ABSTRACT
Microsoft Space Simulator is a toy game that simulates historical and technologically extrapolated forms of space exploration, much inuenced by the developers’ line of ight simulators beginning with Bruce Artwick’s Flight Simulator (1979 subLOGIC) and continuing as the Microsoft Flight Simulator series. (It could also be considered a descendant of Space Vikings [1982 subLOGIC] designed by Mitchell Robbins, an obscure early example of the combat-based form of space sim published by the creators of the rst version of Flight Simulator.) e majority of players’ time is typically spent in the “free-ight” mode, exploring the solar system and the planetary systems the developers created for such stars as Achernar and Polaris. It is also possible to use the so ware as an observatory and to play through some prepared scenarios, such as the Apollo 17 moon landing and docking the Space Shuttle with the projected Space Station Freedom.
