Dark Side of the Mine takes place in the near future, where mining corporations compete to extract resources from nearby asteroids. Order your mining robots to secure the richest mineral deposits and score more points than your competition before the asteroid deck runs out.
In Dark Side of the Mine, a series of cards are laid out to represent the asteroid. A certain number of cards are placed face down (depending on the number of players), representing the area where players cannot send a communication signal to their robots -- the dark side. Each turn, players flip over the left-most face down card to reveal a new mineral deposit. They will then issue orders to their robots, draw a card, and, finally, place a card from their hand face down on top of the right-most face down card. This represents the dark side moving as the players orbit the asteroid. Slower robots may get trapped on the dark side of the asteroid, lose contact with the company so they cannot receive orders, and must wait until the dark side passes by so communication can be restored.
On a player's turn, they have two out of four actions to perform:
Prospect - play a card and order the mining robot to secure the next mineral deposit of that type moving clockwise;
Upgrade - play a card and permanently increase the mining capabilities of the robots;
Communicate - Move counter-clockwise around the asteroid until you find another robot and share information with them about the asteroid;
Recharge - Draw a new card into your hand.
Dark Side of the Mine is a deep strategy game in a small package. Every card can be used for multiple purposes, whether to prospect the next mineral deposit, mine that deposit, upgrade your robots, or take advantage of the work other companies have done. Careful hand management and planning will ensure that you are the most successful mining corporation in the galaxy.
On First Take Fridays a number of authors around Meeple Mountain give short first takes on games that are new to us. This week we have takes on Tulip Bubble...
