Kerbal Space Program: First Contract Now Available

Kerbal Space Program, the award-winning, indie space agency sim game from Squad, is launching its latest update, Kerbal Space Program: First Contract, as part of its active development cycle. This major release, numbered 0.24, is a substantial advancement in the game’s Career Mode, which challenges players to run a space agency. It is also the first time the game offers a 64-bit version for Windows via STEAM and the KSP STORE. Players will now have the opportunity to take on Contracts, manage Funds, a new in-game currency that allows players to buy rocket and plane parts, and earn Reputation for their efforts. Players will take advantage of three new widgets on screen, Funds, Reputation and Science. Players aren’t charged for funds until their vessel launches and the total science amount is now displayed via the widget. Reputation is raised for completed contracts and bringing Kerbals back in one piece. Failing missions, or gasp, blowing them up lowers Reputation. “First Contract is a massive step forward for Career Mode. Finally, we’re starting to paint a clear picture of our original vision for the complete thing.” creator and lead developer Felipe Falanghe said. “Although there is still a lot to add on future updates, the new Career features should help new players pick up the game in a much more structured manner. One of my favorite aspects, is how it’s added new challenges for even the most veteran players. We’ve found ourselves here, building contraptions we have never had the need to build before, and actually discovering totally new, fun ways to play the game.” http://youtu.be/54fDJKgjUrs Contracts are offered based on a player’s Space Program’s reputation, which starts off at neutral. After an initial set of starter contracts, dynamically generated contracts are created in three levels of ‘prestige’, from Trivial to Exceptional ones. Reputation regulates the amount and level of offers that are available. If a player’s reputation is low, he or she will be offered trivial, low-profile contracts. However, if a player’s space agency is well-reputed, contracts to attempt increasingly ambitious things will be offered.

• Part Test: Perform a test of a part in a specific location, situation and within given flight parameters (when applicable).

• Collect Science: Return or transmit any scientific data from a specific location.

• Rescue Kerbal: Rescue a Kerbal who is stuck in orbit.

• Plant Flag: Plant the Agency's flag on the surface of a given location.

• Explore: Complete several exploration goals for an unreached location.

Contracts will be found in the new Mission Control building, which was previously not an interactive part of the Kerbal Space Center. Players will enter Mission Control and have the option of choosing between available contracts. Players will also find new engines, updated parts and vessel recovery, which means you can reclaim the value of landed parts and any resources they contain, in the update. You can also check out the full changelog on this article from KSP Forums. Happy Launchings! Cheers