The 'Rapid Fire' subtitle of Alley Cat Games' Star Fighters says it all. This is a combat game where you are trying to destroy other space ships by rolling the dice needed to activate attacks. Initially there are no 'turns' - it's just 'rapid fire' simultaneous dice rolling with every player rolling and re-rolling their custom six-sided dice as fast as they can, placing dice out on their boards and calling 'Fire!' to activate their attacks. Players' ship boards are two-sided so you can play Star Fighters with identically-specced ships or as an asymmetric game.
However you play, it's very much a speed game because there's obvious advantage in being the player who calls 'Fire!' and puts an end to everyone's round of dice rolling. It's only at this point that players take turns to activate the dice-filled sections on their board. Firing lasers can deliver instant hits but movement, changing your ship's orientation and missile firing are effectively programming actions.
Tactical positioning is crucial because when you first take damage it reduces your shields specifically in the position that the attack was oriented towards...
Designed by Jordan Nichols and Michael Dunsmore, with art by Javier González Cava, Star Fighters is a fast, fun game that rewards quick responses and pattern recognition. From our plays at Board's Eye View we found it was best as a two-player head-to-head duel. There are extra components to facilitate a solitaire option and you can play with up to three players, with the win going to the first player to destroy a ship, or with four as a team game of two vs two, but increasing the player count makes the game more chaotic as the 21-hex grid playing board can seem quite crowded...