Orbiting the Light

Orbiting the Light is a sci fi game about rediscovering the mistakes of the past, making them again and maybe, just maybe, learning something from it.

Take on the challenge of studying the anomaly, something left behind by the Terrans before they disappeared, and discover what made the most advanced species in known space just disappear without a trace.

Face those who would try to steal your chance at understanding, scrap their vessels for all they are worth and use the materials to upgrade the station so you can get ever closer to unveiling the secrets of the anomaly, but take care, for the secrets of Terra carry great prices that few, if any, understand.

About the Game: Orbiting the Light was made for GMTK Game Jam 2025 by a group of first timers hoping to have a good time and making a game they would want to play.

Your job as *Captain* is to make sure your faction can turn the small research station you start with into the most advanced research station in the sector and unravel the mystery of what the anomaly is and what its connection is to the long disappeared Terrans. To achieve such a feat you will have to use your skills and any bits of Terran materials and tech you can find to go beyond the known limits of physics, maybe eventually turning the station into a ringworld.

The system is far from a peaceful place, pirates, rivals and horrors from beyond the stars prowl and wait for their chance to claim the same terran tech you use, some can be stopped by finding and sabotaging the gates hidden throughout the system, but there is always danger lurking.

Upgrade the station to unlock new options to outfit your station and weaponize the terran tech, send probes into the anomaly to collect new data and mysterious tech for you to unravel its secrets.

Bullet point of features:

Upgrades! 

Ship fights

Time shenanigans

This is an early prototype intended for the GMTK 2025 Game Jam, although submission time was juuust a little too late to enter the Jam. The current version is more a display of our intentions, providing a station, a star system, and things trying to mess with said station. We intend to continue refining this to present a more complete and polished experience, but for now this is a technical demonstration of what we can achieve with 96 hours of work!

Cover Image by NASA James Webb Telescope