itch.io

One of the largest frustrations for anyone trying to learn orbital mechanics is understanding the intricacies of systems with more than two bodies. The predominant learning tool thus far, KSP, has only modeled orbital mechanics in clumps of two bodies, such as the Earth and the Moon, or the Earth and Mars. In reality all bodies are always pulling on the spacecraft and eachother, which makes things like unstable orbits and Lagrange points possible. First Orbit is the first interactive, "gamified" way of understanding real world orbital mechanics I've come across, and it presents it in a very friendly package. The controls take a little bit of getting used to, but it's all in the manual. Playing the game has by far been my best learning tool for more complex orbits and how they work, and has vastly improved my intuition on the topic in a matter of a couple of hours. I recommend the game to anybody who has played KSP or wants to learn more about how orbits work when there are no simplifications.