@P0RT3R Solar flare? An asteroid would be more believable. Heck there’s a 325 meter asteroid that’s supposed to near miss us in 2029 and then come around again in 2036 for a possible impact.
Well, our sun does get antsy from time to time, but as long as the electromagnetic field of the Earth keeps doing it’s thing, solar flares can’t really do much.
I still like the sense of urgency that goes with the eminent total destruction of the Earth, and, while we think we know where most of the huge doomsday rocks in nearby space are, surprise meteor impacts are still a very real threat.
My vote remains with 1 as I think that would make the most interesting story.
1- Because the others ruined the urgency vibes. Also destroy all credibility.
You don’t send ship 1020 years light to recieve any profit 3000 years after,
Giant sharknado? Maybe?
I like #1
Okay, I’ll throw my hat in. Not sure where I can dedicate myself, but it’s a thing.
As for my opinion on answering the ‘why go?’ I’d have to say the first idea is best. It gives a hard timeline that allows the story to have urgency. I can’t think of any other disaster that both a) gives a solid failure date, which, if you don’t launch by, you’ll never get a second chance and b) gives solid inarguable warning.
As for a story in which the Earth survives, I think the act of launching such a thing just becomes too trivial. If there’s something wrong in the ship, it’s just delayed. If there’s something wrong post launch, there’s always the possibility of Earth trying to help. That’s not to mention the ‘help’ that Earth would try to give no matter what. The destruction of the Earth gives a clean slate, with less to worry about from a world building standpoint.
As for who to play as, some bureaucrat, or someone just trying to get on, there’s no reason you can’t have both. A bureaucrat, somewhere in their 40s, so with little real possibility of being allowed onto the ship, with a young child. Now, you’ve got to deal with the bureaucracy of such a thing, getting you child, and by extension the rest of your descendents, onto the ship, and the pains of just being a parent.
Let me officially record my vote for the asteroid. I’ll keep the poll open for a few more hours: until 8am GMT, roughly 24 hours after it began.
@Reaperoa That’s an excellent idea! Currently, the plan is to have two playthroughs. The first, a story mode, where you are 25 when the imminent asteroid attack is revealed to the world at large after being kept secret by the government. A lottery is held for some of the positions on the ship and you have to acquire a ticket. Then you live through one version of life, briefly on Earth, then the spaceship, then the new planet.
The second playthrough is creative mode. This begins with you being in a position of power with your nation. This is where the micro-management comes in. There’s no reason why that couldn’t include you having a young family as well! It would certainly make those major decisions even harder to decide.
In the meantime, with the people currently on board and ready to write for this project, I believe we are in a position to create the story mode and the basic game. What I still need is more writers who can commit to writing their own interpretation of life on a spaceship. Any more volunteers?
It’s a choice game, allow all of them. 
I love the idea of a community game but unfortunately, i think it’s too enormous to succeed. I think the only way such a project would work would be manageable chunks built into the story itself.
Example: The MC is a normal person who has a person appear in front of them out of thin air. The newcomer is badly injured and about to die. They’re given an object and told that it’s very powerful and must be brought back to its rightful owner, but that a group of people are coming to take it away. The MC is given a device that will allow them to escape and travel to the object’s owner. It’s activated and the MC is sent to another dimension. I’m thinking sci fi, not magic.
This allows a naturally segmented game where the MC goes to different locations. It allows alternate histories, future, past and others. The writers can then write short or long scenes. The MC can be going forward to get home, to deliver the object, or just escape the baddies coming after them. The project leader can determine what resources are available. Different scene writers can then write alternate choices depending on the MCs skills, items and resources. They can be given other items and more resources which get shared by all writers for when the MC may jump into their scene.
Just some thoughts.
I like number 1
@Lucid, thanks for your thoughts. You’re right, it is a large undertaking, yet we are doing exactly as you suggested: breaking the game down into more manageable chunks. The story mode will be more rail-roaded with the design of the spaceships and turn of events pre-set. You will have to react to them. This whole story mode would be the equivalent of a standard CoG game. Then there are three more parts. I am going to write the second part: life on Earth from 2090 - 2115. This will involve a lot of big decisions, as well as dealing with many dilemmas along the way with the ultimate goal of saving as many people as possible to prolong the existence of the human race.
