Tau Station is a digital expression of love between an expansive and beautifully written science fiction novel and a grippingly immersive, massively multiplayer role playing game.

Platforms:

• 2020 and after: Browser game
• 2022 and after: Everything is open

The chamber you awaken in is shrouded in dark silence, very much like your mind. Soft, blinking lights from hologramatic readouts provide the only illumination as you struggle to grasp some semblance of self. Memories, a sense of identity or even purpose are all absent. Fragments of emotion, of concepts bob to the surface of your mind like wreckage in a dark sea. 

Fear, danger, hope…Catastrophe. 

THE Catastrophe,  a near extinction level event that all but wiped us out so many cycles ago. It burned across the galaxy wiping out 95% of our population. Nobody knows why it happened, who could have caused it, or even if it could happen again…

With your mind, your body begins to wake. Movement brings motivation, purpose. Your memories are not returning. And yet, these disjointed fragments, the lack of anything more substantial, they present a freedom: the freedom to decide what and who you want to be. 

The darkness fades…everything is a possibility.

On Tau Station, you will live, feel, and experiment. The “how” is yours.

A world and stories presented through beautifully written prose.

• Hundreds of space stations spanning many star systems survived ‘The Catastrophe’. Through their time cut off from each other, they evolved into unique cultures and societies. They celebrate the diversity of humanity while still acknowledging the need to work together for a better future—or, sometimes, they don’t.

• Thousands of branching missions explore people’s lives. You will laugh, cry, and recoil in horror. You will also discover the guilt of difficult choices when you believe you need to succeed at all costs.
   
• Who you are leads you to be selected in helping discover what caused the Catastrophe, the near extinction level event that pushed humanity to the brink of oblivion. And, more importantly, to find out whether it will happen again! The choices you make will be remembered. Will you try to save humanity or profit from the chaos?

Deep, immersive RPG systems offering multiple types of progression and customization.

• Humanity has evolved into six distinct “genotypes” to help thrive in different environments. Choose and change between these genetically pre-designed archetypes to best suit your current needs.

• Choose one of many careers to advance in rank and unlock new profit paths.

• Take university courses to unlock hundreds of skills.

• Biometric stats are trainable in specific locations and offer multiple pathways through a mission.

A dynamic, player-driven economy spanning multiple star systems.

• Travel the stars and take advantage of market fluctuations as goods and services are subject to supply and demand across different sectors.

• Trade scavenged or crafted gear on the public market or directly with other travelers.

Adventure alone or with others.

• Explore ancient ruins of station’s cities, take advantage of discreet work offerings, and help locals survive.

• Join a syndicate to take part in campaigns and/or battle other syndicates while you build and expand a base of operations.

• Choose whether you prefer PvP or PvE, or a healthy marriage of both!

• Or enjoy the security offered by a bodyguard.

• But always remember that the only surefire way of being safe will always be cloning. Everybody needs a back-up!

Join a vibrant community.

• Craft your story on your in-game blog for others to enjoy.

• Join our chat or Discord and never feel alone again.

• Participate in one of the many Tau Station projects created by our community.

• Join our Citizen council and be the voice of all citizens while working hand in hand with our crew.

Deeply captivating atmosphere

• Beautifully crafted artwork capturing scenery, avatars, and items.
   

• An alluring musical score that will enhance the shifting moods of the universe; ephemeral, emotional, and never the same.

The Catastrophe

The Universe

Spanning multiple star systems, each with myriad orbital stations, the universe of Tau Station is there for you to discover through travel and missions. Each system, each station, drifted for cycles, alone and separated from each other. This resulted in unique, distinctive societies that evolved based on each facility’s particular history and experience following the Catastrophe.

Some stations were wiped out completely, repopulated by passing outlaws; others were starved and resorted to voluntary cannibalism; yet others found themselves free of their restrictive governments, allowing art and culture to flourish.

The cultural differences that arose were also the result of politics. As you explore, you will encounter different factions and corporations, all vying for control of what remains of humanity.

Be warned: the galaxy is an immense place and your actions and your choices will have consequences which will not always be comfortable. Human nature is full of surprises and the difference between ‘good’ and ‘bad’ can only be determined by your own moral compass…

Missions and stories not only reveal secrets and lore, they offer choices. And with any choice come consequences: rewards, info gathering, but also reputations that will impress some groups and alienate others.

A bad reputation could get you thrown in jail for minor offenses whilst a good one might garner you more favorable prices. Be wary of how you want to be perceived by others!

When civilization fails, while it tries to rebuild, chaos, corruption and strife will often fill the vacuum.

It might, initially, feel like a nightmare, but remember even a nightmare is just another dream.

You’re looking at ours. From day one, every member of the Tau Station team has brought passion, love, and care into this wonderful creation. What we set out to do, and believe we have wholeheartedly succeeded, is to craft a universe that breaks apart the boundaries of different game genres while blissfully marrying the concepts of a number of our favorite mediums.

We adore reading, we love games, we immerse ourselves in science fiction in all its glory. Tau Station is a beautiful bonding of all of these. Our writers have free reign to craft stories in full literary format, designing deep missions that read like novellas, like a genetically modified evolution of the choose-your-own-adventure books we loved growing up with, we’ve designed these tales to allow the reader to influence their intricately woven journey in their own fashion.

And while our writers write, our designers design, our artists create, our developers develop! The team is magical and experienced. Their voice, their talents are what brings the dazzling to Tau Station. They are what bring all these little details that already make Tau Station like no other game.

Once more with feeling: THIS IS OUR DREAM!

