Any good apollo games?

[GeneHunt]

I've been looking for a game that re-enacts the apollo 11 mission in an acurate and complex way - found plenty of flash moon landing games but thats it.

Anyone know if there is one out there?

 

[sojourner]

I wouldn't call it a "game" per se, but the free simulator Orbiter has a large fan base. With it you can simulate a large range of space missions through fan based add-ons from building the ISS, Shuttle launches, tours of the solar system and I think even moon landings. From what I understand it's quite complicated.
http://orbit.medphys.ucl.ac.uk/home.php

The wiki has links to sites with fan add-ons:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbiter_(simulator)

hmmm, may have to check this out again. on my own. seems the fans have added alot of fictional spacecraft as well as historical ones!

 

[GeneHunt]

I wouldn't call it a "game" per se, but the free simulator Orbiter has a large fan base. With it you can simulate a large range of space missions through fan based add-ons from building the ISS, Shuttle launches, tours of the solar system and I think even moon landings. From what I understand it's quite complicated.
http://orbit.medphys.ucl.ac.uk/home.php

The wiki has links to sites with fan add-ons:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbiter_(simulator)

hmmm, may have to check this out again. on my own. seems the fans have added alot of fictional spacecraft as well as historical ones!

Cool, thanks

 

[Canadave]

For a bit of a different kind of simulation, there's also the DOS classic Buzz Aldrin's Race into Space, which lets you manage the space program of the 50s\60s. It's VERY tough, but definitely entertaining, and satisfying when it all works out. You should be able to find versions that have been rewritten to work in Windows if you poke around on Google.

 

[scotpens]

Well, I know he likes throwing thunderbolts, grabbing spaceships with a giant green hand, and seducing beautiful Earth women.

 

[sojourner]

^And apparently "giving the finger"!

 

[Owain Taggart]

For a bit of a different kind of simulation, there's also the DOS classic Buzz Aldrin's Race into Space, which lets you manage the space program of the 50s\60s. It's VERY tough, but definitely entertaining, and satisfying when it all works out. You should be able to find versions that have been rewritten to work in Windows if you poke around on Google.

Yeah, actually it's become open-source, so it's been recoded for modern computers.

http://www.raceintospace.org/

 

[Canadave]

^ Aha, knew I'd seen something like that before. It's a shame that the difficulty curve is so insane in that game, though. I usually can't get past Gemini\Voskhod without becoming terribly plagued by catastrophic failures.

 

[Owain Taggart]

Yeah, it is incredibly hard. Part of it has to do with the fact that it's more or less based on luck, and knowing exactly what you should be doing. Even if you do know what you're doing, it's not 100% success. Would be fun to see a complete modern remake using a modern engine like what Orbiter uses that has more to do with physics than luck.

 

[Canadave]

^ Or at least a better way of calculating the risk. I'm pretty sure BARIS uses a system where any event in a mission can fail based on the safety rating... so if there are 5 events for a 90% safety capsule, it has a 9 in 10 chance to get through each without failing, rather than a 9 in 10 chance to get through all five. That makes it really tough to work out your actual chances.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

I've been looking for a game that re-enacts the apollo 11 mission in an acurate and complex way - found plenty of flash moon landing games but thats it.

Anyone know if there is one out there?

Yes, it's called "Watch From the Earth to the Moon."