Welcome to the port
What Starport Frontier is about, and the five things you manage.
You run a commercial spaceport on the edge of settled space. Ships come to trade and to use your services. You buy their cargo cheap, sell it dear, charge for landing and fuel, and grow the port so that bigger and more profitable traffic comes your way.
Growth brings pressure: more ships mean congestion, power demand and running costs. The game is about preparing capacity before the traffic arrives and choosing which business to grow next.
The five things you manage
Everything in the game fits one of five questions. Keep an eye on these and you are in control.
| Thing | The question it asks | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Money | Can I afford this, and does it pay back? |
| 2 | Capacity | Pads, storage, power, cargo handling — what is full? |
| 3 | Trade | What do I buy, hold and sell, and at what price? |
| 4 | Reputation | Why do ships choose my port, and how many come? |
| 5 | Opportunities | Which contract or unlock is worth chasing next? |
How the port earns money
- Trade. Every ship arrives with cargo to sell and a list of goods it wants to buy. Buy low from one ship and sell high to another, using the commodity exchange's reference prices as your guide.
- Services. Ships pay a landing fee, and many want to refuel. Later you can repair them too.
Buildings never produce passive income on their own. They give you capacity, services and permissions — what you do with them is what pays.
Where to go next
- Controls — moving the camera and building.
- Your first port — a safe opening that pays for itself.
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