Star Probe

Star Probe is a space game written by John Snider and published by TSR, Inc. in 1975. It consists of a 36-page rulebook with a map and counters. Prepublication play-testing was done by members of the MMSA. Artwork is by Paul Snider.

For spaceprobes capable of flying through interstellar space, see interstellar probe.
Star Probe
Star Probe (1975)
Designer(s)John M. Snider
Publisher(s)TSR, Inc.
Publication date1975 (1975)
Players1–8
Playing time360 minutes
Age range10 +

Gameplay

The object of the game is to discover new worlds with potential for colonization. Each player has a ship which he or she must equip with personnel, weapons, fuel, and rations. These are lost or consumed during the course of play. The star systems on the map have numbers indicating how far above or below the plane of the map they are; hence the ships are free to move in three dimensions. It is telling that later and more popular space games such as Imperium used a two dimensional representation of space.

The generic type (amoeboid, insect, feline, avian, and so on) of inhabitants on a planet can be determined by a roll of percentile dice—a similar system appears in Traveller. The rules can handle battles with hostile inhabitants, as well as spaceship battles between the players.

Reception

Edward C. Cooper reviewed Star Probe in The Space Gamer No. 3.[1] Cooper commented that "Perhaps the greatest advance between Star Probe and other games is the fact the game can be shortened or extended indefinitely according to the players wants without losing the realism and structure of the game."[1]

gollark: You do also need batteries. Which I think generally degrade quite fast.
gollark: It would even be possible to introduce horrible privacy problems. Perhaps you could do eye-tracking.
gollark: You could still do that with a computer-y interface to it, although it would probably not be able to let you see as many options at once as an actual aisle would.
gollark: That seems kind of terrible, you could end up spending more than you could.
gollark: You can use "search" technology.

References
  1. Cooper, Edward C. (1975). "Star Probe Review". The Space Gamer. Metagaming (3): 17–18.
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