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Cutting up starships in Hardspace: Shipbreaker sure looks neat

Stripping ships in space

On the list of mundane tasks done in less mundane settings is Hardspace: Shipbreaker, the deconstruction simulation that turns you into an industrial space worker trying not to get crushed by either flying ship parts or debt. Blackbird Interactive have shared a new video all about chopping up these monstrous ships and heck it looks pretty neat.

You're a peon worker for a biggo space corp called Lynx which pays you to go out and cut up starships to scavenge for parts. You've got a grapple tool for pulling off big ship bits but you can also use it to swing yourself around like space Spider-Man. Your laser cutter is the real tool of the trade, used to cut through ship bits in a big, glowing line.  The new video makes navigating around all the bits and bobs in zero-G as you carve them up look a bit like the satisfaction of Viscera Cleanup Detail.

Blackbird say they've put in a lot of work to simulate the physics of objects, giving you the freedom to cut up and navigate the giant ships however suits you. Bigger ships are more dangerous, they say, which looks to come in the form of explosions and electrical reactions.

You've got a lot of debt to work off as part of a dubious contract with Lynx, which we heard about in Blackbird's first developer video. Upgrading your tools will help you take on bigger, more lucrative contracts. Just be mindful of how you pay for it all, right?

Blackbird describe a pretty romantic take on dangerous industrial jobs, calling you a "zero-G surgeon" who's good at workin' with their hands. Wot with the whole massive debt to your shady employer bit, it sounds more like you're a zero-G welder working a thankless job in a poor community, but I'm not expecting deep socio-economic commentary. The simulation of rippin' up ships looks pretty cool and that seems to be what it's all about.

Hardspace: Shipbreaker is entering Early Access on June 16th and the initial plan is to stay there for about a year. You can find it over on Steam.

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