SLINGSHOT
SPACE PROGRAM

WHAT IF?

Load a cartoon rocket into a giant slingshot and fling it through 90 years of real space history — from a 1944 test flight to the edge of the universe. Then rewrite it.

FreeBrowserDesktop & MobileNo download
A cartoon rocket blasting out of a giant slingshot above Earth
How it plays

Pull. Fling. Go higher.

Easy to pick up, hard to put down. Every flight earns cash, every upgrade takes you further.

1

Pull the slingshot

Drag down and let go in the green zone for a perfect launch and +30% power.

2

Fly & dodge

Burn fuel, steer through the coin trail, dodge debris and meteors, and hit stage boosts at just the right moment.

3

Upgrade & go higher

Spend your earnings on real rockets, real engines, upgrades and crew. Next stop: orbit, the Moon, Mars…

Features

A whole space program in your browser

27

Real rockets

From the V-2 and Vostok to Saturn V, the Shuttle and today's reusable boosters.

36

Real engines

Real thrust, real fuel types, plus an engine tech tree to climb.

5

Eras · 1944 → 2035

Every era unlocks new rockets, new stories and a new target.

21

Crew members

Astronauts with traits, levels and opinions. They will talk. A lot.

25

Real landmarks

Karman line, ISS, Hubble, the Moon, every planet, Voyager… and the edge of the universe.

3

Space weather events

Solar storms glitch your HUD, meteor showers, and debris clouds in orbit.

👻

Ghost of your best flight

Race a see-through replay of your record run.

📅

Daily challenge

Same route, same rocket, everyone. How far can you get today?

The twist

Finish history. Then rewrite it.

Reach the edge of the universe and the timeline splits. Every replay is a new alternate history, with its own rules, bonuses and headlines.

THE ORBITAL TIMES
21 July 1969 · Baikonur

The Soviets Land First

The N1 holds together and Leonov steps onto the Moon. The Space Race doesn't end — it speeds up.

Our timeline: all four N1 launches failed, Apollo 11 landed first.

THE ORBITAL TIMES
December 1972 · Houston

Apollo Never Stops

Saturn V keeps rolling out. Apollo 18, 19, 20… and Moonbase Armstrong opens in 1980.

Our timeline: Apollo 17 was the last crewed Moon landing.

THE ORBITAL TIMES
4 July 1994 · Ares Vallis, Mars

The Race to Mars

The Moon is old news by 1975. After eight months in space, the first boots touch Martian dust.

Our timeline: no human has walked on Mars — yet.

THE ORBITAL TIMES
1983 · Low Earth Orbit

Junkyard Orbit

A chain of satellite collisions turns low orbit into a junkyard. Every launch is a dodge.

Our timeline: the 2009 Iridium–Kosmos collision made a real debris cloud.

Real history inside

90 years in one slingshot

1944

First rocket in space

A V-2 test flight crosses ~176 km — the first human-made object in space.

1957

Sputnik

A 58 cm metal ball goes "beep". The whole world looks up.

1961

Gagarin

"Poyekhali!" — the first human orbits Earth.

1969

The Moon

Apollo 11 lands. Saturn V is still the loudest thing humans ever built.

1981

Space Shuttle

A spaceplane that flies 135 missions.

1998

ISS

Construction begins on a house in orbit.

2015

Boosters land

A rocket booster flies back and lands itself.

2021

Webb at L2

A golden telescope unfolds 1.5 million km away.

20??

You

Fling a rocket past the edge of the observable universe.

Meet the crew

21 astronauts. Zero chill.

Hire them, level them up, and listen to them argue over the radio.

👷
🇩🇪 Hans Gruber-SchmidtPrecision Engineer
We launched 0.3 seconds late. I will be writing a report.
👨‍🦱
🇭🇷 Petar BarićFuel Whisperer
Polako, polako… the fuel will come to us. Like a waiter on the Riva.
🧑‍🏭
🇧🇦 Edo HadžićHull Specialist
This hull is like my džezva — dented, 40 years old, works perfectly.
😎
🇮🇹 Marco BellissimoRing Charmer
Ciao bella Luna! I have come all this way just for you.
🕺
🇪🇸 Juan "El Cohete" NavarroDaredevil
I don't do "safe distance". I do "romantic distance".
🧐
🇬🇧 Sir Nigel PembrookeStiff Upper Lip
A hull breach? Hardly worth mentioning. Has anyone seen the kettle?
👱‍♂️
🇳🇴 Bjørn HaraldsenShield Viking
I assembled this capsule from an IKEA box. Three screws left over. Probably fine.
🧗
🇸🇮 Janez KranjcMountaineer
Every real Slovenian must climb Triglav once. This is just a taller Triglav.
FAQ

Questions, answered

Is it free?

Yes. Play for free in your browser.

Does it work on mobile?

Yes — portrait or landscape, with touch controls for steering, burning and stage boosts.

Is the history real?

Yes. The rockets, engines, numbers and dates come from real space history. The "What If?" timelines are clearly marked as alternate history, with the real facts shown alongside.

Do I need to install anything?

No. It runs straight in your browser and saves your progress automatically.

Ready for liftoff?

One slingshot. Ninety years of history. Infinite "what ifs".

▶ PLAY FREE