Jump Drive - Computer Games

Computer Games

There are two main variants of jump drives commonly portrayed in computer games. The first requires a ship to travel through normal space to a specific jump point. Once at that point, the jump drive is used to move to another jump point. In some examples, such as the Capsule Drive in the computer game Independence War, the ship can travel to any other jump point. Others, such as the Wing Commander series, only allow transit from one jump point to a corresponding exit point (which may or may not allow travel in the opposite direction). The second variant allows a ship to execute a jump from anywhere in normal space and move directly to any other location. This variant is frequently subject to other limitations such as distance from strong gravity wells. Battletech uses this style of jump drive in its jumpships.

With the appearance of computer games, many have used jump drives, including:

• The pioneering Elite series uses "hyperspace" jump drives for travel between "planets" (actually, planetary systems; single-planet in the original game, full systems in the sequels). These incorporate features of both listed types; a hyperspace jump can be initiated almost anywhere in-system so long as it is a certain minimum distance from a docking station, planet, etc., but will eject transported ships at roughly the same outer-system location each time, leaving it vulnerable to pirates lurking nearby. Jumps are not absolutely instantaneous, but only take a few seconds each, which must be considered literal as the series makes few other concessions to the vast distances and travel times of deep space (e.g. for sub-light intrasystem travel, Frontier merely provides a low-multiplier "fast forward" option).
• Homeworld, released on September 28, 1999. Jump drive is here called Hyperspace drive. Later, it was mentioned in its successors: Homeworld Cataclysm and Homeworld 2.
• The Microsoft game "Allegiance" that features jump drive like ripcord technology.
• Darkstar One, a computer game released June 16, 2006 in the UK.
• Battlestar Galactica, which specifically references the term FTL
• Wing Commander series of computer games, movie and novels
• The FreeSpace computer game series, worth noting here that ships can use their own jump drives to perform FTL travel within a star system, but need to use "Jump Nodes" to travel the vast distances between stars
• Battletech series of games and novels
• Heavy Gear series of games
• The Eve Online MMORPG where it allows ships larger than stargates (capital ships) to pass between solar systems, as well as forge temporary gates.
• Starlancer PC and Dreamcast video game, which presents a quick jump to another part of a solar system
• DarkSpace, an online-only PC game.
• The Space-fold Drive of the Macross universe.
• The jump drive in the X series of video games.
• Unreal Tournament 2004, where starships usually use "jumpgates" to travel in space, but a prototype "jumpship", that is capable of creating its own temporary, small jumpgates, is created.
• Halo, The Humans use a version of an FTL drive called a "Slipspace Drive" to enter and exit slipspace. It is never said what the alien alliance, known as the Covenant, use to enter slipspace.
• Mass Effect, series of games and novels use FTL drives powered and navigated by "mass relays".
• Sins of a Solar Empire, where starships go 'out of phase' with the universe reducing the effect of relativistic mass.
• Outer Empires, where a Jump Drive allows players to move in between systems.