonize Mars and exploit its valuable resources: the explosive element Celerium, the dense material Sylvanite, and water from Martian glaciers, which could potentially terraform the planet.

This version of Fluxx features a Mars invasion theme, drawing inspiration from classic alien invasion stories, including the original "War of the Worlds." Players become Martian invaders, facing off against pesky humans who attempt to thwart their victory. Guardians include the Mars, mother ship, flying saucer, and even tentacles, showcasing the quirky elements of the game.

Robots are constructing a colony on Mars that must be completed before the settlers arrive. Players build "domes" for the settlers to live in and then guide them to their designated domes. Resources are generated and moved along pathways, and players must build new tiles and keep track of time to successfully complete the colony before the oxygen runs out.

In the Mars mining colony ARES-6, crime pays off. Three factions compete for control over this corrupt new world, while players assume the role of mercenaries known as "freelancers," seeking to profit from the conflict and enhance their reputation. The game features a "Pay to Play" auction mechanism, where players must sacrifice their bidding power to place bids, navigating a web of shady contacts and dangerous missions to achieve their goals.

Planet Steam transports you to 2415, where the interplanetary federation has made strides in colonizing a new planet named "Steam." This planet, with its core heating up to 6,500°C, is ripe for the extraction of vital resources through a network of 42 shafts. As a player, you embody an ambitious entrepreneur in this steampunk-themed world, aiming to harness steam to extract resources, build your empire, and navigate the complexities of market dynamics.

Martian Chess is a game for 2-4 players that uses Icehouse pieces and requires each player to have their own supply and a chessboard. Similar to chess, players take turns moving and capturing pieces, with each type of piece having its own movement rules. Key differences include determining ownership by location rather than color, scoring based victories instead of capturing pieces, and the ability to play with up to six players using geomorphic chessboard sections.

On Mars is a complex and strategic board game that simulates the challenge of establishing and expanding a colony on Mars. Designed by Vital Lacerda, this game is known for its depth and intricate mechanics, appealing to players who enjoy a detailed and immersive strategic experience.

Nemesis: Lockdown is a standalone expansion to the popular board game Nemesis. This expansion transports players to an entirely new setting: a secret multi-level base on Mars. Lockdown maintains the semi-cooperative, highly cinematic gameplay of the original Nemesis, while introducing an array of new mechanics and features. Players will engage in exploring the base, gathering items, crafting, running, and fighting against other species, all while trying to fulfill their secret objectives - which may conflict with the goals of others.