Marrying education with gaming is always a difficult concept to comprehend, but it's something that NASA has been aiming to do for quite some time. After their incredibly successful kickstarter drive, which managed to raise over $45,000 in starter funds, this team is ready to get cracking on their educational MMORPG, called "Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond." Shortened to simply AMMB, ZAM sat down with the people behind AMMB to hear more about what this space exploration game has to offer.

So if being an astronaut was always in your hopes and dreams, you should look forward to Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond as your gateway game to space! Read on for the interview!

The small group of developers behind the upcoming official NASA MMO have shattered their fundraising goal for the game's beta. They initially wanted to earn $25,000 for Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond through donations on their Kickstarter page, but 962 backers ended up donating a total of $46,719!

Project Whitecard Inc. and Virtual Heroes of Applied Research Associates won a contest to create the official NASA MMO. A playable beta is expected to launch in December 2012.

A small team of developers have already greatly surpassed their fundraising goal for Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond - their upcoming official NASA MMO - but they're now offering an additional incentive to donate during the final days of their Kickstarter campaign. Fifty lucky donors will receive a copy of the upcoming Project Moonwalk game simply by making a donation through the Kickstarter campaign. The fundraiser ends on Oct. 11 at 10:01 a.m. EDT, so act fast!

Project Moonwalk is a game that allows you to train as an astronaut and walk in the footsteps of the 1969 Apollo 11 Mission. To be clear, it's a different title from the upcoming official NASA MMO. You can watch the Project Moonwalk trailer below.

A small group of developers won a contest to create an official NASA MMO, and they're now looking for help to fund the beta. Project Whitecard Inc. and Virtual Heroes of Applied Research Associates are hoping to raise $25,000 on Kickstarter by October 11 to kick off the development and finish the first beta of Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond. They've already raised more than half of their goal.

Are you wondering what features will be included in the NASA MMO? Here are some details from the Kickstarter page:

"Play as an aspiring astronaut in Astronaut:Moon, Mars and Beyond, the official NASA MMO game. Set in the year 2035, you will embark on an adventure into space, Mars, the asteroid belt, and the outer planets.You will uncover secrets about a threat to civilization as we know it, and build you and your team a high-tech inventory of space gear including a home base, somewhere out there.

Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond features a new mode of game-play: mission-based space exploration, providing exciting player vs. environment and compelling team vs. team play. A goldmine of NASA MMO content will be employed, permitting authentic solar system exploration, and delivering engaging Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics concepts."

The team plans to deliver the Astronaut Academy, the first version of the game, next year. To keep tabs on Astronaut: Moon, Mars and Beyond, follow the game's Facebook and Twitter pages.