The goal of the game, which takes just a few minutes to play, is to engineer a spacecraft that can land on Earth, Mars or the asteroid Ceres. Once you've selected a destination, the game offers detailed information about the target. Engineer the lander wisely and the craft sets down safely—choose the wrong combination of cargo, fuel and braking system, and you'll crash.
In true PM do-it-yourself style, Touchdown was created mainly by staff members. The scenarios were written by PM science contributor Michael Belfiore, and the design, animation and programming were executed in-house. We think that Touchdown presents a unique blend of science journalism and simple gaming. It's one of the many ways we're exploring to combine top-notch reporting with digital technology.
In this video, senior editor Joe Pappalardo demonstrates how to build a lander destined for a mission to Mars.
To give Touchdown a try, download the Popular Mechanics iPad app and check out the May issue.