Theseus: The Dark Orbit

About this board game

Theseus: The Dark Orbit is a strategic space-station conflict game for 2–4 players, with sessions lasting about 90 minutes. Five factions are trapped in deep space, and only one can survive.

Players move pawns through the station and activate the abilities of different rooms. Every move changes the movement possibilities of opponents, creating meaningful decisions: choose the room you want to reach while also disrupting how your rivals can travel.

Each faction offers a distinct way to approach the struggle:

• Marines: deploy deadly weaponry, traps, and mines to defend humanity.
• Aliens: use secret passages and ventilation ducts for surprise attacks, while growing small aliens to take control of the station.
• Scientists: use computers and technological devices to gather data and record information about other inhabitants.
• Greys: use mind powers to control enemies and turn them to their own purposes.
• The fifth faction: remains a mystery at the heart of the expedition to Theseus.

Rooms evolve throughout the game as players install trait cards that grant new abilities and skills. Traps, smart guns, secret passages, and other features let players shape the station during play, so Theseus looks different and presents new dangers in every game.

Team rules support emotional 2-vs-2 battles, with balanced factions designed for team play. Each faction has its own deck, and players discard ten cards before the game begins. In basic mode the cards are discarded at random; in tournament, or master, mode, players choose their cards and build their decks. With five factions and 110 cards, Theseus: The Dark Orbit offers a wide range of changing experiences.