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Great Graphics, Nice Sounds, Plausible Plot, but No Controls

2 Rating: 2, Useful: 1 / 5
Date: March 11, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I downloaded the demo, and after a few initial hiccups in getting the thing to even launch (Had to dl DirectX 9.0 and new graphics drivers) the game looked beautiful. I would have to say that I was stunned by the graphics. It made waiting for the 15MB DirectX actually worth the wait. The opening plot seemed plausible and intriguing, but when it got down to the first mission, I was floundering in a sea of enemies with only a mouse to point and click on them. The mouse control is pointed out as a "Pro" in some articles, but these guys must not have had a Joystick so they are happy just to play a space sim. I do have a joystick, and wish Freelancer had supported using it, because the movement and shooting with the mouse is just too inhibitive. Earth and Beyond had it right with the mouse only on the other hand because you don't do the targeting, but add in the targeting and the controls make you feel like you are trying to balance a spoon on your nose while reading.

Bottom Line - Game with potential to be very fun, but the controls make it unplayable.

Great game -- lousy reliability

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 1 / 5
Date: May 18, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Okay -- having spent about 50 hours playing this game -- I think it's great -- I have just logged my 30th hour trying to stop it crashing :0(

minimum specs say..
Windows 98/Me/XP/2000 -- I got XP

600 MHz equivalent or higher processor -- I got AMD XP2100

128 MB of system RAM -- I got 1Gb pc2100 DDR RAM

16 MB video card -- GForce2

900 MB available hard disk space -- 40 Gig spare

8x speed or faster CD-ROM drive -- 52x

So my spec blows this away -- great.

Sadly -- not so great.
I can guarantee that within an hour of play the screen will freeze, the game will stop responding, or the computer will reboot itself...
I have tried ALL the advice on the MicroSoft website from disabling EVERY background application ("clean boot") to updating my BIOS, graphics drivers, sound drivers, even my modem drivers (which shouldn't affect it anyway).
No dice.

My second PC (P4 2G CPU, graphics 8x blah blah) works better -- this one will go for two hours without crashing.

Oh yeah -- forgot to mention that the only way to reboot after a crash is by hitting the power button.
Buy this game and say "bye bye" to your hard drive.
I have replaced mine due to op/sys corruption caused by this error ($...for the game, $...for a new drive + days of aggrivation trying to salvage important files).
Played one more time to see if this cleared the problem.
No chance.

I am now waiting for the patch -- I suggest that you do likewise.
By the time it comes out the game will probably be half this price...

Great game -- lousy reliability.
You have been warned.

This is NOT Privateer

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 1 / 5
Date: July 19, 2003
Author: Amazon User

The graphics are average and the planetary scenes are more comic book than real life (see wonderful graphics in Wolfenstein). Privateer 2 integrated movies into the game and navigation around the "galaxy" was easier and more intuitive. The space battle graphics in Freelancer are terrible and the exclusive use of the mouse to manuever the ship using a left click to turn the ship and a right click to fire is stupid. It is obvious the developer took the easy way out programming for only a mouse interface. The dialogue between the characters is moronic and the main message appears in a window and is not spoken via the character. Here is a sample dialogue:

"Hi, What can I do for You?"
"What do you have?"
"You are new around here?"
"Yes I am"
"I heard a rumor"
"Tell Me"

"Thanks I'll keep that in mind"

All dialogue between the characters is the same/similar. This is a cheap game with technology from 1997. I should have known better than to buy a game with the Microsoft name. Their games are always outdated, only half developed, primitive interfaces and not enjoyable.

This game is not Privateer....it's not even close.

Joysticks and Twinkies...

1 Rating: 1, Useful: 0 / 10
Date: May 01, 2003
Author: Amazon User

To the Freelancer development team:

My GOD - no JOYSTICK support? What on Earth were you THINKING??!!?? I just exited from playing the demo - looks great - but... no JOYSTICK support for a game with a SPACE COMBAT component!?!!? I have a Sidewinder FF 2 sitting right on my desk, and then I'm sitting here trying to use a MOUSE to fly around in 3D space (and even the darn NPC was dissing me because I can't fly!)??? Even SUNDOG on the Apple ][ (yes, I'm that old - and I've been flying in space games that long) supported a darn JOYSTICK (yes, I know I'm SHOUTING - I'm upSET!). MS Developers: NO TWINKIE FOR YOU! My GOD.... No, take those rationalizations you flummoxed the launch approval team with, and stick them back in your Scooby-Doo lunchboxes - I don't want to hear them. You're just flat _wrong_ - this game is FATALLY FLAWED without joystick support. I'm very sorry - it looked good... but it is just heartbreaking.... I can't go on. I really can't... My GOD - how can you even sleep at night?...

