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Today we're looking at something really cool, the very first walkthrough of Hardspace: Shipbreaker. Shipbreaker is an upcoming physics-based strategy/puzzle/demolition/don't-get-sucked-into-space game heading to early access on PC later this summer and coming to consoles in the future.
Join Blackbird Interactive creative director Trey Smith as he floats us through the trials and tribulations of everyday life as a space scrapper – a blue-collar person of danger who reclaims valuable material from lost and decommissioned vessels.
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In Hardspace: Shipbreaker, you play one such person, desperate to leave earth behind you sign a contract with a salvage corporation, and incur a debt, that you'll pay off through hard labor. In this case, the strategic cutting and dismantling of hulking spacefaring vehicles, all the while keeping an eye on your oxygen and thruster fuel gauges. But that's the least of your concerns.
Shipbreaking seems like a dangerous job. For one, you're in space, which, in the context of workplace safety is just never really ideal. And the tool of the shipbreaking trade is a multi-angle laser cutting device a la Dead Space called the Bonesaw. It effortlessly slices through space-grade alloys which is, again, not an ideal thing to be using anywhere near a delicate closed system of breathable air. Honestly, just red flags all over the place here.
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But with your scanner you can see through the ship's exterior to spot key structural points, vital systems, and valuable materials that make up each ship, giving you some degree of precision and safety. However, ships are also full of things that react very poorly to being nicked with a laser: electrical material, combusting reactors, and pressurized atmosphere. And beyond the irony of lifegiving air killing you in space, Shipbreaker seems like it's full of all kinds of ways things can go horribly wrong. But that's just another day on the job
Be sure to check out the excellent walkthrough at the top of the page for the full rundown. You can check out Hardspace: Shipbreaker on Steam, and if you're headed to PAX East 2020, maybe take it for a spin yourself.
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Brandin Tyrrel is a Senior Editor at IGN. You can find him on Unlocked, or chat over on Twitter at @BrandinTyrrel.