I had a chance to try Supernova at BGG this year, playing with one of the designers and another gamer buddy of mine.

There are some good detailed descriptions of the game on other posts, and the rules are available for download, so I'll limit this to my reactions and opinions of the game.

In my mind this is primarily an area control game, with some elements of combat and economic/technological development. Players compete to cover hex spaces around an exploding supernova. The value of each hex depends on if it is empty space, or if the hex contains a planet or a moon. Expansion is simple, requiring that each player expand only from positions they already control. Conflict/combat occurs when a player wants to expand to an area already controlled by another player. Income is created for players based on moons/planets controlled, and that income can be spent on development or technologies that enhance combat and other game elements.

I liked that the board is made up of ingenious multi-hex shapes that allow for a variety of configurations from play to play.

The other element of the game board that I liked is the orbiting moons. Moons move in pre-determined orbits, while player markers are static. Therefore, to control a moon in each successive turn a player must control the spaces where the moon will be on each turn.

I also enjoyed the pace. For our first time 3-player game (including explanation) I believe the time was about 2 hours. This would increase with more players, but I never felt that I was waiting too long for other players.

For me, the best thing about this game is that the economic, combat and area control elements seemed well balanced. None of the mechanisms were complex, but the combination of the three made for some very interesting decision making.

This is clearly a 'buy' for me, with only two concerns. My first concern is how it plays with more players. My hope is that the pace will still be good and that player balance will still be strong (e.g. no run away leaders).

My second concern will be production. The prototype artwork is solid, and the player hex makers for the prototype were made from poker chips. I really liked this! My understanding however is that Valley Games may be making the player hex markers with cardboard or some type of heavy card stock. Too bad - I think thicker, heavier markers enhance the game, especially since stacking is involved.

My concerns however don't change my overall opinion. I really like this game and will buy it.