Question 1

Do I need an account to play Space Trader?

Accepted Answer

No. The game runs entirely in your browser and saves locally — you can play a full career without signing in to anything. Signing in with a free En Dash account is optional: it keeps multiple commanders in cloud saves across devices and posts your retirements to the En Dash-wide Hall of Fame, but it is never required just to play.

Question 2

Can I play Space Trader on my phone?

Accepted Answer

Yes. The interface is responsive down to phone width, with keyboard-dismissable dialogs and visible focus states. It plays best in any modern mobile browser; nothing needs to be installed.

Question 3

How do I save my game in Space Trader?

Accepted Answer

The game auto-saves to your browser's local storage every time you dock at a system. Close the tab and come back any time — your commander resumes at the last landing. There is a single save slot; starting a new commander overwrites it.

Question 4

How do wormholes work?

Accepted Answer

Three wormhole pairs link distant systems, drawn as pink rings on the galactic chart. Warping between paired mouths costs no fuel — instead you pay a toll scaled to your ship (25× its fuel-unit cost) and arrive in one day, however far apart the pair lies.

Question 5

How does scoring work — what is the goal?

Accepted Answer

Turn 1,000 credits into 500,000, buy the moon in the Utopia system, and retire. The day counter is your career clock: retiring rich in fewer days is the connoisseur's flex. Net worth, days in space, difficulty, and kills all appear on your retirement record.

Question 6

Is there a time limit?

Accepted Answer

No. Every warp takes exactly one day regardless of distance, and the day count simply measures your career — the game never ends on its own. You lose only by dying without an escape pod.

Question 7

What goods are illegal, and what happens if I'm caught?

Accepted Answer

Firearms and narcotics are contraband under many governments. If police inspect your holds and find them, the goods are confiscated and you are fined; fighting the police brands you a criminal across the galaxy. Where the local government allows it, a well-placed bribe is cheaper than the fine.

Question 8

What does the escape pod do?

Accepted Answer

An escape pod (2,000 credits at the shipyard) turns a fatal battle into a very bad day: you lose your ship and cargo but keep your life and credits, and resume in a battered Flea. Without one, destruction ends the career and clears the save.

Question 9

What changes with difficulty level?

Accepted Answer

Five levels from Beginner to Impossible tune the void itself: encounter frequency, opponent ships and gear, and how easily you escape. Beginner softens incoming damage; Impossible is busier and better-armed but never rigged — a careful trader can survive it, just more slowly and less profitably.

Space Trader — Web Edition