Jump Space

Keepsake Games has set the bar high with its debut game, which boasts seamless space battles and ground combat that can be played cooperatively with up to four players. It's no surprise that the game is on over a million wishlists!

Previously called Jump Ship, Jump Space is a mission-based, co-operative, PvE adventure game for up to four players. Over 500,000 people played the game during Steam Next Fest in June, and it has received over one million wishlist entries on Steam.

In the game, players control the crew of a spaceship that embarks on various missions to fight machines, either alone or as part of a team. The highlight of Jump Space is the seamless transition between ship navigation, space walks and on-foot exploration. For instance, while one player pilots the spaceship and engages in combat with other ships, another crew member can operate a gun turret, while a third can perform tasks such as extinguishing fires, collecting resources, and manufacturing new ammunition inside the ship. Incidentally: You can also play alone and get a robot assistant who could be even smarter.

But it's not just about space battles. All players can leave the spaceship wearing their space suits. They must pass through security locks first, of course. Then they can use grappling hooks to pull themselves onto other ships, space stations or debris in space, where they can fight enemies or collect loot. It is also possible to move around normally in space. Once inside a new object, players can stick their magnetic boots to the floor and continue on foot to fight enemies. All of this happens seamlessly in space, where one player may stay on the ship to provide fire support or fight against enemy spaceships. Once players have reached their objective in the sector and looted everything, they jump to the next sector and continue the mission – it is important that all players are seated when jumping.

The space battles are easy to control and have an aim point to help with targeting. It is also possible to find weapons during the game, such as a railgun, which can be installed directly on the ship. However, this requires sufficient energy, which may necessitate a new reactor or tinkering with the small energy distribution puzzle. This creates a motivating loop of equipment improvement (upgrade, maintain, repair), combined with progress in the space sectors. Yes, the game takes a roguelite approach, rewarding collected items at the end of a run. "Keeping all gear between missions will have players quickly finding the best MK3 weapons and being permanently too powerful. That just makes every mission too easy and the challenge of the game falls apart," Keepsake Games writes. Between missions, players and non-player characters (NPCs) meet at a planetary hub where they can select missions, make adjustments, change their appearance and play football.

However, the interface and visualisation are already excellent, providing clear guidance in potentially chaotic situations. For instance, if a fire breaks out on the spaceship, an icon showing where to find the nearest fire extinguisher automatically appears. Similarly, if you pick up the container that collects Materia, it immediately shows you where to take it. This feature is especially helpful for new players, as it allows them to quickly learn how to play alongside others. A simple ping system also aids coordination.

When it launches on Early Access, the Jump Space game will feature nine mission types. These will range from surviving hordes of robots and scavenging lost cargo to raiding hostile enemy bases. There will be over 50 playable sectors across four unlockable regions of the galaxy. There are also two types of player ship with 26 customisable components. Players will have access to eight weapons and can fight against 16 enemy ships and 11 ground enemies.

Throughout Early Access, Keepsake will release regular content updates based on community feedback. Planned highlights for the next six months include an expanded story with new missions, enemies and sectors, multiple new ships, weapons and components, and new player traits (roadmap). The latter is also necessary because, despite the permanent improvements to the spaceship, the player's progress still feels rather basic. There will also be quality-of-life improvements to traversal, in-game communications and the first-person pilot view. The scanner system, which is used to search space sectors for interesting objects and builds on pilot gameplay, is also set to be enhanced. Further options will be added to the FPS gameplay step by step, as it still feels a bit basic.

"Jump Space has been a true passion project for our team, and we feel incredibly proud to be bringing it to players. We can't wait to see crews explore what we have created when servers open. Early Access is just the beginning, there are huge plans for Jump Space and we’re excited to work with our community to shape the next chapter of this adventure." - Daniel Kaplan, CEO of Keepsake Games

Jump Space is being developed by Keepsake Games. The studio is based in Stockholm, Sweden, and currently has 16 team members. The company was founded in 2021 by five veterans of the Swedish gaming industry. These are Daniel Kaplan (CEO and founding member of Mojang, as well as co-founder of Coffee Stain Publishing), Filip Coulianos (Game Director and founding member of Hazelight), Claes Engdal (Art Director and founding member of Hazelight), Tobias Möllstam (Programmer, founding member of Mojang, and Tech Director at Toca Boca), and Henrik Alfredsson (Lead Designer, Designer on Mirror's Edge, and Product Owner at Toca Boca).

Recently, GamesMarkt spoke to Filip Coulianos, Co-Founder and Game Director, about the cooperative space adventure, its origins, the enthusiasm it has generated, and how it became "a not-so-small indie game".

Jump Space is set to launch on PC and Xbox Series X|S via Early Access at 16:00, with the game priced at €19.50.

Conclusion

Jump Space is another co-op highlight from Sweden. With its seamless transitions between space flight and ground combat, Jump Space sets the bar high, even in its Early Access version, and boasts a solid foundation for the future.

Features

• seamless transition between spaceship flight, zero-gravity activity and boots-on-the-ground combat
• well-designed approach to introducing new players to co-op gameplay
• quite a lot of content in Early Access and an extensive Roadmap