Space Life - Out of Earth Experience

Develop a game that simulates conditions in an off-Earth located permanent or temporary colony. The game could be a sandbox that offers the possibility to simulate various facilities that would support a reduced gravity environment far from earth’s atmosphere and magnetosphere. Users could be given power allowances, atmospheric conditions, and in situ resource options (using resources available on site for life support or other needs). The game could include a variety of scenarios including:

• Arranging a GPS-like system on the Moon or Mars to support navigation for the human inhabitants. The simulation could allow the users to explore different solutions such as a constellation of satellites, a network of masts or other Earth based methods at the challenger’s discretion.
• Players could build a habitat that could withstand the Lunar or Martian environment while also taking into consideration that its inhabitants need to have adequate power and supplies, be able to produce food, have locations sleep, live and work.
• Build a Virtual Moon telescope. The simulation could allow the user to conduct a research mission using a telescope on site near their habitat. Explore what instruments make sense for the location of the telescope (and what the user wants to observe). Game players could explore settings such as exposure times or wavelengths to observe. Observations could vary based on the position of the telescope on the Moon or Mars, and the relative position in the sky of the pointed object. After each simulated capture, show an appropriately generated image reflecting the exposure and wavelength settings.

Life on planet Earth is pleasant, but humans have always had the impulse of striving farther and discover all the mysteries of the Universe and that involves going further into the Universe, while questioning pre-existing dogmas. What is the possibility of life on other planets? How will the human body react and be affected by different atmospheres? How will the human mind adapt to such strange conditions? What issues would be presented by an establishment of an off-world colony? What solutions would be possible? And feasible? What are the advantages on colonising other planets?

What better way to discover the answers to these questions than to get closer to the experience itself?

Assume the role of one of the settler astronaut in charge of an off-world colony in one of the solar system’s planets, accomplish the missions assigned to you by NASA, make life sustainable in a completely strange environment, put your mind and body to the test. Inhabit the infinity and beyond.

Background:

Off-world colonization is an ever closer reality with each passing day and everyday more and more people dream in colonizing the space, although in reality, the general public does not have a more realistic vision of how this colonization is going to work. Whereas it is true that the movies, games and the whole entertainment industry while dealing with the space and science-fiction themes, give people, including scientists, ideas and insights on new technologies, it is also true that it can be deceiving sometimes. As a result of that, the general public does not have a clear idea of what space colonization would look like, or for that matter, how the structures and technologies of NASA look like and work currently.

Proposal:

The proposal of this game is to bring an approach to the general public that is closer to what reality currently looks like and introduce some aspects of future space colonization that are generally ignored or left aside on behalf of the entertainment on most games up to now like:

- Sanity level, what affects and which effects it can have on the astronaut;

- Realistic planet based on existent and factual data on planets like composition of atmosphere, soil etc;

- Oxygen management, production and/or harvest;

- Currently existent technology developed by NASA;

- Facilities focused on life sustenance in other planets;

- Multiplayer experience;

This game is aimed to the general public in order to raise awareness of current state and technology focused on space travels and colonisations as well as making NASA’s image and projects more popular, accessible and attractive to the people. Moreover, this project aims at educating the general public on the experience of an astronaut through the entertainment and in the comfort of their households and having them interact with different people and exchange different levels of knowledge on the subject.

Future:

Nonetheless, despite being a game, Beyond Settlers has also a great potential to be a training software for future and current astronauts, providing a realistic, safe and affordable experience of space colonization in a controlled environment, where different issues can be assessed and evaluated in order to plan ahead the solutions or to avoid such issues. The virtual reality technology can provide even further reality to the experience, making it a feasible method to be applied on space training programs.

"Space Life is a survival simulator based on The Sims in which the players will experience how is to be an astronaut living on another planet completely different from Earth. For a better experience, play with Oculus Rift in first person."

"Explore Mars as a NASA astronaut with an amazing immersive experience using virtual reality. Play with friends in this co-op multiplayer game, upgrade your home base with new technologies with help of robots. Complete tasks in the sandbox world, with the use of a gravity gun. Explore the world with by foot, with a jet pack or in a Mars Rover. Nevertheless, your most important goal is to STAY ALIVE! Also don't forget, if you have a problem in your mission; say 'Houston, we have a problem!'."

Adobe Photoshop
Adobe Illustrator
Adobe Fireworks
Adobe Premiere
Adobe After Effects
Sony Vegas
Unreal Engine 4