Summary
Approaches to game design in space sims can be as varied as the countless planets that inhabit them, and StarWraith Games' space sims likeEvochron Legends SEhave long stood out thanks to this one-man studio’s particular brand of no-nonsense combat and exploration. That said, simulation games are still games, and the lines between realistic and tedious or immersive and boring are razor-sharp. Leaning too far one way or the other can alienate the die-hards on either side of the fence, and striking this balance is a challenge every sim developer faces to a degree.
In an interview with Game Rant, Shawn of StarWraith Games spoke about how he has carved out his niche within this already-niche genre by focusing on a “get to the point” approach to its gameplay systems.Indie space simslikeEvochron Legendsare instead closely focused on the spaceflight simulation aspect, with very little getting in the way of the player being in control of a spaceship at all times—the entire point of these games for many fans.
Walking Around in First Person Isn’t Always Immersive in Space Games
“Space legs,” as the community refers to it, is often a major selling point for space games.Elite Dangerous' Odyssey expansion was highly anticipated for introducing first-person gameplay, while games likeStarfieldandNo Man’s Skyalso attract massive audiences thanks to their hybridfirst-person shooter and space explorationofferings. However, Shawn notes that in his case, it’s really all about flying the ship and being present within the cockpit. Climbing out of the cockpit is the exact opposite of what many space sim fans would want to do.
It’s a subjective thing and I’m sure my approach is far less mainstream and popular than most. For your first example with something like ‘walking’, for me, it’s more ‘immersive’ to fly an aircraft or a spacecraft while sitting in a chair using an array of variable controls that fit pretty well with the ‘flight simulation’ concept compared to something like remote controlling a walking character with four keys and a mouse or a gamepad.
I certainly appreciate and enjoy FPS games myself, I do play a number of them as a gamer. However, in the realm of my projects and what I want to develop and work on, I’m generally only interested in flying spaceships and not much else. As such, I tend to prefer being able to access available gameplay options (especially things like inventories, trade, combat, and contracts) directly from the cockpit.
There’s also the issue of tactile feedback. Space sim fans invest heavily inelaborate HOTAS setupswith rudder pedals and head tracking gear so that it truly feels like they are sitting right there in the cockpit, but all this gear goes out the window when it’s time to switch to first-person controls and the player is essentially “remote controlling a walking character.” By keeping players in the cockpit, nothing comes along to break the illusion.
Immersive Animations and Travel Sequences Can Take Up Too Much Time
Anexpedition to Colonia inElite Dangerouscan take over 24 hours of real-time non-stop jumping from star to star, with much of this time taken up by animations where the player is traveling through hyperspace and not actively playing the game. Although this might be a realistic and immersive depiction of space travel in the far future, it doesn’t make for compelling moment-to-moment gameplay.
For something like lengthy travel or docking in your other example, it’s more just a question of time efficiency. For me, an elaborate travel mechanism or docking sequence can be fun the first few times, but after a while, it tends to become a repetitive delay that I find myself waiting to finish more than something I’m really engaged with or immersed by. However, it could be that I’m just too impatient.
That said, I do still get the occasional comment about docking, planetary descending, or travel being too slow in my ‘get to the point’ game. In any space game, it’s probably always going to be a moving target that depends on each person.
Shawn opts for a more time-efficient approach, keeping players engaged by not interrupting the flow of gameplaywith docking animationsor lengthy hyperspace animations. Travel inEvochronis still a quite involved experience as players must navigate using a three-dimensional grid rather than conveniently clickable instanced “star systems,” but arriving at these destinations takes very little time. For fans of space sims who simply wish to fly a spaceship under reasonably realistic conditions, StarWraith’sEvochronandArvochsims bring the most important features to the table with minimal unnecessary frills.
Evochron Legends SEis available on PC.
MORE:Evochron Developer Discusses How His Space Sims are Inspired by Real World Aircraft
