CGE's chunky alien-hunting eurogame SETI has officially passed 100,000 copies sold, the publisher confirmed this month, an unusually fat number for a heavy strategy game in a year when most publishers have pivoted toward smaller boxes. If your group has been on the fence about it, now is a good moment to jump in before the next print run squeeze.
Stop juggling Meetup, WhatsApp, and spreadsheets. One platform for your gaming group's events, RSVPs, and member management.
See how it worksDesigned by Tomáš Holek and released at Spiel 2024, SETI: Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence puts 1-4 players in charge of a scientific institution scanning the solar system for signs of life. It is the sort of unapologetically chewy eurogame that asks you to balance probes, signals, missions and a slowly evolving solar system on a board the size of a small dining table. CGE told BoardGameWire that "we knew the game was good, but the reality has definitely exceeded our expectations," and the awards cabinet backs it up.
In 2025 SETI took home Heavy Game of the Year and Best Thematic Game at the Golden Geeks, plus Game of the Year and Best Strategy Game at the Dice Tower Awards. It currently sits at 16th on BoardGameGeek, the highest-placed CGE title there, ahead of Through the Ages and Lost Ruins of Arnak. For a 2-3 hour heavy euro about radio telescopes, that is wild.
Run game nights? Backseat Gamer handles RSVPs, waitlists, date polling, and game voting so you can focus on playing.
Start organising for freeThe 100k milestone matters because the wider industry has been quietly shying away from this kind of release. US tariff turbulence and tighter household budgets have pushed publishers toward shorter, cheaper games. SETI's run suggests there is still a healthy audience for proper meaty Saturday-afternoon eurogames, even when the box is heavy and the price is too. UK retailers have reported regular restocks, so it should be reasonably easy to grab a copy if you want one. Then you just need a free Saturday and three friends with stamina to scan the sky with.
Sources: BoardGameWire | CGE | BoardGameGeek
