When starting the game you will be faced with a window like this:
Player type simply refers to whether the player in question is a flesh-and-blood human, or a computer AI player. At first the computer-option is grayed out, because the first player must always be human, but after that one is free to choose. When selecting the computer-option almost every other option will be grayed out, since the computer will choose these by itself.
Writing in the player's name is optional, but it might be more fun to play as Anne or Bob, than as Player 1 and 2. The computer players will always just be Player N, so don't bother trying to give them names.
The player may start at 2 different locations of the map, Tangier and Cairo. The former lies in the northwestern part of the map, the latter in the northeastern. Which one you pick doesn't have any major impact on the game (at least not statistically speaking).
You may choose whether to use the original or the new rules. The only difference is that the new rules allow limited sea travel even for a player who is completely broke. Since all players will abide by the same rules, this option will be greyed out after the first player has been added.
Oooh. Shiny colours. Pick your favourite. This selection has no impact on the gameplay whatsoever.
When you're satified with all the selections above, and want to add the player to the game click the "Add player" button. The player will then be added with the options you just picked, and you can start setting the options for the next one. When you click this button the gamepiece that player had chosen will be grayed out, because for the sake of clarity, two players can not have the same colour gamepiece.
When you've added all the players you want to have, just click the "Start game" button. This button can not be clicked until the minimum number of players (2) has been added. When the maximum amount of players (5) has been added everything but this button becomes unclickable.
When the game begins the player(s) will be presented with a window containing the game board to the left, and the statistics and controls to the right.
The map shows where the players are, where the unopened tokens are, and of course it displays the routes which the players can move on. The map starts at a zoom level of 100%, which can be adjusted by moving the slider. If the map becomes too big to fit the window, scrollbars will appear which will allow the players to view the entire area.
In the right hand panel each player has his own status window which holds the player's name, gamepiece and current monetary status. The window will also be updated with the tokens the player has drawn, so that it's easy to get a picture of who has drawn what, and how many tokens there are left of each kind. The statistics window also tells everyone whose turn it is by framing that player's window in red. The players appear in the order the computer has selected by chance, and the topmost player is the one who gets to start. After that the turn proceeds downwards to the next player, and so on. When all players have had their turn, the next round starts from the top.
The event window will display the events that occur during gameplay. Typical events that will be displayed are die rolls and the opening of tokens. Just beneath the event window is a field that will display comments regarding the events. Most of the time it will only affirm the events, but sometimes also display information not directly visible in the event window (e.g. the player getting captured by pirates).
The control buttons are for the most part pretty self-explanatory. When a player wishes to move by land, he simply needs to roll the die. After this the computer will calculate all the places that the roll in question allows the player to move to, and encircle these in red. The player may then click inside the red circle where he wishes to move.
Should a player wish to turn a token by rolling the die (only possible if he is standing on a token, and has not yet moved this turn) he must first make sure that the "Roll for token"-option is enabled, and then roll the die. If the roll produces a 4 or higher, the token will be turned.
If the player lands on a token after making his move he will be given the opportunity to buy the token, provided he has the money. This transaction can be performed by a simple click on the corresponding button.
If the player wants to board a ship or a plane he must click the appropriate button, and then select his destination. In the case of air travel he will immediately be transported to his destination. In the case of sea travel he must then roll the die, and move where the die takes him. In both cases the fare for travel will automatically be deducted from the player's account.
When a player has performed an action and no longer can, or wants to do anything he may hand the turn over to the next player by clicking "End turn"
When a game is finished two buttons will appear on both sides of the zoom slider. These allow the player to quit the game, or starting a new one. By default the "Same players" box is ticked, and this means starting a new game with the same players as in the previous one. The order of the players will be reshuffled, as will the tokens, but otherwise the game will be the same. (This includes the starting positions that the players chose for the game.) Should the players wish to change the setup, the may simply remove the tick, in which case they will be presented with the same setup menu as when starting the program.
The Star of Africa is obviously a game that depends heavily on luck. That does not mean that using a strategy is impossible. Here are a few tips that may increase your chance of winning.