How playable is it?

[zemzero]

Early access game from 2018 gives me some pause. Is it more of a tech demo, or an actual playable sim?

[LaVidaEsUnCarnaval]

It's fully playable. Maybe people with more experience can join the conversation, but I have just completed the Mercury Academy, and I'm working on Gemini - all systems on the capsules are simulated. As far as I understand, you can run full missions, up to landing on the moon and returning to Earth with Apollo.

[peterbyrnes1]

It's a work in progress, but a very functional one. I was one of the earliest purchasers (I think). Earth to the moon and back w/o save states is doable (I've done it several times on several different builds), but it isn't easy. And sometimes you have to double & triple check the flight computer to ensure that you are pointed in the right direction. But yes, this is entirely functional and entirely screw-up-able. That said, there are a lot of things that still need to be ironed out. But enjoy.

[firefighter30]

I've only commited to playing it early this year, but had heard about it for a while - and it has quickly become my most regular game. There is very little that actually doesn't work, although of course there are still some minor glitches, However, all of the campaings, standalone missions and tutorials are fully functional and playable. I wouldn't it still consider actual early access, the current state is a quite good game.

[zemzero]

Alright, thanks. Bought and installing now, can''t wait.

[ppakur]

Originally posted by LaVidaEsUnCarnaval:

It's fully playable. Maybe people with more experience can join the conversation, but I have just completed the Mercury Academy, and I'm working on Gemini - all systems on the capsules are simulated. As far as I understand, you can run full missions, up to landing on the moon and returning to Earth with Apollo.

Does all systems simulated means, that different errors on your end might result on different ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ during the flight?

[LaVidaEsUnCarnaval]

Well... I don't know if you can break things, but as an example, while following the retro checklist on Gemini, I opened the wrong circuit breaker and the event timer stopped working, and I didn't understand why. So I ended up missing the reentry time and had to repeat the lesson.

When playing missions, you can enable random failures. The systems are complex enough that there are always backups and alternative procedures. On Mercury, there are main batteries, backup batteries and the isolated battery for the pyros, and there are switches to connect each battery to the different electrical buses, should any battery fail. And Mercury is the simplest capsule.

[ChadLare]

In my opinion this game is polished enough that it could have been called 1.0 a while ago. There are a few things still not fully modeled, but you can fly full missions, including Moon landings.

There are some things that are still considered experimental (multiplayer with players acting as mission controllers, Skylab, and a couple of other things). But the developer releases frequent updates. I swear the game improves faster than my flying skills do.

[Clint Black]

buy it

[kalnon]

Originally posted by zemzero:

Alright, thanks. Bought and installing now, can''t wait.

It is definitely worth the time and effort in it's current state though it's not perfect and does still have some flaws. I hope you are enjoying it now.

It may seem overwhelming at first to learn these complex spacecraft but one thing this game is really good at is showing you how to operate them with the manuals, the academy and the interactive checklist system, it makes learning how to fly these things as easy as realistic space flight can be. I strongly recommend starting with the Mercury spacecraft and work your way up to the more complex ones. It is the least complex and easiest to learn.