From the start, we wanted Project Aurora to feel like real exploration – not just a sci-fi adventure, but a mission where you slowly reconstruct an unknown civilization through evidence.
That’s why the game is heavily inspired by real scientific disciplines, especially archaeology, physics, and biology.
Archaeology as a Core Gameplay Loop
Archaeology shaped our main design philosophy: you never get the full picture at once. Instead, you discover fragments and try to build meaning from them.
In gameplay terms, that means:
you send expeditions into the field
you find observations or physical artifacts
you bring samples back to base
and analyze them in the lab
Everything you uncover is stored in your mission database, organized into research categories.
Hypotheses Instead of a Typical Tech Tree
One of our key systems is the Research Project Panel, built like a branching hypothesis tree.
Instead of unlocking upgrades, you unlock theories by combining discoveries that logically support each other.
For example:
To form a hypothesis about Aurorian Culture, you’ll need evidence like alien tools, figurative sculptures, and anatomical research.
To understand Aurorian Technology, you might need antenna remains, electromagnetic devices, or signs that they used electricity as a form of communication.
This system is designed to reflect how real researchers work: connecting incomplete discoveries into something meaningful.
Alien Diseases You Must Study to Cure
Aurora isn’t only mysterious – it’s dangerous.
We introduced unknown alien illnesses that can’t be treated immediately. When a crew member gets infected, treatment is locked until you research the disease in the lab. Only after completing the analysis can you unlock the cure.
These diseases are stored as “Unknown Disease”, and the player can name them however they want.
What We’re Most Proud Of
We’re especially proud of the Aurorians themselves. We designed them from the ground up as a believable lifeform first – defining their environment and biology – and only then building their culture and technological evolution step by step.
The goal was simple: make an alien civilization that feels logically possible.