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How to Play

Xalo — Orbital Command

The Goal

Launch satellites from the planet's surface and guide them into stable orbits. You have 5 minutes to score as many points as possible. Stable orbits earn continuous points — the more satellites you keep in orbit, the faster your score grows.

Launching Satellites

Desktop: Click and drag from the planet outward. The direction of your drag sets the launch angle, and the length sets the speed. Release to launch.

Mobile: Tap and drag from the planet. Same mechanics — direction and distance control the launch.

A prediction line appears while you drag, showing the satellite's projected trajectory. A green preview means a potentially stable orbit. Red means it will crash or escape.

Orbital Mechanics

Satellites follow real Newtonian gravity: F = GM/r². Gravity pulls them toward the planet while their velocity carries them forward. The balance between these forces determines the orbit shape.

What makes a stable orbit?

• Too slow: The satellite falls back and crashes into the planet
• Too fast: The satellite escapes the planet's gravity entirely
• Just right: The satellite enters a repeating elliptical or circular path — a stable orbit

The game tracks distance variance over time. When a satellite's distance from the planet stays consistent (less than 15% variance), it's marked as stable and starts earning points.

Circularization Burns

Press C when a satellite is selected to perform a circularization burn. This fires the satellite's thruster at the optimal point in its orbit (apoapsis — the farthest point) to make the orbit more circular.

Circular orbits are the most stable and earn the best scores. The burn calculates the exact velocity change needed using the vis-viva equation.

Manual Boost

Hold Space with a satellite selected to apply a continuous thrust in the direction of travel. Useful for fine-tuning orbits or rescuing a satellite that's about to crash.

Satellite Types

Six types appear randomly as you launch. Each has different mass and scoring characteristics:

Type	Mass	Score Multiplier	Notes
Standard	Normal	1.0x	Default satellite
Heavy	High	1.5x	Harder to launch, higher reward
Light	Low	0.8x	Easy to overshoot
Solar	Normal	2.0x	Highest scoring
Relay	Normal	1.2x	Communication satellite
Cow	Normal	1.0x	Delivered by UFOs

Game Modes

Timed Mode (default)

5-minute rounds. Launch as many stable satellites as possible. Your final score goes to the leaderboard.

Ambient Mode

Press A to toggle. No timer, no score — just peaceful orbital mechanics. Good for practicing and relaxing.

Moon

Press M to toggle a moon that orbits the planet. The moon adds a second gravity source, making orbits more complex and unpredictable. Other players can see your moon setting.

Multiplayer

The game connects to a WebSocket server automatically. You'll see other players' satellites in real-time, colored differently from yours. Events appear in the log: launches, crashes, circularization burns.

The connection status shows in the top-right corner (green = online, gray = offline). The game works fully offline — multiplayer is optional.

Leaderboards

Three leaderboard periods: daily, weekly, and monthly. Your highest score in each period is recorded. Press L or check the in-game overlay after a round ends.

Ambient Events

• UFOs: Appear periodically. Click one to scare it away. Sometimes they drop a Cow satellite into orbit.
• Comets: Streak across the sky as visual events.

Keyboard Shortcuts

Key	Action
Space	Manual boost (hold)
C	Circularize orbit
← →	Previous / next satellite
↑ ↓	Previous / next satellite
P	Toggle prediction lines
T	Cycle trail colors
S	Toggle sound effects
O	Toggle ambient music
A	Toggle ambient mode (no timer)
M	Toggle moon
U	Toggle UFO encounters
Q	Show multiplayer status
H or ?	Help overlay