ok day 1 update. keeping this separate from day 0 since that one covered the whole backstory.

since then I’ve actually added a bunch of stuff that makes the game feel more like a game.

1. You actually have to investigate now.

I replaced the old “here is a list of information, pick the answer” investigation screen with a file browser. There are three files, EVENTS.LOG, TELEMETRY.DAT, and COMMS.LOG, and you can’t even submit a hypothesis until you’ve opened at least two of them. Small change, way better feel.

1. The crew actually talks now.

COMMS.LOG has real crew dialogue. The commander calls Houston saying “we heard something, like someone knocked on the hull.” None of it says what actually happened, you have to figure it out. Different incidents have completely different conversations, so a solar storm sounds nothing like a thruster malfunction. This is my favorite thing I’ve added so far.

1. You commit to a hypothesis before seeing anything.

This was the most important fix. Before, recommendations just showed up. Now you pick one of five categories based on what you found in the files, and only then does the verdict come back. Get it right and research unlocks. Get it wrong and the root cause stays unresolved, meaning the next mission has the same vulnerability. The game actually has stakes now.

1. There’s a goal.

Added a campaign objectives panel. Comm satellite, weather satellite, lunar flyby, lunar landing, in that order. Each one unlocks the next. You can see your progress the whole time and you know exactly what you’re working toward.

1. Fixed a bug that made the game unlaunchable.

You could spam the same mission type until you ran out of money and then sit there confused. Now each mission type has a one-active cap. The launch button turns into an ACTIVE indicator while something’s already up there.

1. The game has a demo now.

Set up GitHub Pages. There’s an actual playable build online. This required me to learn what an orphan branch is. I did not enjoy that.

---

Future ideas (not adding yet):

I want to completely rethink the core concept. Instead of launching missions and waiting for failures, you’d be the new head of investigation for NASA and cases just come to your desk. The investigations would take 5 to 10 minutes each instead of like 60 seconds. With bad equipment some transmissions would be corrupted or missing, and you’d have to upgrade your gear by closing cases well. Reputation would actually matter because if it drops too low you get fired.

Also want to add supernatural cases. Aliens, the moon spiders from Apollo 18, mysterious ships showing up on radar with no launch record, crew going silent for 11 minutes with no explanation. Stuff that couldn’t happen in real life but fits the vibe.

And a soundtrack eventually.

Signing off on day 1
~ Vihaan

PS. Attached below is the interface