Make ground your own.
Deploy the crawler to establish a construction radius. Place refineries, barracks, workshops, and turrets around it. Keep ore routes and factory exits clear.
TMFPRETTY / ORIGINAL HANDHELD RTS
CRAWLER:
BROKEN
SIGNAL.
THE BASE IS MOBILE. THE MISSION IS YOURS.
An isolated convoy. A broken signal. One command crawler between your crew and silence.
Deploy your base, harvest alloy, build your force, and carry the mission across hostile ground. Real-time strategy, built for a 160 × 144 battlefield.
LIVE FIELD RECORDING01 / BROKEN SIGNAL
160 × 144 NATIVE RESOLUTIONCOMMAND / BUILD / SURVIVE
TACTICAL NOTE 001
Your command crawler is your lifeline.
Keep it alive. Everything else is a decision.
01 / THE OPERATION
Strategy that
moves with you.
A base is usually somewhere you return to.
Here, it’s something you bring along.
Every load matters.
Automatic harvesters turn finite deposits into alloy. Reserve resources for a three-slot production queue, set factory rally points, or cancel the last unit for a full refund.
Know when to move.
Pack the crawler and reposition your command. Production pauses while packed; deployed troops keep fighting. Mountains block shots, so terrain changes the plan.
02 / FIELD RECORDING
Small screen.
Full-scale decisions.
80 seconds of authentic native-ROM gameplay.
Original pixels. Emulated stereo sound.
The showcase covers training, building placement, production feedback, tank combat, crawler escort, and the final defense. Chapter captions appear outside the game screen.
03 / CAMPAIGN DOSSIER
Restore the signal.
Get the convoy home.
Three operations. Three different priorities.
The crawler must survive every one.
OPERATION 01RECLAIM / GRASSLAND
Broken Signal
Break the hostile command and reconnect the convoy’s communications.
- Primary objective
- Destroy the hostile HQ, then move a mobile combat unit to the relay at X21 Y3.
- Field priority
- Establish alloy income before committing your army.
OPERATION 02ESCORT / WINTER
Frozen Crossing
Your base becomes the cargo. Move the crawler through the crossing alive.
- Primary objective
- Bring the command crawler itself to X21 Y3. Pack it before moving.
- Field priority
- Keep a route open. Destroying the enemy HQ is optional.
OPERATION 03HOLD / DESERT
Last Stand
Hold against infantry waves while the harvesters work toward relief.
- Primary objective
- Survive 700 simulation ticks and deliver at least five alloy loads.
- Field priority
- Defend the crawler and protect your resource routes.
Victories unlock the next mission. Battery storage retains campaign unlocks. Mission timing follows simulation ticks; Last Stand’s target is 140 simulation seconds.
04 / FIELD MANUAL
A commander’s
first six moves.
Press Select at the title to enter optional field training. Lessons pause the battle while you read, then advance as you complete the real actions.
Starting a new training run replaces a suspended battle after an introductory warning. Finish training and continue the same mission.
- 01
Deploy the crawler
Select your command crawler and press A again to open commands. Deployment anchors your base.
- 02
Build a refinery
X7 Y5 is a useful starting placement. Cyan outlines are valid; red crossed outlines indicate a blocked footprint.
- 03
Bring alloy home
Harvesters mine automatically once a refinery exists. Wait for a completed delivery, not just a mining trip.
- 04
Establish a barracks
Try X9 Y6. Keep the harvester’s path open and leave room for new troops to exit.
- 05
Train more infantry
Reserve alloy for production. The HUD shows queued units and the leading job’s countdown.
- 06
Issue a combat order
Send a mobile combat unit to a destination. Use Squad Order when it’s time to move your entire combat force.
05 / TAKE COMMAND
Your operation
starts here.
Play the official browser compilation.
Keyboard on desktop; on-screen controls on mobile.
Click inside the game to focus the controls.
Command inputs
↑ ↓ ← →Move cursor / scroll
ZA — select / confirm / order
XB — cancel / commands
PSelect — cycle units
EnterStart — begin / pause
At the title, use P for training and X to resume a suspended battle. Menus pause combat.
Open game in its own tabThe browser edition is a separate compilation from the downloadable v04 cartridge. Emulator save persistence depends on the browser and its storage settings.
06 / ADVANCED ORDERS
Less friction.
More command.
Set the rally.
Select a barracks or workshop and choose Set Factory Rally on command page 2. New infantry, buggies, and tanks move to that factory’s destination automatically.
Reconsider the queue.
Cancel Last Unit removes the tail of the production queue and returns its full alloy cost. Factory destruction also refunds that factory’s queued jobs.
Suspend the operation.
Suspend Battle saves units, orders, resources, rally points, exploration, and the exact training lesson. Resume from the title into a paused battle when you’re ready.
07 / DEPLOYMENT PACKAGE
Carry the battle
off the browser.
Download the v04 Game Boy Color cartridge or the complete Field Training package, including the editable project and verification material. The verified v04 binaries, footage, and archive retain their original Project Crawler title; this website uses the finalized game name.
FIELD TRAINING EDITION / v04
Release notes
- Three connected campaign missions
- Six optional guided training lessons
- Readable full-footprint placement previews
- Production icons, countdowns, and blockage feedback
- Factory rally points and full queue cancellation refunds
- Battery-backed campaign and suspend support
08 / BEFORE YOU DEPLOY
Field questions.
What can I play it on?
The downloadable .gbc file runs in a Game Boy Color emulator. The project targets ModRetro Chromatic; physical cartridge installation, hardware performance, boot, and save retention have not yet been verified.
Is this a finished commercial release?
This is a playable Field Training build. Crawler: Broken Signal is the game’s selected title; commercial name clearance remains outstanding. All three missions and six training lessons passed native-ROM controller playtests.
Is there multiplayer?
No. Crawler: Broken Signal is a single-player, three-mission real-time strategy campaign. Menus and lessons pause combat, and the battle can be paused with Start.
How does saving work?
Campaign unlocks and suspended battles use battery SRAM. Suspend Battle saves the current operation; B at the title resumes it paused. Starting a new mission, confirming a restart, or reaching victory or defeat clears the suspended battle. Your emulator must retain battery saves.
What has been verified?
The project’s recorded independent replay reproduced 192,914 native frames and 28 pixel checkpoints. Controller playtests covered campaign wins, training, building previews, rally orders, refunds, defeat and retry, and fresh-boot battery restoration. Physical hardware verification remains pending.
Can I edit the game?
The complete project package contains the editable GB Studio project and its local Crawler engine extension. Open it in GB Studio 4.3.2 or the Chromatic plugin. Preserve the included upstream MIT license. The artwork and fiction are original; no C&C or StarCraft assets are used.