This is a test project to explore Rust, Macroquad, and SpacetimeDB to perhaps finally make the space MMO I've always wanted. The goal is to build a game with fun combat, exciting exploration, captivating creation of stations with friends. Where you explore an unfolding universe where life continues even if no players are logged on.

For this initial stab, I'm focusing on real-time asteroids-like movement for combat. However, this may change to point-and-click like WoW/EVE Online as I expect this to be unsustainable in the long term, and, not preferable, especially for keeping track of the MANY NPC entities that I want to be moving throughout the universe all the time.

The code for this initial stab, to help the nascent SpacetimeDB community, is freely available under GPL3: https://github.com/GalaxyCr8r/solarance-beginnings . Contact me for other license options. In the future if hope, if this project does well, to separate the gameplay engine from the Solarance-specific settings and details for other people to make their own Sci-fi Space MMOs!

This is the second milestone and the first I decided to release to the public as a teaser.

• You can mine asteroids
• You can jettison and retrieve cargo crates
• You can jump between sectors (currently via jump gates only, more modes of FTL are planned)
• Asteroids despawn when you take all of their resources, and respawn after some time

See what's coming for the next milestone: https://github.com/GalaxyCr8r/solarance-beginnings/milestone/3

This uses the SpacetimeDB main-cloud, which currently only has a public server on the USA East Coast!

How to Play

Download the game, create an account, and try it out!

When you login, you will be redirected to Auth0 with a weird name:

 dev-k6zdm2f3z3kst6r7.us.auth0.com

It's because I'm cheap and am using a free version of Auth0! I've set up a few integrations to make it easier to log back in.

TODO put details on how-to-play here.

The following milestones are vague goals to help guide the project even if I go on hiatus. Their contents/themes may change at any time. Click here for the latest Milestone status.

1. ✅Milestone 1 🛰️ - Core Movement & Networking
2. ✅Milestone 2 🚀 - Ship Entities & Basic World
3. 📝Milestone 3 🏭 - Economy Core & NPC Factions
4. 🕐Milestone 4 👥 - Factions, Players, and NPC Fleets
5. 🕐Milestone 5 🏗️ - Base-Building
6. 🕐Milestone 6 ⚔️ - Initial PvP & Warfare
7. 🕐Milestone 7 🌌 - Dynamic Universe & Emergent Gameplay
8. 🕐Milestone 8 🌠 - Multi-System Travel & Interstellar Infrastructure
9. 🕐Milestone 9 🪐 - Interstellar Trade, Logistics, and Diplomacy
10. 🕐Milestone 10 🚨 - Interstellar Conflict and Empire-Scale Gameplay
11. 🕐Milestone 11  - ???

Tech Stack

The core of this project is SpacetimeDB, at this time it is only version 1.x, it has a long way to go, especially for sharding and stuff. Because currently the only public server is based on the USA East Coast! Their goal of allowing a small team of developers to make a MMO is almost as crazy as Star Citizen - and I am HERE FOR IT!

Because StDB's preferred server module language is Rust, I decided early on to use the same language for the client. Having NEVER worked in Rust until now, there's been some growing pains beyond learning SpacetimeDB. However, to keep development as lightweight as possible while learning a new language, I decided to go with Macroquad+egui instead of Bevy ECS Game engine.

However, Macroquad+egui is a non-standard client solution, to say the least, and I intend to move over to Bevy or make the jump to Godot. This jump will only happen if two or more of the following happen:

• I cannot get Mq+egui to reliably work on Mac and/or Linux
• I really really want proper 3D
• It's too painful not having a proper entity tree/enforced ECS
• It's too painful not having proper support of a wider community (e.g. Bevy or Godot)

Monetization

If and when this project starts gaining momentum, I will need to monetize it to cover the costs of SpacetimeDB's main cloud. I will avoid "pay-to-win" at all costs, such as buying spaceships/stations/faction status. Monetization will likely take the form of player name effects (ala Discord) or adding player portraits with gated cosmetic options.

AI

This is NOT "vibe-coded", and if I do end up using AI graphics, it'll be for placeholders until I can afford proper art. I have used AI of various types to help with coding or project management, mainly for code-completion and milestone brainstorming. This Itch.io page description was authentically fumbled by me.

Contribution

Everyone is free to review and submit PRs to the GitHub, your contributions will be added to the credits. I do not expect any help because who wants to work on someone else's project for free? So if you like the project and want to help, please find me on the SpacetimeDB discord and we can come to a future profit-share agreement.