Jillian Werner

In the deep reaches of space, no one can hear your spacecraft explode.  Unless you're playing SimpleRockets: then it makes a very satisfying "bwoosh!" sound.  Developer Andrew Garrison, of SimplePhysics, made this choice intentionally to improve the gameplay experience of his new space exploration sandbox game.  Small details like this, coupled with smooth physics and an extremely accessible interface, make SimpleRockets an easy choice for aeronautical enthusiasts and anyone looking to dabble in rocket-building from the safety of their couch.If you've played Kerbal Space Program or Space Agency, the mechanics of SimpleRockets should be familiar: from construction to crash landing, you are in charge of launching rockets into space.  On most stages, your first goal will be building a rocket from scratch using a variety of amply available parts.  While the only thing each rocket technically needs is a command pod, to actually go anywhere you'll need to strap on fuel tanks, engines, and any extras—like a parachute—needed for your launch goals.  Construction is managed on a very simple blueprint screen, where adding a section is as easy as dragging it from the parts list onto your in-progress ship.  Once your rocket is pieced together, you'll need to assign stages to its active parts, known as gizmos.  Gizmos include any part that can be activated during flight, such as engines, landing gear, or detachers.  On the same blueprint screen, you can drag gizmos between stages to alter their order of operation.  During a simple flight, for instance, you might place the starting engines in stage one, the detachment of those engines in stage two, and the secondary, orbiting engines in stage three.  Although stages are often reordered randomly if changes are made to your rocket, the staging system in SimpleRockets is otherwise exceptionally player-friendly and makes planning out a multi-stage flight ridiculously easy.