Played the demo.

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 1
Date: March 04, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I've only played the demo, and I must say, I'm already hooked! At first, much like everyone else, I was apprehensive about the lack of joystick support. ("What? They want me to fly with a MOUSE? That'll never work!) But, having tried it, after my first dogfight, I was convinced. It works, and it's fun. =) By default, the game has some strange key mappings (such as Shift-W to toggle Cruise mode), but those can be re-configured.

In my mind, this game is very much the logical successor to Privateer for the title of "My Favorite Space Sim". (Don't even talk to me about the horrible sequel)

My biggest gripe is that the enemy AI is, to put it bluntly, dumb as a post. Hopefully this has been fixed by release time (or will be addressed in a patch). Enemy ships don't so much dogfight as they afterburner out of weapons range, turn about and come back straight at you, guns blazing. If you attempt to follow, their buddies will invariably line up behind you and shoot your tail off. Every fighter I've gone up against so far has followed this exact same pattern.

Also, the non-story related NPC dialogue on the bases is...well, very repetitive and dull. The conversations follow a very simple script with little variation. Some variety would be nice.

And, finally, the commodities trading system is very primitive. Each commodity has a fixed price at each station. It would be nice if there was some price fluctuation to make life interesting. On the flip side though, the Neural Net interface is really nice, since it provides you with a list of all the commodity prices for every base you've been to, and lists what the current best price is, along with which bases sell a given commodity. That makes it easy to plan your trade routes.

Interestingly enough, THIS is the first game I've seen that I think could make it as a MMORPG. (I was unimpressed by Earth and Beyond) Having a large number of human players competing online would really help alleviate the first two issues. I can't wait to try the multiplayer! =)

Are you sure?

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 2
Date: October 07, 2003
Author: Amazon User

On my guardian's computer (I'm a boarder) the game works like a dream. No problems. The game is an excellent one. The story is a tiny bit short, but I think that it is very cool, with all the aliens and stuff (but they don't fight). The sounds are great, and so were the graphics. Some reckon the graphics were pretty crap, but I don't agree. I like the idea of the use of a mouse because when I use the joystick, I find it 'too' responsive. That way the system is very good for aiming. The joystick would give the feel of unlimited spinning and it's good, but not my cup of tea. I just can't wait for a sequel! (if one is even coming!)

And with the voice acting, okay, it does get dull when you just repeat and repeat, but, guys, you can MISS IT OUT!! Press escape when they talk, or when you dock. It'll speed things up.

Add a joystick!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 0 / 1
Date: March 07, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Just downloaded and tried out the demo. The graphics are excellent, and so is the sound. Definitely reminded me of the old Privateer game with two exceptions: No transport missions, and no joystick. I know there've been people saying that you won't miss it, but trying to track a rogue with the mouse is pretty darn tough on the ol' carpal tunnel syndrome. A patch giving you the option to fly with a joystick, and switch back to a mouse for neural net interface would raise this game to 5 stars. Other than that, I'm going to have to wait until after my CTS operation in order to play it again. Damn good game otherwise.

