I read it elsewhere, but the closest this reminds me of is Traveller's system put through the MORK BORG treatment. It's a stripped down 2d6, intended for Space Westerns.
What MORK BORG did for dungeons & dragons, this is the space trucker BORG for Traveller. It's not grimdark of BORG, but it's proudly (sadly?) the "sad space cowboy" game.
Layout and graphic design are BORG-like as well. If the book feels like patches and scattered bones, that's part of the ethos. You're not getting this for 3 core rulebooks and 10 splats just to figure out how to place a miniature on a grid. You've got enough to get the old hunk of junk flying and keep it flying.
It's a 2d6 game. Roll 2d6, add stat, beat/tie the number 8. Only 3 stats, a bunch of traits to influence action (like "ace pilot" or "the devil's right hand" or "sawbones")... And a host of troubles to complicate matters. Experience is measured by the "blues": the moments in life when trouble catches up to you.
When I mention MORK BORG, the obv comparison for orbital blues is death in space. The characters feel less disposable in orbital blues, even if they are slightly less disposable in death in space vs MORK BORG proper. I feel like the Traveller basis is the more nostalgic path to take. I think the debts system (where you weigh the relative pros and cons of doing a job) is the closest that anyone has gotten to the feeling that i want out of the economics side of the space trucker genre. I really like death in space, but this is much closer to what i think a space game ought to be.
It's a neat game. The title is maybe too good and doesn't really convey what this lofi BORG of 2d6 space is supposed to be, but it does it pretty well, i reckon.
