How To Play: Aliens

After a few wild rounds of How To Play aliens with friends, I learned it’s all about teamwork, smart tool use, and dodging those sneaky aliens. The rules are simple, but winning needs planning, laughs, and sometimes luck. Grab your gear, trust your crew, and keep an eye on those aliens!

Aliens: Box Cover Front

Ready for an out-of-this-world game night? After wrangling my friends and barely surviving, I’m here with a complete How To Play aliens guide. I’ll share a quick outline of the rules and the top strategies that actually worked (or failed in a funny way). Grab your snacks, brace yourself, and maybe keep a spare pair of pants handy.

Overview

What’s in the box

  • 1 Game Board
  • 6 Marine Miniatures
  • 1 Alien Queen Miniature
  • 12 Alien Miniatures
  • 1 Power Loader Miniature
  • 1 Alien Eggs Miniature
  • 20 Doors Tokens
  • 16 Motion Tracker Cards
  • 20 Endurance Cards
  • 9 Character Cards
  • 84 Tokens
  • 1 Rulebook
  • 1 Dice Set (3 dice)

How To Play Aliens: Rules Summary

Setup

  1. Unfold the game board in the middle of the table. Make sure it’s not upside down like Peter did last game night. Rookie mistake!
  2. Each player picks a character and grabs the matching figure and character card. Of course, the best character is always up for debate (we fought over Ripley for ten minutes).
  3. Shuffle the Alien encounter cards and place them face down within reach.
  4. Divide equipment tokens by type. Place them in easy-to-reach piles. Trust me, you don’t want to knock over your soda grabbing a flamethrower.
  5. Everyone starts at the designated entry point on the board. Decide the first player by who last saw an alien movie. No cheating!

Gameplay

  1. On your turn, take 2 actions. You may move, search for gear, or attack aliens—usually ending in panic.
  2. Draw and resolve an Alien encounter card at the end of your turn. If it’s the Facehugger card, good luck. My friend Dave is still salty about that one.
  3. When moving, follow the board paths. Don’t try to walk through walls, unlike Andy after three sodas.
  4. Aliens move after all players finish their turns. Check the encounter card for direction and speed.
  5. Players can trade items if they are in the same room. I suggest charm or bribery to get the motion tracker.

Winning

  1. Survive and complete your objective. Each player or team has a secret mission. Clue: “Don’t die” is a good starting point.
  2. Work together, but remember, there’s only one escape pod. You decide: friendship or survival?
  3. If you get eliminated, you can still cheer—or heckle—everyone else. We make it a tradition.

Special Rules & Conditions

  1. If two aliens enter your room, you must fight or run. Running is usually smart unless you own a pet xenomorph at home.
  2. Some items need power cells. Remember to pick them up! We ignored this, and let’s just say, flamethrowers without fuel are useless.
  3. If you lose all health, you’re out. No heroic last stands. Sorry, not a movie.
  4. How To Play aliens includes a rule for “vent-crawling”. You can use vents to move quickly but risk a surprise alien encounter. Andy learned this the hard way—he’s still jumpy.

So that’s it! Setup the game, follow the steps, and try not to scream when aliens show up. If I can survive a round (barely), you can too. Good luck, crew!

Best Aliens Strategies

Team Up or Bug Out: Why Teamwork Wins in Aliens

Talk Like Your Life Depends On It

Aliens will eat quiet players first. I learned the hard way. So, always talk with your team. Share intel right away and tell everyone where you saw the slimy fiends.

  1. Share your plans before every move.
  2. Call out danger spots.
  3. Check in each round, even if you think you know it all.
Trust, But Don’t Blame

Don’t start yelling when someone messes up. Keep it positive. Trust lets everyone take bold moves. When you lose, laugh about it over snacks.

  1. Encourage wild ideas.
  2. Assign roles, but let folks switch.
Quick Decisions Save Lives

Don’t chat forever. Decide, act, and move on. The longer you argue, the more the aliens close in. I learned that lesson after losing my best player to overthinking.

  1. Limit talk time each round.
  2. Accept mistakes, keep the game flowing.

That’s how to play aliens and not get eaten—yell (nicely), trust, and move fast!

Resource and Tool Management: Outwit the Aliens!

Keep Track of Gear

Always keep an eye on your inventory. After all, tools vanish fast when the aliens start crawling.

  1. Count your ammo every round.
  2. Never leave medkits behind.
  3. Communicate gear needs with friends.
Share Tools Wisely

Instead of hoarding, share. You boost everyone’s survival rate and make your mom proud.

  1. Swap items based on player needs.
  2. Save rare items for emergencies.
Plan for the Unexpected

Sometimes everything goes wrong—aliens pop out, doors lock, you spill snacks. Prepare for chaos!

  1. Keep backup plans for tool use.
  2. Distribute resources across the team.

Using these methods, you’ll rule How To Play aliens!

Outsmarting the Aliens: Predict Their Every Move

Study Their Patterns

After a few sessions of How To Play aliens, my group noticed a pattern. The aliens rarely go solo. Instead, they love to corner you. Watch how they spread!

  1. Track their last three moves.
  2. Write down where aliens start and end each turn.
  3. Note when new aliens appear on the board.

Plan Your Escape Routes

Since aliens block exits fast, never stand near a corner. Always have a second way out and prep other players to help clear a path.

  1. Choose central spaces over corners.
  2. Change your routes based on alien movement.
  3. Signal your move plan to friends—aliens hate teamwork!

Bait and Switch

Aliens love an easy target. Trick them by baiting with one player, then zip away with another. This works especially when you’re down to your last escape plan.

  1. Move a player close—then pull back.
  2. Have a buddy ready to support if things go wrong.
  3. Use tools to divert aliens when needed.

Ready to Outsmart Some Aliens?

Alright, that’s it! If you’ve made it this far, you know How To Play aliens (and not get eaten in the first five minutes). My friends and I argued, panicked, and at one point I hid behind a couch (it didn’t help). But using these strategies, we lasted a lot longer—and actually won once! Remember, teamwork really is the secret sauce. Manage your gear, watch those creepy alien moves, and never trust Bill when he says, “I’ve got this.” Now go out there and show those space bugs who’s boss. Good luck, and may your dice never betray you!

Want to know what we think of Aliens? Read our detailed review of Aliens here

Jamie in his proper element: With all of his board games
Jamie Hopkins

With years of dice-rolling, card-flipping, and strategic planning under my belt, I've transformed my passion into expertise. I thrive on dissecting the mechanics and social dynamics of board games, sharing insights from countless game nights with friends. I dive deep into gameplay mechanics, while emphasizing the social joys of gaming. While I appreciate themes and visuals, it's the strategy and camaraderie that truly capture my heart.