Apogee

Starside Gamefield

Apogee is a working title for a game I'm writing using the Godot game engine.

The game seeks to incorporate elements of games like Escape Velocity, starflite, elite, GTA 1-2, Ares, and other early shareware 2D games to offer top down space flight and combat with light RPG and story elements.

Most Recent Binary Download: Apogee Beta 008

How To Play

Basic Flight

In the current beta your ship is a Vostok IIm small crew transit vessel. It is equipped with a single laser cannon and a Mark 1 InfiPulse engine. The InfiniPulse engine did away with the need for Hohmann transfers and allowed pilots to propel ships to speeds that make interplanetary transportation feasible through the use of Brachistochrone trajectories. However as the engine constantly adds accelerative force to the ship gforces quickly compound and the pilot can succumb to g-lock and suffer serious injury or death. As a result it is advisable that pilots attempt to use the engine in short bursts.

To conserve fuel pilots should try to find routes to targets that make good use of the gravity wells.

Indicators

Apogee Indicators

The main indicator ring around the ship displays three key pieces of information.

The pointed ring shows direction of inertia.

This is useful for adjusting the ships trajectory to move towards a target.

The winged outer pointer shows the direction of the current target

This allows the player to keep track of the relative position of target objects.

The inner partial arc shows the direction of the applied forces of gravity.

Conserving fuel will require using gravity wells to modify your trajectory and navigate to your target. This indicator lets you keep track of the direction of the strongest gravimetric forces.

Main Controls

Arrow Keys (Left Analog Stick)

Left - Spin counter-clockwise
Right - Spin clockwise

Up - Throttle main engine
Down - Autobrake (Spins the ship in opposite direction of movement to make braking easier)

WASD (Right Analog Stick)

W - RCS Fore
A - RCS Port
S - RCS Aft
D - RCS Starboard

Ancillary Controls

Ancillary Controls are used to govern the less crucial systems of the ship.

Q/E - Cycle through targets
F - Flight Director (aims ship at target)
K - Dismiss Master Alarm
V - Cycle camera settings (freezoom, lock to target, zoom out)
Plus/Minus - Zoom camera in and out
B - Lock camera to ship rotation

Basic Story

world takes place in an alternate future where the outer space race did not end with the Apollo moon landings. Increasing fervor for control of space saw the US and Russia pouring billions of dollars into development of more sophisticated space systems. By 1991 Russia had put a cosmonaut in mars orbit only to lose the vessel on return trajectory failing to complete orbital mechanics for the ride home. Russia attempted to recover the vessel but were unsuccessful until America set aside aggression and assisted. This act turned America and Russia into mostly allies in space. A decade later North america joined England and most of Europe to form a joint space effort. India and japan formed a working relationship and China, Russia and North Korea formed a space power of their own. for 40 years there have been many acts of espionage, sabotage and subversion but as yet no major war has occurred in space. However on Earth there has been considerable conflict that has left most countries very poor. Many cities were unable to support the populations they held and have collapsed financially. Hunger and sickness are rampant. Many seek to leave Earth.

By the beginning of the 21st century most space concerns were under the direction of several multinational corporations and the common people of earth had begun to establish several large multinational governments in response to the growing power of corporate interests.

At the time of the game the three colonies on mars landed by the US, Russia and India have just allied to form the Mars coalition government, declared independence and enacted a constitutional government. No one is sure how the Earth governments will respond but none have recognized the legitimacy of the act as yet.

The moon is fully colonized and one of the richest nations in the solar system. Central Planus, the largest city, is the center of all space commerce housing the largest shipyard in the solar system. It is the jumping off point for anyone looking to leave Earth orbit for the belt or the outer planets.

Reoccurring morals and themes

The pettiness of human endeavour, the emptiness of an acquisitive society, the destructive nature of greed.

The power of cooperation, the necessity of kindness.

Is space ours to own?

Do we deserve a second chance?

Will we repeat past patterns despite being aware of them?

