10 Best Mods For Kerbal Space Program

If you already know how to play Kerbal Space Program, why not use these mods to find new and fun ways to send your Kerbals to the Mun?

Kerbal Space Program is a tried-and-true space simulation game in which you have to send dozens of rockets into the harsh reaches of space. These rockets are filled with cute aliens called Kerbals, who are in charge of running them. You are in charge of building the ships, and the game’s strong and realistic physics system will throw all of your terrible creations back to Earth.

If you’re having trouble finding things to do in the base game and aren’t quite ready for Kerbal Space Program 2, mods might be what you need. There is sure to be a mod for you, from ones that make the game easier to play to ones that make it look better.

Kerbal Attachment System

The Kerbal Attachment System is a mod made by Ihsoft. If you can’t guess, it adds a bunch of new ways for ships to connect to each other without docking. This mod not only adds simple connectors, but it also adds tow-bars for vehicles and electric winches.

Overall, the mod might not be very creative (no, your Kerbals won’t be attacked by Zoidberg Mudcrabs like in Skyrim), but it’s hard to argue that it doesn’t add a new level of flexibility to the base game. There’s even a type of attachment that is used only to transfer resources between two ships that aren’t docked, so you can keep a steady flow of resources going even if they’re quite far apart.

EVE: Environmental Visual Enhancements

The EVE mod by WarwickAllison gives a game like Kerbal Space Program, which is focused on mechanics and science, a bit more attention to visual details. It’s a pretty simple mod that adds a few new effects to the planet’s view from space.

The most important new features are clouds and city lights. The Kerbals’ home planet now has lights coming from its continents to show where cities are, and every planet has clouds to show that it has an atmosphere. It’s funny to think that Kerbal Space Program, a game that focuses on realistic simulations of physics, forgot about the things that make up the atmospheres that its ships are breaking through.

Kerbal Inventory System

Ihsoft’s Kerbal Inventory System is a quality-of-life mod that gives ships and Kerbals their own inventory slots. Now, Kerbals have backpacks that can hold a few small things, and ships can be fitted with containers of different sizes, making them the ideal mules.

Why is this so helpful? You can carry a lot of spare parts into space because of the inventory systems. This makes it easy to add to projects that are already in progress. Also, it can be fun to use the limited space in your inventory to build a ship from scratch, since the game’s creator gave you the tools to do so.

Kerbal Planetary Base Systems

Kerbal Planetary Base Systems by Nils2778 is a mod that adds new buildings, like greenhouses and laboratories, that make building your own bases on other planets more fun. The person who made it did a great job making all the new parts look like they were always part of the game. This gives the game a “fake vanilla” feel.

Since getting bases on other planets can be hard because you have to fly the parts of the buildings either one at a time or all at once, this mod is worth it so that your hard work can at least lead to something more interesting. Some of the buildings even do real things. For example, the greenhouse lets your Kerbals farm in their new world.

TweakScale

Gaius Goodspeed was the one who made TweakScale in the beginning, but Lisiast is taking care of it now. The idea behind TweakScale is simple: what if you could change the size of any Kerbal Space Program part?

By changing the size of parts, you can also change how well they work. For example, a bigger fuel tank will hold more fuel, and a bigger engine will give you even more power. It’s also great if some of the parts you want to use together are different sizes, but make sure you take into account how the stats of the item have changed.

KSP Interstellar Extended

KSP Interstellar is a mod by Freethinker79 that aims to add a system for progressing through the decades of space technology, from the 1970s to the 2020s. The end goal of this progression is to get to technology that could be used in real life, but it’s unlikely to ever be possible.

If you want a challenge that will test your Kerbal skills, this progression path is worth trying. New problems with the powerful technology, like how hard it is to move and store antimatter, give Slope Game a twist that will keep you on your toes.

Near Future Propulsion

Near Future Propulsion is a mod by Nertea 01 that is part of the Near Future collection. It just gives your ships new, power-hungry engines to play with. There are 14 engines in the mod, and each has its own size and power. You’ll need to use Xenon gas as well as the new Lithium and Argon gases to fuel these engines.

These engines burn fuel like there’s no tomorrow, so this mod should be used with other items from the Near Future collection to give these beasts the power they need to get off the ground. If you don’t want to do that, just be ready to work hard to get these powerful machines running.

KW Rocketry

The KW Rocketry mod, made by Winston and Kickasskyle, aims to add new, well-balanced parts to Kerbal Space Program that can be used in the Vehicle Assembly Building, a tall building that is mostly used to build rockets.

The mod is worth getting, especially if you don’t like how some of the vanilla parts look. All of the engines sound great, and the parts are all made to look like they belong together in the real world.

Chatterer

The Chatterer mod, which was made by Lannic-ann-od and is now maintained by Athlonic, adds sounds that sound like what you might hear from a spaceship’s communication system. This has no effect on the game, it’s just a fun detail to add to your expeditions.

Even though it’s not completely new, the Chatterer mod goes a long way toward making flying a ship feel more involved. The engine is no longer your only source of sound, giving you the impression that you’re in charge of a rocket that needs a team of people to keep it from blowing up.

The Maritime Pack

The Maritime Pack by Fengist gives you a ton of boats and submarines that you can use on any body of water you want to explore. If space isn’t what you thought it would be, you might want to go back to the sea.

Many of these new watercraft can carry cargo. If you already know how to fly, this gives you another way to play with the experience. There are even pleasure boats that don’t do anything but look nice.