Star Realms fills a much-needed niche in the deck-building game category, as it is one of the few science fiction games available. Star Realms has become wildly popular due to its single-deck nature and low cost. Players must purchase one deck for two players to duel in space, or two decks for three or four players.

As in other deck-building games, players start with currency and basic units - in this case, starships. Players can then purchase larger ships and starbases, and on later turns, play these powerful ships and attack their opponent. At the end of a turn, ships and other cards are discarded, but starbases remain, and if they are also outposts, can prevent a defending player from losing 'authority' (health) until the starbase is destroyed.

Most of the cards in the set belong to one of four factions: the Trade Federation, The Blobs, The Star Empire, and the Machine Cult. It is often important to keep faction in mind when purchasing cards in the game, as you gain bonuses in combat, trade, or authority with multiple cards in play from the same faction.

Without the setup time of other deck-building games like Dominion, Star Realms can be enjoyed at a quick pace between more involved board games. It has enough strategic depth to also be the main game of a game night, even if you end up playing multiple games over the course of an evening.