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Moonbase Alpha update adds competitive and sandbox modes
Now that Curiosity has landed safely on Mars, it's time to thrust the moon back into the spotlight. The free NASA-released PC game, Moonbase Alpha, from developer Virtual Heroes, has been updated with a new team-based multiplayer mode dubbed "Moonbase Madness." In the mode, two teams of three astronauts compete to repair their own moonbases.Stop writing that letter to your congressperson asking for peace between those competitive astronauts – there's a story behind the add-on: "Returning from a research expedition, you witness a meteorite impact that cripples the life support capability of the settlement. With precious minutes ticking away, you and your team must repair and replace equipment in order to restore the oxygen production to the settlement." In addition to the new mode, Moonbase Alpha's recent update includes a sandbox level for your wildest space-based fantasies. So, Mars and the Moon conquered. We're coming for Uranus next! [FIRED. - Ed.]%Gallery-161892%
Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond meets fundraising goals, updates FAQ
Astronaut: Moon, Mars, and Beyond has taken several small steps over the course of its short lifetime, but can it make one giant leap to a full-fledged release product? It's off to a decent start, judging by its Kickstarter fundraising tally. The devs have issued a press release proclaiming the success story and are drafting a FAQ document designed to get more information out there to potential investors (and eventually, players). The latest version of the FAQ is viewable on the official website, and we've included a few highlights for you here: The game is a follow-up to Moonbase Alpha (released in 2010) Project Whitecard and Wisdom Tools are the developers per a "Space Act Agreement" with NASA The target audience will be the 5-24 age and the gaming and science enthusiast markets The game will be available for iOS and Windows PC; other platforms are being considered Unreal Engine 3 is being used to develop the game A beta is planned for December 2012
NASA's free Moonbase Alpha now available
If the Army can release a free video game to drum up some attention for its cause, why not NASA? That seems to be the argument behind Moonbase Alpha, a free game developed along with NASA that's now available on Steam. With up to six players at a time, the game allows you to experience the surface of the moon while trying to "repair and replace equipment in order to restore the oxygen production to the settlement," after a meteorite causes system failure. The official page calls it a "First Person Explorer" title, and shows players fixing equipment connections and even building and controlling a Wall-E style repair robot. The graphics even look good, too -- exactly like that television studio NASA filmed those "moon landings" in. Nice try, NASA, but everybody knows it's nothing but green cheese up there.
Moonbase Alpha takes one small step, goes live
Ready for the federal government's first MMORPG? We're not either, but we're getting a taste of one possible future with today's release of Moonbase Alpha, a multiplayer simulation co-developed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and Virtual Heroes. While the game is not technically an MMO as of yet, it will eventually feature a massively multiplayer version, in much the same way that the forthcoming Torchlight MMO started life as a smaller dungeon-crawler. Moonbase Alpha looks to immerse players in a "futuristic 3D lunar settlement. Their mission is to restore critical systems and oxygen flow after a nearby meteor strike cripples a solar array and life support equipment. Available resources include an interactive command center, a lunar rover, mobile robotic repair units and a fully stocked equipment shed," according to the game's website. The title currently features both single-player and two-, four-, or six-slot multiplayer gameplay. You can download it free of charge at the NASA website or on Steam. Don't forget to check out the gameplay trailer after the cut.
NASA releases new information on their upcoming MMO
Back in November, we talked about an exciting space MMO in the works from NASA, called Astronaut: Moon, Mars, and Beyond. The information they had at the time was pretty extensive, and left us anxious to find out more and try it out. We're getting our wish, as NASA has announced that Moonbase Alpha, a "mini-demo game', will be available on Steam around January of 2010. Moonbase Alpha gives a real look at NASA Constellation program design details that are planned by NASA for 2020. The full game is set farther in the future -- around the year 2035 -- "but the ability to explore our own near-future moon missions are in scope in the much-anticipated STEM-learning game sponsored by NASA Learning Technologies."
