Deep Flare: Explorer Demo

Space exploration is not yet within our grasp, but it is close enough to imagine it in realistic terms. Efficiency and safety are the main issues at the moment, since it is quite difficult to keep people alive in environments that are inadequate for living organisms. Once these problems are resolved, on the other hand, humankind should finally be able to get familiar with the celestial bodies in our solar system.

Deep Flare: Explorer is an exploration game in which you are given the reigns to a spaceship and the liberty to explore the solar system at will. While the game is still in development at this time, and thus only features a chunk of the planned content, the mechanics are almost all here, and they show promise. In short, your task is to explore, survive, and improve your spaceship to fare better in the long run.

You play the role of a ship pilot by the name of William S. Anderson, who’s on a mission to explore and investigate an anomaly dubbed The Deep Flare. The mission takes you across the entire solar system, which means that you’ll be landing on various moons and planets in search of clues. Granted, only Jupiter’s moon Europa is available right now, but a lot more is planned for the final game.

It goes without saying that space exploration is dangerous, but it’s not all about people getting hurt. The ships themselves can get damaged if they have to deal with harsh conditions on a regular basis, and it’s your job to make sure that everything is in order by making repairs and even crafting upgrades to improve various components. Fuel consumption is critical as well, meaning that each journey from planet to planet requires a bit of planning.

Even the actual planet exploration needs to be done responsibly, because the shuttle has a limited amount of fuel too. Venturing too far can leave you stranded, and it is also possible to wreck the ship by repeatedly crashing into rocks. Lastly, the graphics are two-dimensional and quite simple, but the artwork is nice, even if the backgrounds are a tad too barren at the moment.

When it’s all said and done, Deep Flare: Explorer is still in its infancy, so it can hardly be judged properly at the moment. However, there are some great ideas at play here, and they could be the perfect fuel for a great exploration game.