Yup, they have just started a kickstarter and looking for some funding and in funding this project you get to be a part in making a great game, that could spawn into a series like Space Quest and depending on how much you contribute you could get some extra rewards besides the game itself when it is completed sometime in 2013. So go an checkout the kickstarter page and read about the game and get in on it.

Talk about the game here in the forums: http://www.spacesimcentral.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=20&t=2899

See the kickstarter video:

Click here to view the embedded video.

What can you do in Lunar Flight?

Well you start on the surface of the moon and you can pick between a few mission types like transportation of cargo to other landing sites, moon surveying missions, finding lost cargo, timed trial challenges and achievements for accomplishing certain feats of expert piloting. Hey I earned a achievement really fast, I destroyed my first module in a matter of minutes. As you complete missions and challenge trials in the game you will acquire experience that will help you unlock items for purchase to help improve your survivability. There is three different types of maps that you unlock as you raise in rank and each map has a difficulty rating (Easy, Medium, Hard) assessed to it.

I played the game mostly with the keyboard since I don't own a xbox controller and my joystick doesn't have the ability to rotate on the x-axis. I'm sure the controls are a lot more refined with a controller, but the keys did a decent job in controlling the module in flight. There is a bit of a learning curve when you first start to fly the module, but what helps is that Shovsoft has created a bunch of video tutorials to help with quickly learning the game mechanics and controls. After watching a few videos I was lifting off and actually doing well on some missions, on those long missions you might have to refuel to get back, had a few missions where I ran out of fuel.

I have a list of the Pros/Cons of Lunar Flight from my experiences during a few days of playing and watching the tutorials.

Pros

• The lunar module and the moon surfaces are just plain great looking, it is what I expected if I was there for it to look like.
• The background astronaut chatter and music soundtrack really sets the mood of the game.
• The interior switchs and gauges work inside the lunar module.
• No lengthy flight manual, just some nice tutorials to watch to get you going.
• Achievements and leaderboards

Cons

• Once you get behind with money and your in the negative you can reset your character to start over but you reset all progress/rank/achievements. Which isn't a bad thing if your a veteran at playing Lunar Flight, but when you crash and burn a few times or run out of fuel you will get deeper in depth and soon it is hard to get out without a reset.
• I would have liked more camera contol, because I found it to be more difficult to navigate/fly sometimes with the camera views supplied.
• The Lunar Module seemed a little fragile, I like the realism but it bruises easy so watch the landings.
• No demo, I think if more players could experience one mission that they would be enjoyed on how realistic the game is.

Overall I have had a fun time playing Lunar Flight and give it a score of 86, even in my frustrating moments where I was so close to the landing pad and run out of fuel (those are the most frustrating) I just jumped right back in and tried again. I tried to learn from these mistakes and tried harder to conserve fuel by utilizing the thrusters more efficiently and using the low gravity of the moon to my advantage. Shovsoft has done a great job on the whole landscape of the moon and making it feel lonely. There isn't much I would change in Lunar Flight besides adding some more difficulty settings for the flight itself to help people that have difficulty grasping the no gravity flight laws. Do you need to be a hardcore space simulation fan to love Lunar Flight? No. I think it is a nice simulation that adds some nice features to old game concept from years ago. There has been a little talk in the  SSC forums about possible sequels on other planets depending on how Lunar Flight sells. This is the first game from indie developer Shovsoft and I hope more people find and play Lunar Flight because it definitely deserves a look. That is why I mentioned a demo as a 'Con', because I think if it had a demo there would be more people buying it. It's tough to get a feel for this type of game through description or a  video. So give Lunar Flight a try,  I don't think it will let you down and it should give you many hours of enjoyment.

Lunar Flight A modern take on the classic arcade game, Lunar Lander, Lunar Flight extends the experience to a fully, fictionalised Lunar Module Simulator providing a variety of mission types involving Transporting Cargo, Acquiring Data at Survey locations and locating Lost Cargo. Completing missions earns experience points and money to be used to Refuel, Repair and Upgrade the Lunar Module.   In addition to missions there are Time Trial challenges complete with Online Leader boards and a globally…

Here is a video of Lunar Flight in action:

Click here to view the embedded video.

