Kerbal Space Program - Review

I find Kerbal Space Program to be an incredibly fun and addictive game. I’ve probably played it too much by now, and I’m not the only one, with the game having a 94% positive review rate on Steam among 40,000 reviews. This game appeals to me for a few reasons; I like building and I like exploration, and these are the two primary components of KSP. First developed by Squad, a Mexico City based tech company, in 2011, this game saw its pubic release at version 0.7.3. After 7 years and the acquisition of Squad by Take Two Interactive in 2017, the game continues to be updated to this day, with massive additions, physics engine improvements, and aesthetic refinements showing through in the current 1.4.3.

In terms of common genre categories, Kerbal Space Program could easily be classified as a space flight simulator. It has a lot of aspects of different genres, such as the sandboxy craft construction system, the funds management and emphasis of optimization with career mode, the incentive of research provided for exploring in science mode, and of course the expanse of an entire solar system and realistic simulation of aerodynamics and orbital mechanics. Even so, “space flight simulator” is a label I still find accurate. From a more formal perspective, the game can be viewed through Caillois’s classification system, consisting of four categories: Agon (competition), Alea (chance), Mimicry (imitation), and llinx (vertigo). Under this system, Kerbal Space Program falls primarily into imitation, since its a simulation, but it can be argued that it has some amount of chance due to the uncertainty of craft functionality, the capability of the player, and the various situations a player may find themself in. Caillois also introduces the notions of paidia (loose) and ludus (rules), to describe a game’s strictness. In terms of goals, Kerbal Space Program does not really require the player to achieve anything to win, which would be described as paidia. In terms of the player attempting to achieve their own goal, they are under the strict and unforgiving rules of the game’s physics engine, which is definitely closer to ludus. Since the physics engine is practically the basis of gameplay, I would classify the game more so as ludus; it is open ended but can definitely be unforgiving.

Kerbal Space Program employs a lot of different concepts that all have very different origins. The largest components of this game are its sandbox-like vessel construction system, fully explorable solar system, and simulator-esque vessel control coupled with realistic physics. The construction system of the game is an embodiment of the sandbox concept, popularized by relatively recent yet unrelated games such as Minecraft. The game universe, being set primarily in space, found most of its public exposure through classics such as Asteroids and Space Invaders, with these games practically initiating the space concept. The realism and simulation aspect of Kerbal Space Program is beyond that of most other games but reminds more forgiving than more realistic dedicated simulators such as Microsoft Flight Simulator X. The concept of simulation in general practically began with the first Simcity, long before KSP. Even with such variant origins, I find that all of these concepts are very well integrated together in KSP.

Kerbal Space Program does not have the most advanced and refined graphics in the field of video games. It has relatively realistic looking textures for vessel parts, celestial bodies, and the deep space field, and at times proves to be surprisingly convincing. Even so, the game itself is low in detail and polygon count for the models, the Kerbals (the literal little green men) have a very cartoonish appearance, and at times, the game displays a fun and silly appearance. This juxtaposition of presentation is something that changes throughout gameplay, and varies given the player and the context of their gameplay. The actual graphics of Kerbal Space Program are not incredibly amazing, even on high graphics settings, most likely because the game is resource intensive, is still being updated, and isn’t focused on graphics. Regardless, I still find the current visual aesthetic of KSP appealing.

The impact of Kerbal Space Program on its community is enormous, having been the source material for countless forum posts, artwork, videos, modifications, guides, articles, and so on. The dedication of the community is very clear when one looks at the size, scope, and quality of, for example, community based modifications. Players have taken it upon themselves to code and put together literal game changing content, such as the fully functional, community developed, Dark Multiplayer mod under the KSP forum account, godarklight. Another good example of the expansiveness of the modding community is the Extrasolar mod, by forum user AndrewDrawsPrettyPictures, which adds in an entire solar system, complete with custom planets and all, a modification one would have believed to be unthinkable at the time of KSP’s release. Another result of the impact on the community is the amount of content one can find around the game on YouTube. Several of the largest YouTubers drew a significant amount of attention to the game. Other YouTubers regularly put out game related content, such as the highly technical and educational channel Scott Manley, whose channel is almost entirely based around the game and its physics. Of course, with the technical side of content comes the more novice attempts and repeated failures of others to reach space, along the incredibly large and detailed creations from other, more experienced players, or the methodically planned out play through videos of yet other players. The breadth of the community and its content around this single game is almost beyond comprehension, and a strong testament to the dedication of this community to Kerbal Space Program.

The narrative within KSP may seem non-existent, but it is arguable that it originates from the players themselves. For example, put into the context of exploring a new, unknown solar system, I attempted to apply my own sequence of goals. It was a linear plan, a sort of plot that I, the player, imposed on the game, and could easily be modeled by a hypothetical “vector with side branches” narrative structure. Each major goal, or “plot point” would contain several sub-goals for its completion, such as setting up a communication network before even attempting to land on the Mun. Of course, some of a player’s goals may serve several other purposes in the future, or rely on the infrastructure brought about by previous missions. This backtracking does not fit into the vector/side branch model, but the more generally applicable model of “the action space of epic wandering and the story world” which in itself is generated by the player, fits most hypothetical paths of action quite well. Regardless of the method used to model any narrative that may exist, it is all generated by the player, an aspect that I love.

I believe that the educational potential of Kerbal Space Program is gigantic. The player can to build their own crafts of any complexity and purpose, explore a solar system full of celestial bodies, pursue their own goals and find unique methods of achieving these goals, operate in a realistic set of physical laws, and potentially manage the funding, strategies, and research behind the space program. Successful gameplay is defined only by the player, but the player’s goal most likely requires strategy and critical thinking of some degree. For example, a relatively simple task may be to build a small rover and drive around the space launch facility. This task would require the player to consider the stability of the vehicle, sufficient electrical storage capacity, communications capabilities, a functional wheel layout, and a sufficient amount of on board power generation; and all this would only be to drive a rover around the space center. The very essence of gameplay is permeated with the requirement of planning, testing, thinking, and strategy; and teaches these concepts over time just via necessity. With all of these aspects of real life applicable skills, Kerbal Space Program has the potential to be a very educational game.

KSP is one of my favorite games, I have sunk far too many hours into doing the most random things in an attempt to explore the game’s solar system. It brings together a lot of concepts in games that I like, it has a large amount of freedom provided that one has the capability to utilize it, and the only rules of the game are the laws of physics. Of course, the game itself doesn’t come with a backstory, but I believe that this just adds more degrees of freedom to the game; the narrative is what one makes it to be. The culture around the game is helpful, friendly, and a great resource to help in gameplay or just for entertainment. For me personally, the modifications that the community has brought to the game have made it endlessly playable. Not only is this game something I will never cease to find enjoyable, it is a game in which I see the potential for in depth, effective education in terms of critical thinking skills and physical laws. This is a great game with a big future, I rate it 9/9.

Score: 9/9