Possible Storylines

Mayday

in the far off colonies of Ceres rumors are circling about a growing number of inexplicable equipment failures. the destruction of a freighter carrying needed food aid to ceres has prompted an accident investigation. Chief SSTB investigator Chris Lacoix is enroute but needs a clandestine ride so as not to taint the investigation by drawing unwanted attention. The player must take Lacoix to a field office on Ceres and assist Lacoix in gathering evidence. It all seems so mundane until the players vessel suffers a failure and suddenly the true nature of the strange occurrences is brought to light.

Cold and Dark

On Mars a man at the local flight office mentions in passing a colony on Enceladus that long ago stopped responding to communications. They are looking for someone to ferry a response team. The player must take the team to Ceres to try and make contact with the colony but when they get there they find that the team has vanished and left behind a spotless facility. The player must investigate but the closer you look the more strange things occur.

The Stuff of Life

On Earth a group of space druids are looking for transit to Mars to start a church on a plot of land purchased there. If the player agrees to the plan they promise payment in kind of a shipment of 500 kilos of water from the supply they are bringing with them. But on the journey it becomes clear this group is not benevolent and attempts to seize control of their vessel. The player learns that the water they are shipping has become dosed with a powerful psychotropic drug that is causing delusions. The player can either jettison the group into space or find a peaceful solution.

Taking Sides

In a grungy bar at the earth space port a woman slips a data card onto your table and walks out the door. The card contains a set of spatial coordinates. If the player flies to them a hidden space craft appears and reveals itself to be a guidestar industries capital vessel. The ship docks with you and a boarding party comes aboard. You are taken to their brig and asked to commit an act of sabotage against a rival for them. The player can choose to complete the mission or try to warn the colony. The outcome will effect the players standing.

No Good Deed

When encountering a derelict vessel player boards to find three people requesting rescue. Once aboard the player learns they are actually refugees attempting to leave Earth. The player must decide whether to turn them in or save them.

Gameplay

The game will have two major areas where the player is in direct control of the protagonist; Starside and planetside.

PlanetSide

The game presents a top down perspective. The player can walk around the city in question, visit shops, tour the sites and talk to NPCs. NPCs will provide information or missions. Typical controls like direction, run, shoot and action.

StarSide

In space players control the navigation and primary systems of the spacecraft they inhabit. The spacecraft utilizes newtonian controls, players can move in each axis of freedom (except up and down).

Game Story

start on small planet fresh out of flight academy

meet an old fella who tells you about a mission. offers you an old clunker if he takes you with him to mission

character will explore the solar system of earth.

ship mechanics

every ship is a frame with several hardpoints for adding equipment, cargo area for storage and crew support determines how many crew.

some vehicles are single stage to orbit small vessels, others are large scale capital vessels that cannot land.

orbiter

crew vehicle

equipment ranges from heavy weapons, sensors, energy collectors,

crew

more crew means ship systems are automated. larger ships require more interaction otherwise ships can blow up.

space mechanics: like ares, ships have momentum and rcs. ships can move sideways backwards etc

Code Structure

I am attempting to layout the game in a manner that allows me to plan most of the mechanics before I get started.

Player

Key presses (ideally the game should be played only with keyboard/gamepad)
- Cardinal Directions
- Action Button

Starside

This is the environment where the player will operate a spacecraft and traverse the solar system.

Space Class

Concerns

Handles planetary layout and positioning
Micrometeorite density
Any phenomenon that effects ships.
- Radiation
- Temperature
- Magnetointerference (will effect some tech)

Methods

For Construction:

CreatePlanet(Location,Mass,Size,Type,Link)

adds a new planet to the scene, will have to account for location, mass, size, type, and link (so that the player will be taken to a PlanetSide map when they land)

GetTemp(Location)

Returns the temperature of the location specified

GetRads(Location)

Returns the Radiation of the location specified.

GetDebris(Location)

Returns an integer stating the likelihood of a collision with debris at this location.

During Gameplay:

SetRads(Location)

Sets the radiation level of a desired location. This method should then scale the radiation of the remaining tiles evenly so theres a falloff.

SetDebris(Location)

Allows a destroyed ship to leave a debris field at site of destruction.

GetPlanets()

Returns a list of all planets in the solar system.

GetShips()

Returns a list of all ships in the solar system.

Celestial Body Class