Depending on your choices from this part, you will then begin one of many spaceship sequences. This will read like a separate story in its own right and is the part I am inviting anyone to have a go at. You have the freedom to choose your spaceship set up and create your own story as to what happens to the passengers on the ship. The ultimate goal for each of these sub-stories is to reach Kepler 62e in one piece.
Finally, there will be the planet section. This will most likely be the last part written and while the game could be stopped early without this part if necessary (A natural ending could be created: you reach the planet safely, the end!) our aim is to do the game properly with the rebuilding of the human civilisation on this new world. At present, I don’t have a writer for this part.
So, to recap, we have:
-Story mode
-Earth
-Spaceship
-Kepler 62e
It is a large project, but that doesn’t mean it can’t work
Currently the vote stands at:
Asteroid: 7
Solar Flare: 1
Shark-filled tornado: 1
All of them: 1
It’s an exciting project that I’ll be following closely.
I’m glad to hear that @Lucid
Hopefully we can have something to show the community soon.
Well, time is up: The reason for leaving the Earth will stay as the asteroid.
An asteroid is discovered to be on a collision course with Earth in 25 years time. How will the Earth deal with the problem? Can it be diverted? Can it be destroyed (Armageddon style)? Is there anything that can be done to prevent it? If not, what are the options for humanity? Would a deep underground bunker protect humans from the collision? Perhaps, but at what cost? What would the surface of the Earth be like afterwards? Would it ever be habitable again? So looking to space; Where could humans go? How could they get there? Who would go?
So question: are you going to actually be able to stop the asteroid?
Good question.
Yes i will be able to stop the asteroid but i wont do it
If you stop it send ships is totally plot hole ,people don’t spend all resurces in build ships if don’t expect inmediate or in his life profit not 3,000 years or more if they are lucky. If is stoped is not a problem
so will return exit point, except you want a hitler ship plot think interesting but I don’t think this is the case
This sounds like a game worthy of a legend, hope it goes well!
I would be interested in a minor writing role (since I have a lot of spare school time, and I like writing 
), only problem is I have a major presentation to work on about RAF Holton Basic Training.
But yeah, I would be interested in a minor writing role.
I really do want to see something like this succeed, but I have to be honest, the plot and premise don’t appeal to me (that’s not an issue with either, they’re both great - they’re just not my cup of tea). So while I wish you the very best of luck and promise to watch this closely, I don’t think I’d have the enthusiasm or drive to help this come to fruition.
A lot of the options about what to do about an eminent asteroid impact depend on the size of the asteroid and how quickly you’ll be able to do anything about it.
Diversion is a good, but likely expensive tactic that requires enough time to shift the asteroid. I think a lot of the ideas for how to deal with this scenario in development today revolve around how to move the asteroid out of our way. Also, you kind of have to hope you don’t shift it into a direct path towards the Earth if it’s something that might be a near miss. The further ahead you try to predict where something is going to be, the more inaccurate that prediction is, after all (and the more time in which something else might affect its course!).
Destroying an asteroid Armageddon style is probably a bad idea. Just because the thing exploded into smaller pieces doesn’t mean it isn’t still hurtling towards the Earth. Having thousands of small to medium sized pieces of rock raining down on humanity isn’t much better than having one large impact, not unless you find a way to basically disintegrate the thing.
A series of deep underground bunkers is probably a more practical choice in all aspects if diversion isn’t available. You’d still have similar social issues in the bunker as you would on a ship, but with the added bonus of a lower cost and having external resources somewhat accessible. That’s all very useless if whatever strikes the planet does so with enough energy to turn the Earth’s crust into a molten state. That would be the “pin all of our hopes on the stars” type of bad situation.
I still really like the idea of not having any other option but to leave the planet. Seems like it would be easier to write just sticking to that, even if having other options would be more realistic.
What if instead of an astroid, it was a rogue planetoid? That would be pretty impossible to stop, right?