This team lives in orbit of Tau Station, they each bring something unique and phenomenal as they help to bring this galaxy to life. Not just because it is a job, not just because they like making games, but because they each value and exude story. Whether they write it, draw it, or program the very sequences of its DNA, each and every one of them brings a different beat to its rhythm.

And while story is one of the steadily beating hearts of Tau Station, alongside it beats another, just as strong and vital: humanity. We wanted to create a universe that allows you to extend your connection to the world. We wanted to create a game that allows you to make friends, fall in love, and maybe have babies together. We wanted to create a universe where it is safe to live and explore being the person you want to be, a reality perhaps somewhat more evolved than our own, through the lessons we have learned from our own.

While we have the budget to bring Tau Station to life, we want this game to provide a fantastic experience. We want it as beautiful as it is rich and complex. We want it as easy to navigate as it is deep. During these past years, we have focused on giving life to our game-play, the mystery, the stories.

Even now, you can already revel in it. Tau Station has been up and running in an open Alpha with the support of a very active and supportive community for some time. You can currently explore five complete systems with more than a hundred missions available to play through.

There is an inherent challenge in balancing work on external client projects necessary to finance Tau Station, and allocating the time and resources needed to develop the game itself. This is a challenge that we have wholeheartedly accepted and take pride in tackling! That said, we recognize that there are also ways to mitigate said challenge and lessen its impact on our velocity.

Therefore, in order to execute our creative vision with less pain, we are turning to you for aid!

This additional budget will allow us to add more people to the crew, folks who will bring invaluable skills and talent to the fold. This will also allow us to implement our designs and even the music that Tau Station deserves. All while the current dream team continues crafting more stories to immerse yourselves in, more game-play to engage you, and more star systems to explore.

Our goal of $100,000 will allow us to make Tau Station as beautiful on the outside as it is on the inside.

But things do not stop here; an object in motion stays in motion! Tau Station has been built as a service, and long after Kickstarter is over, we will keep adding narrative content, systems, and functionalities.

Tau Station is here to grow old with you.

 I also believe that the real question should be about you:

Why should you support a free-to-play game? Why not simply go and play?

Because, like us, you believe in diversity and accessibility in video games. Because, like us, you want more genres, more choice. Because, like us, you want to see more small studios taking risks and gaining visibility. Because, like us, you want to send a grand signal to the industry, standing up and shouting that we want something different.

So then, if that is indeed you, we invite you to join our journey and lend us your support!

Support us because this universe that we are building is for you. It’s for you to live in, it’s for you to love, and we will need you so that it can succeed!

Support us because this dream, this vision and passion, can become yours also.

Tau Station, the home for everyone.

The stories we write and the characters that tell them celebrate diversity and inclusivity. The future is a dangerous place, one where life can be short, short enough that individuality, difference, and the atypical, are to be embraced, never judged. When you are adrift in the blackness of space, all colors are treasured. When you are alone among the stars, love is love and accepted wholeheartedly in whatever form it comes.

This also means that Tau Station is and needs to be accessible to everyone. We follow the W3C WCAG 2 AA accessibility standards to ensure blind gamers or those with limited vision or mobility can also explore the universe. The game works beautifully with a screen reader, a keyboard, and across a spectrum of device types and browsers.

We believe in humanity, in its potential. We believe in the power of inclusivity and we strive to celebrate the beauty of uniqueness.

That’s why Tau Station has been thought out to be at your side through all of your moods, through your days, through the years. And we believe it will always provide you that specific moment that you are looking for at any given time or aforementioned mood!

So… are you like us? Are you a dreamer, a lover of books, games, and science fiction? In these dreams, do you trek through the stars on epic journeys, meeting new cultures and forging your path, always at your own pace while being whoever you want to be? It really sounds like you belong on Tau Station…and Tau Station belongs to you.

In order to garner some deeper understanding of the rewards that we offer, here is a glimpse into the behind the scenes magic that we have woven towards the difference between the human condition of surviving, and that of thriving.

When first we imagined Tau Station, it was very important that we create a believable universe. One that not only adhered to the principles of real science—with some exceptions necessary for gameplay—but one that you could envision yourself existing within.

In this regard, inner space is therefore just as important as outer space. The human body and its myriad needs are as much an important consideration as the orbits of the stars and their respective stations.

Key to an organic existence is food, sleep, and water. These needs are addressed, to different extents, via daily rations and VIP packs.

Rations provide the bare essentials for every citizen to continue being healthy, alive, and most importantly, productive! These are provided by your government on a daily basis and consist of various nutrients and necessary minerals printed into an appetizing looking hard paste!

But for those Citizens that can afford a little extra, the VIP pack offers such amenities that will provide physical comfort, a better immune system, and quicker, more efficient, recovery times. These packs can be bought as well as earned directly through gameplay. Your daily rations keep you alive and contributing to the betterment of our society. But should you have aspirations of more active, more dynamic and thriving lifestyle, the VIP pack is available to set you apart!

Bonds are a currency that was discovered in the Mesh during the Catastrophe. They are protected by various digital latices of encryption and thus can never be stolen from a Citizen, even should they fall. Bonds, being a premium currency, can be used to obtain a number of comfort and quality-of-life features, including the purchase of VIP packs. Bonds can be earned through various means via gameplay or purchased directly from the store.

VIP packs confer VIP status for certain amounts of time, depending on the pack itself. VIP status in turn confers a number of benefits befitting a Citizen whose standing affords them certain luxuries beyond the normal traveller. Benefits include, but are not limited to, priority travel and visa allocation, faster biometric stat regenerations, and special dispensation in terms of rations.