It’s not often you get hardcore space sims. I’m not talking about space simulators where the pitch and roll are based on Newtonians physics and the damage from lasers are reflected with physics-based rigid-body effects. I’m talking about hardcore simulation when it comes to monitoring and understanding how ship systems work, how to repair engineering issues, and how to troubleshoot IT problems with the on-board computers.

Little Red Dog Games’ Deep Sixed is a space strategy game themed around mapping out an uncharted sector of the galaxy. You’ll be taking on the role of a corporate stooge involuntarily being conscripted into indentured service to a corporation looking to expand into new territory. They outfit you with a nascent AI and a rickety ship that you’ll have to repair with your own two hands… and by repair with your own two hands, I literally mean you’ll be flipping switches, tapping up tubes, replacing computer components and attempting to keep your ship running with whatever you possibly can. This is no walk through the park and you won’t have a big green “Repair” button nestled in front of you on an easy-to-use GUI. If something breaks you’ll have to manually head to that part of the ship and try your darndest to fix it.

A demonstration of the gameplay was put on display in a trailer you can check out below.

In addition to repairing and working as a makeshift cartographer of the MG251 nebula, you’ll also have to run scans, determine if certain alien species are hostile, and even engage in combat along the way.

The hook for this game is that the procedurally generated mysteries scattered throughout Deep Sixed do not have an undo button. Whatever happens, happens. You’ll be stuck with the consequences for better or for worse.

While some people might be interested in the gameplay and concept, I imagine others will get an instant whiff of the header image and know exactly what Little Red Dog Games was going for and “nope” right out of Deep Sixed.

It’s a real shame, too, because the concept was neat but they really are risking alienating a large portion of their potential consumer base with that decision.

I’m sure a lot of people absolutely can’t wait for this phase of attempting to appease people who don’t play games to finally come to an end.

You can learn more about Deep Sixed by visiting the Steam store page. The game is due for release on February 8th.