Orbital Trader

You could almost call Orbital Trader a casual game for geeks. It's a space trading game--you start with a small starship, move from one planet to another buying and selling stuff. You're limited to a single star system (no FTL here), and planets move over time, and you're restricted to transfer orbits, so closer planets are a lot easier to get to. Each planet has only a single commodity, and it's easy to find destinations where you can make a profit (mouseover your planet, and you'll see what its commodity fetches everywhere else in the system). And that's--really about all there is to it.

Well, yes, you can upgrade your ship over time; and as time goes on, you can invest in upgrades to the planets, building 'structures' which improve their productivity, demand, and so on. There's fairly a deep tech tree, in fact.

Except that--there are no competing AIs, and no victory condition (and not even--an oversight--a high scores list). So what you're doing is amassing the highest profit value you can. And--no saved games, so it's a clear restart with any playing.

It's a fun little game to fire up and play for a half-hour or so and see if you can make more money than you did the last time--and it's not unattractively done, for a little 2D shareware game, albeit the lack of sound is missed.

The Developer Says

Your future wealth revolves around a star.

As planets rotate on their orbits, you must choose the most profitable trajectory. But beware: to win the millions of billions of dollars you deserve you'll have to make sure the planets prosper as well. The definitive space trading game.

In Orbital Trader each of the planets can only build one good type. This is where you and your only interplanetary spaceship in the system come in to make a killing profit.

Getting rich is easier than ever in Orbital Trader. Buying low and selling high is guaranteed - since each planet will only sell the one good it is producing and will pay well for all the others.

Getting rich fast is where the challenge is at. You'll have to navigate with much skill so you can visit as many planets as possible in the shortest amount of time. And if you think that only the expensive goods will be worth trading, think again. Maybe you won't get rich by trading food and medicine, but if you do the planetary populations will grow fast and you'll watch your profits explode.

Don't think trading is all there is to the game. You'll have to upgrade your ship until it becomes a huge transport vessel. You'll race to complete very profitable special transport missions. You'll have to stop a deadly virus from ravaging the system. You'll need to make the best of the special events that occur on planets:

• Shortages - sell enough goods to stop the crisis or take advantage of the high prices?
  
• Overproductions - buy as many goods as you can for a cheap price
  
• War - perhaps you like to be an arms dealer?
  
• Worm holes - travel rapidly through rifts in the space time continuum
  
• And many others

Earn enough money and you'll be able to invest in the planets. The choice of what should be built is yours:

• Factories - these will create and sell goods on the local market (you keep the profits)
  
• Space Elevators/Portals - they cost a fortune but they speed you up so you can trade more
  
• Art galleries - they teache the population about why they should buy art from you
  
• Megacaves/Megatowers - solve the overpopulation problem
  
• Bonds - if you don't feel like taking risks, just lend money to the government
  
• And many others