Mastrix - CIS 300 Spring 2005 @ Cornell University

After Space Ship One claimed the Ansari X-Prize, private corporations quickly took over the realm of space travel. There were huge profits to be made in space mining, and with the formation of the Universal Trade Organization (UTO), companies pooled their efforts and reached farther into space than we had ever imagined.

This would have been a golden age of scientific exploration, but as the UTO expanded, the entire world faced a new problem. Material greed brought about fatal consequences. The world's supply of oil was gone. No one even saw it coming. Other resources were also dangerously low. People everywhere were frantic. Huge gas guzzling SUVs, now useless, filled the streets all over the world, as their owners abandoned them and pondered their new lifestyles. "Should I walk to the grocery store? Do I really need groceries? Maybe I'll take the bus. Wait a second, THE BUS USES GAS! AAAAH!" Pandemonium followed. The UTO convened immediately to address this dire emergency.

An abandoned SUV engulfed in flames.

File photo of a Mastrix resident.

Many ideas were proposed to solve the Earth's problem. Radical ideas like alternative energy sources and synthetic fuels were rejected outright. The world needed a practical solution, not fantasy. The world needed genius, and that came from the head of the UTO Defense Force, a division of the UTO dedicated to protecting the interests of the UTO in space. The plan was simple; the UTO would supply the Earth's massive demand for resources by exploiting exploiting neighboring galaxies. If anyone got in the way, the solution was simple. Destroy them.

All the UTO needed was an ace pilot crazy enough to answer the call. That's where you come in. Your job is to leave the safety of the Milky Way and find a defenseless galaxy the Earth can exploit. The UTO has discovered a wormhole behind Jupiter that may be the answer. It's up to you to find out..

The danger, the distance, or the ethics, you might have considered. If you didn't have bills to pay. Bottom line is, the UTO is paying you enough for this job to put you in permanent retirement. If you survive.

Mastrix awaits.

Game Design Initiative at Cornell | CIS 300: Introduction to Computer Game Design