Earth from space, with cargo ships and satellites streaming out toward the Moon.
English

MoonMan

Move through space. Save humanity.

The Moon mine is collapsing and you are the only one who can stop it. Launch off the rock, then make your way to the surface. You're the last hope for survival!

Play in your browser

The App Store and Google Play versions are coming soon.

  • Free, no ads, no purchases
  • iPhone, Android and the web
  • 14 languages
MoonMan climbing the shaft past each zone in turn, from Earth to Neptune, as his score rises.

The story

One MoonMan left at the bottom

In the future, the Moon is mined for moon diamonds, and civilization depends on them for its energy.

The miners who dig out the moon diamonds are the most respected people on Earth. Every city runs on stones that passed through their hands, and they hold on to every one, whatever the Moon throws at them. On Earth they are called Diamond Hands.

Then a meteor hits. The main shaft starts to collapse, and the crew near the surface get away in time. Far below, one MoonMan is still at work.

If the shaft goes, the Moon loses its hold on its orbit and falls toward Earth. Climb to the surface and save humanity.

  1. The Moon in a pale haze, with a bright flash where the meteor strikes.
    A meteor strikes the Moon.
  2. The mine head on the Moon's surface: a winding tower over the shaft, miners rising on the cable and shuttles lifting off.
    The crew near the surface get away.
  3. The dark shaft rushing past on the way down, with a depth counter reading minus 42,069 meters.
    Far, far down the shaft.
  4. MoonMan swinging his axe on the mine floor, beside a cluster of glowing moon diamonds and an ore cart.
    One MoonMan is still at work.

A short film tells the story before your first run.

Moon diamonds

Why the mine runs so deep

Civilization depends on moon diamonds for its energy, so the shaft was dug far down into the Moon to reach them. You will see them glowing in the rock all the way up.

Moon diamonds in pink, violet, gold, blue and white, set into the grey rock of the mine floor.

How to play

One thumb, anywhere on the screen

Every run starts on the mine floor, and a few seconds later the floor splits. Four moves get you out.

  1. Holding to aim: the arrow swings out from MoonMan on his ledge above Venus.

    Hold to aim

    Press and hold anywhere. An arrow swings back and forth. A steep jump climbs higher. A flat one crosses faster.

  2. Just after letting go: MoonMan leaves the wall over Mars.

    Let go to jump

    Release to launch. Your first jump from the floor can go to either wall. After that you leap from wall to wall.

  3. Turning in the air over Saturn, tipped on his side and venting, with the thumb dial pushed to one side at the bottom of the screen.

    Slide to turn

    In the air, hold and slide your thumb left or right to turn. Turning vents air from your suit, so keep it short.

  4. Landing above Neptune: MoonMan's boots meet the rock square on and kick up dust.

    Land feet first

    Get your boots square to the rock before you touch it. Come in crooked or too fast and your suit tears.

On a computer, hold Space or an arrow key. In the air, ← → or A D turn you.

Let the game walk you through it

In the shaft

What happens on the way up

Flow and PERFECT landings

Land square and gently for a PERFECT and your flow grows. Flow makes every jump faster, and with enough of it your points count double. A scrappy landing loses most of it, and a torn suit loses the lot.

The collapse

Three seconds after you drop your axe, the floor splits. Falling rock chases you up the shaft and gets faster as you climb. When it gets close, a countdown starts and the edges of the screen burn red. If it catches you, the run is over.

Air and pickups

Your air runs down all the time. Grab canisters to top it up. Health packs sit on ledges and patch a tear in your suit. A shield takes the next hit or bad landing for you.

Shaft events

Now and then something happens to the whole shaft. Each event is announced a couple of seconds before it hits.

  • Solar flare. Get to a ledge. The rock gives you shade.
  • Eclipse. Earth blocks the sun. Fly by your helmet lamp and the ring around you.
  • Magnetic storm. Gusts push you across the shaft.
  • Meteor shower. Stay out of the marked lane.
  • Aftershock. Brace. The shaft is about to jolt.
  • MoonMan above Uranus inside a ring of gusts, under a Magnetic storm warning.
    A magnetic storm pushes you toward the far wall.
  • MoonMan in a narrow stretch of shaft beside a marked lane, under a Meteor shower warning.
    In a meteor shower, the marked lane shows where it will fall.
  • MoonMan on a ledge above Jupiter, with a crack running through the rock above him, under an Unstable rock warning.
    Wait too long on a ledge, sooner under an overhang, and the rock above you breaks loose.

The universe

The solar system, behind the shaft

Behind the shaft, the solar system slides past as you climb, with planets drawn from real NASA imagery. Each zone is 100 meters of shaft.

  1. MoonMan on a ledge in the shaft, with Earth below.

    Zone Earth

    Home, and the start of every lap.

  2. MoonMan climbing above the pale cream clouds of Venus.

    Zone Venus

    Wrapped in thick cloud.

  3. MoonMan above the grey, cratered face of Mercury.

    Zone Mercury

    The smallest planet.

  4. MoonMan crossing the shaft over the blazing surface of the Sun.

    Zone The Sun

    Our star, up close.

  5. MoonMan above Mars, with satellites drifting down the shaft.

    Zone Mars

    With its moons Phobos and Deimos.

  6. MoonMan aiming a jump in the asteroid belt, with distant rocks behind the shaft.

    Zone Asteroid belt

    More rock falls through the shaft here.

  7. MoonMan aiming a jump above the banded clouds of Jupiter.

    Zone Jupiter

    With Io, Europa, Ganymede and Callisto.

  8. MoonMan above Saturn, with its rings across the sky.

    Zone Saturn

    With Titan, Enceladus and Rhea.

  9. MoonMan above the pale blue face of Uranus.

    Zone Uranus

    With Titania, Oberon and Miranda.

  10. MoonMan aiming a jump above the deep blue clouds of Neptune.

    Zone Neptune

    With Triton. The surface is next.

Up close

Laps and score

Every meter you climb scores a point. Past Neptune you reach the surface, your air refills and one tear in your suit is patched. Then the next lap starts over Earth, a little harder, and every lap you finish adds a bigger bonus than the last.

Also in the game

More to know

About

Who made MoonMan

MoonMan is made by Michael Duncan McArthur, who runs 4th Culture, a product strategy and design practice in Toronto. He sketched the first version of the game in 2013 while working at BNOTIONS.

He has spent twenty-five years shaping digital products. He also builds his own apps and has made electronic music as Gorf since 2003.

See more of his work at gorfed.net.

Questions

Good to know

Does it cost anything?

No. MoonMan is free. It has no ads and nothing to buy.

Is there a token, coin or NFT?

No. MoonMan has no token, no coin and no NFT, and it never will. There is nothing to buy, ever.

Do I need an account?

No. You pick a callsign from our word list, and your finished runs go on the boards under it. There is no email or password, and you can remove your scores from Settings at any time.

When is it coming to my phone?

You can play it on your phone today, in the browser. The App Store and Google Play versions are coming soon. There is no release date yet.

Which languages can I play in?

English, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Simplified Chinese, Russian, Turkish, Indonesian, Arabic and Hindi. The game starts in your device's language, and you can change it in Settings.

What do I need to play?

A phone, tablet or computer with an up-to-date browser. Play with a thumb on a touch screen, or with a mouse or keyboard.

Is it finished?

Not yet. It is still being worked on, so it changes often and you may find rough edges.