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Take off
You start at the station. To fly, you just click where you want to go and the ship heads there.
Take off and see how far you get.
Zephnex is a space game for many players at once. You fly your own ship, fight drones and pirates, gather resources, sell them and use the money to upgrade your ship.
Free to play, no sign-up, right in your browser.Free to play, right in your browser.
How the game works
You basically do the same five things again and again, just with a better ship each time.
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Fight
On the way you run into drones, raiders and corsairs. You pick an enemy and shoot. In the later sectors the enemies are a lot stronger.
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Gather
Enemies you defeat leave loot behind that you can pick up. There are also fields of stone, crystal, ore and iridium. All of it goes into your cargo hold.
Cargo4 of 5
Sell
You sell your cargo at the station. The market reacts to supply and demand: if something is scarce, you get more for it. If many players deliver the same thing, the price drops.
Money5 of 5
Upgrade
With the money you buy better lasers, shields and engines, or a bigger ship. After that you can go to places that were too dangerous before.
The four ships
You start out in the Splinter. Which ship you buy after that depends on whether you prefer fighting or trading.
Splinter
Everyone starts with this ship. It is small and agile and a good way to get to know the game.
- Speed
- 4 of 5
- Cargo hold
- 1 of 5
- Hull
- 2 of 5
- Laser slots
- 1
Vanguard
The fastest of the four ships, with more equipment slots than the Splinter.
- Speed
- 5 of 5
- Cargo hold
- 2 of 5
- Hull
- 3 of 5
- Laser slots
- 1
Sovereign
A freighter. Its cargo hold takes more than seven times as much as the Splinter, but it is the slowest ship.
- Speed
- 2 of 5
- Cargo hold
- 5 of 5
- Hull
- 4 of 5
- Laser slots
- 1
Lancer
The combat ship. It has room for three lasers, three shields and two drones, but only a small cargo hold.
- Speed
- 3 of 5
- Cargo hold
- 1 of 5
- Hull
- 5 of 5
- Laser slots
- 3
This ship is now flying along in the background of the page.
The sectors
The game is made up of several sectors connected by portals. The later ones have more valuable resources, but also more dangerous enemies.
Sector 01safe
Home
Every pilot starts here. You buy and sell at the central station and gather your first resources in the stone fields around it. The drones only fight back if you attack them first, and other players cannot harm you in this sector. A portal takes you on to Sector 02.
Sector 02contestedfrom level 3
Outpost Reach
The crystal fields and ore belts in this sector earn you a lot more than stone, and you can sell and repair at the outpost. In return, raiders, corsairs and vipers attack on their own, and other players are allowed to shoot at you here as well. The Dreadnought, one of the big enemies in the game, is around too.
Sector 03contestedfrom level 8
The Deep
You can only reach the third sector through Sector 02. This is where the iridium veins are, and iridium is the rarest resource in the game. The reavers flying here are stronger than anything in the sectors before, and the Leviathan is the biggest enemy in the game. You can sell and repair at the Bastion.
Rift Fissurecoming soon
The rift
Sector 02 has a portal to the Rift Fissure that only opens from time to time. Behind it, a group of up to four players takes on the Rift Warden together. The Rift Fissure is not available yet and will be added later.
From time to time there are events in the sectors, for example a pirate raid, a meteor field or a convoy.
Upgrading your ship
There are several ways to make a ship stronger. Which of them you use is up to you.
You can try the four abilities here.
Makes you a lot faster for a short time.Repairs part of the hull, even in the middle of a fight.Recharges your shield.A quick move to dodge shots.
- Modules
- Lasers, shields, engines and repair drones come in several tiers. How many you can fit depends on the ship.
- Drones
- You can take a scout drone or a gunship drone with you. It flies next to you and attacks the target you give it.
- Talents
- There are nine talents in the areas offense, defense and utility. You can redistribute the points later.
- Refinery
- In the refinery you turn stone into ammunition and ore into ingots. Some jobs take a while, and you collect the result later.
Playing with others
Three factions
At the start you pick one of three factions. You cannot change that later. The factions fight over the territories every week. The faction that holds a territory pays less for repairs there and gathers more resources.