deserves 1 for some things and 5 for others hence 3

3 Rating: 3, Useful: 0 / 2
Date: May 11, 2003
Author: Amazon User

The game is excellent and poor in different ways, its quite strange actually the way it comes across to me in that way. Expecting a lot is a mistake i made, after playing on and being a huge fan of Morrowind TES, i hoped that when they say open ended and the game was called freelancer that it would be similar and a truly open ended RPG but in space, not so. It is in fact quite misleading when they say its open ended (not that they said it was an RPG, but don't think it is because it isn't), you get taken down different routes, but they end up in basically the same place, and the so called 'freelancing' is no more then repetitive missions no matter where you go in the galaxy. Okay so thatýs the first point that deserves one star, the misleading or disappointing way that the game runs a linear route over a roughly disguised 'open ended idea' (though it isn't really)is poor to say the least.
Also and this goes for a lot of games, the slow down effect, developers do not seem to realise that more detail = slow down on particular levels, i have a 2.1 Ghz athlon and GF4, and it still slowed down when a lot was going on, granted that this is due to the impressive effects and graphics that were on the screen at the same time, its not the slow down cuz thats a computer problem, its the extreme incosistency in detail. What i'm saying is, the first 15 missions or so (3 hours playing max) the missions never see more then 7 objects on the screen at any time so you set your graphics to suit, but then all of a sudden you are defending a base and there must be 30 plus ships in an asteroid field (yes fully 3d rendered asteroids) and yep we get the painful slow down frame rate (loads) But that goes with a lot of games, i just wish they could be a little more consistent in the detail and less so in the mission designs which are very similar, blow up this, blow up that.
Okay all the bad stuff done, BUT: The game does deserve without a doubt 5 stars for the impressive story line which is interesting and well composed, the brilliant directing of the massive number of cut scenes that exist throughout the game and the brilliant intro are fantastic, the effects are brilliant especially in large battles (where it slows down but it is cool), the dog fighting maybe a little weird at first with the mouse but later on you really get an aching hand trying to dodge the lasers etc which are flying at you whilst the shield repairs itself, so the battles are generally great fun especially later on. The ship designs are original and the engine effects are good.

So all in all we have a game with extremes which on a point basis cancels out to give in my opinion 3 star maybe nearly 4. But you do get huge highs whilst playing, but also huge lows like the slow downs and starting yet another similar mission to kill more rogues, which gets so repetitive (freelancing part).
So your interest and excitement may be up and down like a sine curve but all in all its a good and large game and if its atmosphere and story your into then buy this game.

THE BEST GAME KNOWN TO MAN

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 2
Date: October 16, 2006
Author: Amazon User

This game is absolutely amazing! I have been playing it ever since it was released and I still find myself sometimes playing around 5 hours a day. Other games have come out claiming to be as good or better then Freelancer, but they are not, in my opinion. I was going to buy Darkstar 1 but with work, school, biking, and playing Freelancer I just don't have time to buy any other game.

One word of caution though, if you get this game be sure to get a mod. There are many many mods for the game, and all of them add a lot to the game, a lot which is needed. I personally play the evolutions mod and a little of the Crossfire mod and both are good.

This game, along with a mod, always gives me something to do. Now I am not saying the original is bad, it is just the original only lets you fly around 30-40 ships and none of them are capital ships and I am a capital ship person. Also if you play as much as I do you need more then the fifty or so systems to fly around in. I mean it is pretty bad when I can look at every Freelancer screenshot and know exactly what system/planet/base/ship is in the screenshot.

The multiplayer in this game is great, and free! I have a few thousand hours of playing just in one server alone. Best of all, there is still so so very much that I can do yet, and if you are a gamer you know that is saying a lot. In many games you couldn't play that long and there still be some new and exciting things for you to do.

I could go on and on for hours about how great this is, but I need to get to work so I can get done early and come back home and play Freelancer for a few more hours, and I am serious about that. I play this game all the time. I play freelancer while I am eating, doing homework, and even while riding an exercise bike. It is that good of a game, and it is addictive.

P.S. For the record I am not a fat person. I love this game but don't neglect exercise. If you don't believe me you can just ask the people who came across the finish line after me during the one hundred mile bike ride I completed. You can love a video game, but don't become fat playing it, and with Freelancer being that great of a game it will be especially hard to tear yourself away from it and go on a nice short 50-60 mile bike ride, or whatever kind of exercise you prefer.

Finally!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 0 / 1
Date: August 06, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Finally! I was a HUGE FAN of the Wing Commander/Privateer series. Now it's back in the form of Freelancer! Woo-Hoo! This time 'round, it's even BETTER! The open ended play coupled with the multi-player mode makes this, in my book, one of the best space sims of all time!

A Definate MUST HAVE for space sim fans.

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