"Highly regarded by many people, this game definitely deserves a place in the Gaming Hall of Fame, if only because it was so original for its time. Originally produced by Eon in the seventies, Cosmic Encounter has since been produced West End and Mayfair as well. Each version is different, but a couple features are universal to all versions."

Here's another Cosmic Encounter link from Boargamegeek.com, for the curious.