Starlight Inception -  Basically Starlight Inception is a game that takes place during WW4 and you play in the space combat game that will give you some different game modes in that you can play mission, story and strategic based game modes. The developers take a lot of their game influences for Starlight Inception from games like Wing Commander, Freespace 2 and X-Wing. You can checkout Starlight Inception's website here: http://eschatch.com/starlightinception/starlightinception.html

Kickstarter page: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/732317316/starlight-inceptiontm

Click here to view the embedded video.

Squad Wars – I just found out about this MMO game very recently and it is being built by a lot of ex-NetDevil employees, some names you might know is Scott Brown and Ryan Seabury. It's glad too see a team like this be assembled to get this game made. At first glance at there prototype UI you almost think they are taking a page from WoT (World of Tanks) but in space. I am interested to see in what direction the game play will go in this game. Squad Wars does have a website up and you can check it out here: http://squadwars.endgames.net/

Kickstarter page: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1065318294/squad-wars

Click here to view the embedded video.

Skyjacker – I have been following this game for a while now, back when it was called Abyss Lights. I had thought this game might have stalled in development cycle. It's nice to know they are close to finishing up and just need more funding to add the finishing touches to the game. I am really excited about the open world concept and actually playing the game as a ruthless space pirate. Get more info on there website here: http://www.skyjackergame.com/

Kickstarter page: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/digitilus/skyjacker

Click here to view the embedded video.

Kinetic Void – The developers of Kinetic Void have been chatting about their game in the forums and is coming along nicely and the ship building in this game is amazing and probably the best I have seen in any game to date. Then you add in a great sandbox adventure behind it where your actions have a cause and effect in the game. You can read more about the game on their website: http://kineticvoid.badlandstudio.com/

Kickstarter page: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/seanpollman/kinetic-void

Click here to view the embedded video.

Drifter: A space trading game – Just found this game this evening looking through Kickstarters game listsings. And I really like what they are doing with the game with having an open sandbox world and thousands if not millions of stars in the galaxy to explore. You can checkout Drifter's webpage here: http://www.celsiusgs.com/drifter/

Kickstarter page: http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/celsiusgs/drifter-a-space-trading-game

Click here to view the embedded video.

Giving a little heads up to everyone on a beta test that has just started on Galactic Patrol Pirate a new indie title from Black Dragon Studios that you might want to give a look and help the devs flush out any issues and give comments on how to make the game better. You can get more info on how to join the beta here (need to register): http://black-dragon-studios.com/index.php/community-forum or see this post in the forums here: http://www.spacesimcentral.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=69&t=2828.

So what is Galactic Patrol Pirate about…?

Galactic Patrol Pirates is a real time strategy (RTS) computer game utilizing a 2D map of space with graphical sprites representing space ships, moveable weapons, stars and planets. The game puts a single player into the role of a pirate during a galactic civil war. The player survives and improves over time by completing a variety missions.

Galactic Patrol Pirate will be playableon the PC first and will later come out for phones and tablets. So give them a hand and give feedback.

Here is a video of the game in action:

Click here to view the embedded video.

So let's touch on this Unit Designer. How can you not like this tool? It is pretty straight forward to use and there is a lot of customization you can do to create unique and specialized units by adding or changing; hull, armor, ammo feeders, propulsion, weapons, targeting and augmentations. There is different equipment available depending on the unit/hull type you chose to edit. All of these components have different tiers and you slowly unlock these as you play through the campaign missions. The unit editor will also allow you to paint different sections of the weapon or soldier as well to truly make them your own. The map editor is a basic tile editor, that will let you create your own custom maps where you can choose the type of terrain, enemy routes, mount implacements, troop trenches, bunkers, obstructions and other terrain objects. Both tools are easy to understand and grasp and it shouldn't take you long to create your own maps and units.

Here is my thoughts on the PRO's and CON's of Gratuitous Tank Battles in it's present release state (Beta v1.005).

PRO's

•     The user interface of GTB is very responsive and easy to navigate
•     During the battles, you can zoom in on any area of the game map and you can really hear the sounds of battle up close and the increased visuals on the units and special effects are great.
•     The unit designer and map editor is a huge plus to GTB, because it now has unlimited playability with the new units that can be created and unllimited map possibilities.
•     Online play with the user maps is done well. The addition of player map rankings and comments is a nice touch, the filter tool for this list works well to help find maps to try.
•     Saving a recording of your game and replaying the game as the attacker/defender (good stuff there).
•     In my many hours with GTB I didn't experience any crashes or technical issues. I don't know about you, but having my game work on day one is important to me.

CON's – (Please take into account this is a beta I am testing.)

