When comparing Kerbal Space Program vs STAR WARS: Rogue Squadron 3D, the Slant community recommends Kerbal Space Program for most people. In the question“What are the best Simulation games on Steam?” Kerbal Space Program is ranked 6th while STAR WARS: Rogue Squadron 3D is ranked 35th. The most important reason people chose Kerbal Space Program is:
The physics engine does a reasonably accurate job of replicating the fundamentals behind both orbital dynamics and rocket design, so by going through the tutorials and experimenting, you're actually learning some real rocket science.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Teaches orbital dynamics & rocket design fundamentals in an accessible manner
The physics engine does a reasonably accurate job of replicating the fundamentals behind both orbital dynamics and rocket design, so by going through the tutorials and experimenting, you're actually learning some real rocket science.
Pro Tons of stuff to do
Build rockets, space planes, space stations, rovers, landers, probes. Explore planets, moons, capture asteroids, set up a communications network, colonize a planet, mine for resources and much more. It can even simulate our solar system.
Pro Huge modding scene
There's a plethora of mods available that can change every single aspect of the game.
Pro Excellent construction sandbox for building and launching rockets
KSP at its core is a rocket building and launching sandbox. When creating a rocket you can place engines, fuel cells, structural elements, and even parachutes, allowing you to build a rocket in any shape and size. The end result can even look like a giant doughnut, which might be difficult to get it into outer space. Even if you fail, the entirety of the process is really enjoyable.
Pro Motivates you to learn
Kerbal Space Program puts into perspective how amazing the advancement of the human race is. It inspires you to learn our history, how we got here, and what we can do proceed.
Pro In constant development
KSP is a shinning example of early release done right. The currently available game is fun to play, and the developers are constantly adding new major additions.
Pro GIve a great sense of taking part in the StarWars universe
From the fantastic voice acting, the cinematic sequences to the licensed music and sound effects, this game gives off a great feeling of taking part in the universe of Star Wars. While there has been many games that have held the license, this has been regarded as one of the better titles for some time, which shows with the care they took in presentation.
Pro Easy to learn and play
Rogue Squadron has very accessible controls that allows for the game to have a bunch of differing missions due to how easy it is to fly the ships. More akin to Starfox over Star Wars flight sim titles such as X-Wing, allows for arcadey controls that is no where near as punishing as other sims. This means the game can be more accessible for any type of player.
Pro Expansive content
Even though this is an older game originally released for the Nintendo 64 back in 98, the amount of content is quite good as there is a plethora of missions available. Escort/rescue missions, dogfights and bombing runs make up some of this content, all of which take place on many different worlds or space set pieces, all of which take place in the cannon universe of Star Wars.
Pro Medal system allows for plenty of replayability
Each missions has a bronze, silver or gold medal that can be earned by completing the stage and certain tasks contained withing under a certain time limit. With gold being the toughest to earn, there is plenty of reason to revisit stages in order to earn the gold medal. This means hours of extra time spent with the game.
Cons
Con Some visuals are poorly done
While the rockets, buildings, and even the Kerbals look pretty good, the environments and particle effects are a bit lacking.
Con Steep learning curve
Kerbal Space Program is not really a pick up and play title. It can take hours just go grasp the basics and the game will keep throwing new concepts at you as you progress into space, even stuff like orbital dynamics. Because of this, it can easily take dozens of hours to truly master this game.
Con In game resolution settings may crash the game
While there is a setting in the game to adjust the resolution the game is played in, changing this setting may make the game crash when a mission is launched. While this setting can be changed in an ini file which will not make the game crash, having a broken option in the game shows a lack of polish.
Con Controller settings need to be tweaked
In order to get a controller working properly with the game, one will need to go into the settings of the game in order to change some options. Basically out of the box controller support is pretty poor, though once tweaked the controller will work fine.
Con No graphical options
The game is basically a straight port of the N64 title, meaning there is zero graphical settings to be found other than resolution (which is broken). So for those looking for a more polished title that would allow them to take advantage of PC centric graphical settings, this may not be the game for you.
Con Mouse and keyboard controls are very poor
This game was originally designed for a controller, which shows when trying to play with a keyboard and mouse. While this port does offer keyboard controls, they work so poorly that it makes the game almost unplayable when using this control scheme.