EOS: Earth Orbit Stations

Earth Orbit Stations is a space program simulation where you run a privately owned space station. It focuses on the commercial aspects of space flight, as opposed to governmental or military aspects. In the near future of the year 1996, you have been appointed space director. Your goal is to build space stations, conduct research, market products, and compete against up to three other directors. These can be controlled either by the computer or by other players. There are various missions with distinct objectives: the tasks range from rescue operations, pure research or space colony construction to a search for intelligent extraterrestrial life. In the course of the game, you can build 39 different modules, including command, life, chemical lab, solar collector, and communications. Most of the missions require special units: for a Mars rescue operation, you first need to build a space hospital, for example. It's also possible to launch shuttles and probes from the station. Reaching the goals of each scenario requires money. You can sell new products, request help from commercial sponsors, and even use ads to attract more buyers. To make this game even more challenging, you constantly have to watch your opponents, because if any of them achieves the goal first, you lose.