•     Campaign mode could have some more missions, yes there is different difficulty levels to make them challenging but could use a few more. (Update: There should be 12 campaign missions at release.)
•     Would have liked some sort of review screen before the mission that would allow you to see all of the possible unit types with stats that you could be facing. This would help to better plan your attack/defense strategy.
•     In the campaign mode, it would have been nice to see units level up if they survived the mission and then you can use them in upcoming campaign battle.
•     Maybe I didn't unlock everything yet, but I would have liked to see troops with rocket launchers and or mortars.

Overall I am having a nice time with Gratuitous Tank Battles and it definitely gives you a challenge in the later levels or colonel difficulty levels. What I have been doing a lot is playing the campaign missions to unlock unit equipment/weapons/upgrades for the unit designer. You can spend a gaming session just thinking about your unit creations. Because you do have to really look at a lot of factors when it comes to unit building. There is always the speed of the unit, which the weight of your unit plays a big part in this. The armor and firepower you are going to assign. But in the end depending on what you choose there will be a unit price assessed. So all of this plays into each other. Yes. You could make a tank/mech that could make it to the end of the route. But was it worth the cost-per-point ratio? In the end you are in a race with the clock as well. I have had plenty of games where I ran out of resource points and came so close to winning. Making the right choices in units and when to deploy them is the key to victory and Positech Games has a small victory themselves with Gratuitous Tank Battles. If GTB follows GSB model there will be a demo that you should be able to try soon. If you liked GSB, I am sure you will like what you see. GTB will be finishing up closed beta very soon and you will be able to get your hands on this soon enough.

Let us know what you think about Gratuitous Tank Battles either here or in the forums.

Here is a video of GTB in action and a few of my screenshots from the game:

Click here to view the embedded video.

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The references to sectors, ships and characters from previous Wing Commander games is a nice touch indeed and if you have played any of the particularly WC2 and WC3 games you will start to smile when you hear comm chatter and mission briefings referencing these. WCS takes place in the time period inbetween WC2 and WC3. Currently WCS ships with two campaigns the 'Prelude', which sets the stage for the Darkest Dawn and the main campaign 'Darkest Dawn'. You will be playing as 2LT David 'Sandman' Markham who is assigned to the Diamondback Squadron on the TCS Wellington in the Prelude and then you will be assigned to the TCS Hermes in The Darkest Dawn. I would recommend that during the prelude that you really read the stories inbetween each mission because there is a nice story there that will set the stage for the game itself and you will get to know who you are and the wingmen in your squadron. Also during the install itself there is some nice background to the history of this time in the WC universe. I won't dive to much into the story because I want everyone to be surprised.

Something that I did notice and haven't dug to deep into was the modding ability and the multiplayer, I'm sure its in the docs that I didn't have when reviewing the game but I will get the low down on these and update the review at a later date.

What I will talk about is my impressions (pros/cons) on playing both WCS Prelude and Darkest Dawn. And before I start, the version I played was release quality so it is the final version for the most part.

Pros:

• I was very impressed with the FSO engine used for WCS and the visuals were really nice and enhanced the immersion of the game and combat for me.
• The Confed and Kilrathi ship models were AMAZING looking and brought me right back to playing the originals, it was just nice to see them in this engine because they looked great.
• Mission construction and briefings were well designed and constructed well. The mission animations and small videos added to the intensity of the situation and the objectives were easy to understand .
• Voice acting was done wells, especially the mission briefings. The Kilrathi screams and taunts were classic and I don't get tired of them listening to their dying in a scream as they explode.
• Controls and settings. I thought the settings page was designed all and you have quite a few options to enhance your gameplay experience and configure your controls the way you like them.
• Your wingmen are actually pretty good, not like the originals where you did the majority of the work. There will be times where you get mad because they steal your kill.
• Last but not least, the Technicial Database is amazing a lot of effort was put into this so make sure you check it out!

Cons:

• Game would have been complete for me if we were able to move about the ship or converse with our shipmates like in the other WC games. Not a game killer at all just would have liked to have had it for nostalgia sake.
• The collisions with the larger corvettes, destroyers and carriers could have been handled a bit better. Because at times I would see the insides of the ships or get caught up on something. Overall the collision damage was a nice addition and you can take other damage on a collision like to your sensors.
• This might not be a negative, because I haven't played all the way through the game to find out if you do have the ability to choose your own loadout. Right now I don't have that ability and I have played about 15-20missions and all of the prelude.
• For the reward/medal system, it would have been nice to mouse-over the ribbon and see a brief summary of how you acquired it (ie: mission name and stats to acquire medal).

