Mission: Red Planet, a 2005 board game set in a Steampunk universe

If you’re an old school SF gamer or a hardcore fan of Steampunk, consider Mission: Red Planet, a board game released in 2005 by the French company Asmodée. Set in a Steampunk universe around the time of the Exposition Universelle in 1889, here’s a description of the game, taken from the back of its box:

In Mission: Red Planet, you head a mining corporation financing an ultra-secret project: the exploration of the Martian underground. Spaceships are ready for take-off. You have recruited the best specialists in all areas of expertise: recruiters, scientists, and even saboteurs. Everybody knows that this will be a difficult venture; you will need to lay down the best strategy and rely on the finest intelligence. Watch out for meteorite fields, mining incidents, radioactive rocks, and your competitors…

Put your brass goggles on and check out some of the beautiful Steampunk artwork by Christophe Madura, such as the rulebook cover (pictured above) and the character cards!