Tap a faction to see its colour.
- Clan
- A clan can have up to 30 players.
- Group
- In a group, up to four of you play together and share the experience points.
- Trade
- You can trade directly with other players.
- Chat
- There are channels for the sector, your faction, your clan and your group, plus private messages.
- Outposts
- You can set up a beacon, a mining rig or a gun turret in space. They stay there even when you are offline.
- Leaderboard
- There are ten ranks from recruit to general, and achievements that earn you titles.
If you get shot down
What you lose
- A quarter of your cargo
- A quarter of your ammunition
What you keep
- All of your money
- Your experience points
- Your ship and everything built into it
In the first sector nobody attacks you as long as you do not attack anyone yourself.
Pictures from the game
All pictures are taken straight from the game.
Fighting a drone 
At the central station 
Combat on a phone 
Ships in the shop 
Shot down in Sector 02, the money is still there 
Equipment on the Splinter 
Station on a phone 
The talent tree
Play right here
You need neither an account nor an installation for this. The demo starts here on the page.You do not have to install anything. Log in and the game runs here on the page.
On a phone the game opens as its own page, because it would be too small here.
Download
Zephnex is available for Windows, macOS, Linux and Android. Your progress is tied to your account, so you can start on your computer and carry on with your phone.
Version alpha-2026.10.3 from Oct 8, 2026
- BrowserRuns right away, nothing to install
- WindowsYour device108 MB
- macOSYour device55 MB
- LinuxYour device107 MB
- AndroidYour deviceDirectly as an APK, not on the Play Store yet, 62 MB
- iPhone and iPadYour deviceAs an app on your Home Screen, through Safari
The programs are not signed yet, so your system shows a warning the first time you start them. On macOS, open the app with a right click and “Open”.
As an app on your phone, no store
You can put the game on your home screen straight from the browser. From there it starts full screen like an app.
iPhone and iPad
- Open play.zephnex.com in Safari.
- Tap “Share”.
- Choose “Add to Home Screen”.
From iOS 16.4 this also works from other browsers through “Share”.
Android
- Open play.zephnex.com in Chrome, Edge or Samsung Internet.
- Open the browser’s menu.
- Choose “Install app” or “Add to Home screen”.
On Android the Android app runs more smoothly. You will find it above with the downloads.
What you should know first
- Zephnex is an online game. You always need an internet connection for it.
- The first start loads about 50 to 70 MB. After that the game is on your device and starts faster.
- This version runs on the browser’s technology. On older phones it runs less smoothly than the app, uses more battery and the device gets warmer.
- iPhones with little memory sometimes reload the game.
- There are no notifications in this version.
- On the iPhone the game does not turn to landscape by itself. You have to rotate the device.
- Purchases work as in the browser, through the website.
- Your progress belongs to your account, not to the device.
Request an invite code
For now you need an invite code to create an account. Tell us briefly who you are. We look at every request and then send you the code by email.
Your request has arrived.
We will look at it and get back to you by email.
Questions
What does Zephnex cost?
Playing costs nothing. If you like, you can buy a premium currency in the game or support the development voluntarily.
Do I need an account?
Not for the demo. You get a ship and can play for up to an hour. If you want to keep playing after that, you create an account and keep your progress. At the moment you need an invite code for an account.Yes. At the moment you need an invite code for an account.
How far along is the game?
Zephnex is playable but not finished yet. The controls on phones are not as good as on a computer yet, and there is no sound so far. You can report bugs from inside the game.
What does it run on?
In the browser it runs on any reasonably recent computer. As an app, Zephnex is available for Windows, macOS, Linux and Android. A version for iPhone and iPad is planned.
Which languages is Zephnex available in?
German and English.
Can I delete my account again?
Yes, you can do that at any time, either in the game under options or through the link at the very bottom of this page.
Support the development
Zephnex is free to play. If you enjoy the game, you can support its development with a small amount.
Just give it a try.
Play nowLog in and playThe demo lasts up to an hour and needs no sign-up.You play with your account, right in your browser.