WCS is one of the best fan projects that I have played to date and there is no doubt I will finish this game up soon, possibly before official release Thursday (3/22). The way the story missions flow are nice and the missions make sense  for where you are in the conflict and are not just random filler missions to keep you occupied. I hope Chris Roberts actually finds the time to seek this game out and maybe playing it will be what he needs to spur him into action to revisit the Wing Commander Universe and make some new games. But playing WC Saga was more than just a game for me, it was more like a ressurection of sorts for a game franchise that I thought would never be seen again. The WCS team definitely needs to sit back and enjoy all the great comments that will definitely come their way when people get to sit down and play the final product. Wing Commander Saga: The Darkest Dawn is a great fan project and I highly recommend you play this game, old veterans of the series will love this and new people to Wing Commander will get a taste as to what the original games were like, personally I like this HUD better in WCS than the original WC HUD.

So have fun everyone with Wing Commander Saga, it comes out in less than a week and SSC should also be a mirror for the download as well when it is available. Word to the wise when you play, listen to your wing commander and if they tell you to form up you might want to or they might leave you behind. And do take a look at the Technicial Database there is a whole bunch of great info in there.

Below is the latest trailer and a few of the screenshots I took of my exploits.

Click here to view the embedded video.

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But until that happens you will just have to be satisfied with the release trailer for WC Saga…

Click here to view the embedded video.

Star Prospector doesn't change the way you look at RTS games as a whole, but it does a good job at keeping you in your seat wanting to play more. I know I did because I didn't move until I was 100% completely done with the demo.

So what is the Pros/Cons of Star Prospector? There is definitely more pros than cons in this preview because I couldn't find much wrong with the game and I will probably nitpick to think of something.

PROS:

• Your Rig. This I think is one of the best parts of Star Prospector, because your progress is shown through the growth of your Rig. In the game and you can level your skills (Speed, Armor, Repair, Vision, Salvage, Range) and buy weapons and equipment to enhance your Rig.
• In most RTS games you usually get things unlocked to as you progress through the game or you build the correct things to enable it. In Star Prospector you have to do both, by purchasing building upgrades and leveling your rig to unlock more buildings to buy.  This is where the strategy comes into play in how you want to spend your money.
• I personally liked the art style and the different visuals of all the units.
• I am a completionist when it comes to games and I like having achievements/trophies in games to get because it is another way to reward your dedication and hard work in attaining them. I think I got all the achievements I could for the demo in 5 out of 20. And you will want to earn these because it unlocks things in the game for you.
• 100 missions which are randomly generated whenever you create a profile and selecting difficulty does impact this as well.
• Most reviewers would knock a game down for not having the Multi-Player option, but I had plenty of fun with out it and didn't miss it at all.

CONS:

• Units move a bit slow for me. But I am sure there is faster ones to unlock if you have the full game.
• Currently no ability to setup patrols and guard posts for units in the demo, not sure if this is the actual game.
• In-game music could vary a bit.

I had a fun time playing Star Prospector and would recommend anyone that likes RTS games to give this a try by at least downloading the demo and if you like it purchase the game.

Star Prospector Star Prospector is a single–player strategy game set in a future science fiction universe. Star Prospector mixes elements of real–time strategy and role–playing game genres resulting in a totally new & unique gaming experience. The player takes on the role of a prospector, a one–person mining, salvage, and construction unit, taking on missions on remote planets across the galaxy in search of resources, technology, and adventure.

Cryptstone Games also has a few videos out there on how to play the game and describing the units. Star Prospector does a lot of things right in this indie title and hope Cryptstone Games expands on this and maybe adds the ability to mod the game and a level editor would really complete this game and give it unlimited possibilities.

Below is the trailer for Star Prospector and a few pics from my gameplay. So have fun playing and do let us know what you think here or in the forums.

Click here to view the embedded video.

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For those that visit SpaceSimCentral on a mobile device you are probably using Tapatalk app to view the forums. Well it is fixed now, the latest version for phpBB is installed and a member of the SSC community (Deepseaweed, thanks!) verified that it is functioning properly. So enjoy SSC on your mobile device. Sorry for the long lapse in not getting it working properly, I just never had a way to test it.

Click here to view the embedded video.