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Five Star Freelancer

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 5 / 19
Date: February 01, 2003
Author: Amazon User

This game is the best! With over 40, yes 40 systems to explore and 1st class game play this game is the best. Also you pick jobs that influence your reputation with other people. For example: If you go shoot on every liberty ship in the system don't expect themto let you land at their docks. This game will be released pn March 6 and I'll be one of the first to have it!

Believe The Hype!

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 34 / 40
Date: February 16, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Freelancer must be one of the most anticipated games of the last 5 years and given its sordid production history many have been left wondering whether the game would live up to their lofty expectations. Well, the wait is over and I'm here to say that its been well worth it.

Freelancer draws you into the game universe right from the beginning. You're going to want to watch this game's intro cinematic as it's not the usual gratuitous FMV and does an excellent job of setting the stage for the game to come. After selecting the 'New Game" option you are drawn straight into the game via one of many well directed in-game cinematics. Once things get going there is a minimal amount of handholding, which is helpful without hindering your in game experience.

As a fan of the space-sim genre I was apprehensive about the absence of joystick control in the game but after my first dogfight it all went out the window as I was weaving in and out of a debris field chasing rogue ships with guns blazing.

Having only progressed so far in the game as of this writing I can't really make a definite judgement on how the game will shape up. The story campaign seems well thought out and executed and while there are plenty of options beyond the story, I find myself looking for a bit more structure. Perhaps it will show itself later on based on my actions. Either way, Freelancer is a great game that looks great, and plays great even below the recommended spec. The dialog is well spoken and the in game cinematics are well directed. Mutiplayer could be a very interesting experience on large enough servers and takes a form more reminiscent of Diablo where solo, co-op, and free-for-all play styles are all up for grabs. It will be interesting to see how the online community shapes up. If this review is any indication then Freelancer might just be the shot in the arm that the space-sim genre has been looking for.

The Grand Theft Auto of Space

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 13 / 16
Date: February 24, 2003
Author: Amazon User

This game is so open ended. It is amazing. You can get jobs from the cops, navy, bounty hunters, rogues, and almost anything you can imagine. There is a reputation system so you have to choose a path of good or evil. If you work for the police the criminals won't like you and vice versa. This is the first good space combat game of the decade. This game won't dissapoint. I nominate it for game of the year. This game runs flawlessly on my Athlon 1.3ghz and Radeon 9500 pro system. The requirements don't seem to be so high since the engine is fairly old. After all, the game has been in development for 4 or 5 years. The graphics in the cities remind me of Anachronox. Sort of blocky, but it's not that bad. The graphics in space are some of the best I've seen. The explosions are amazing as is the variety of ships. I've heard that if you play straight through the game without doing the side mission that it takes well over 60 hours. I would imagine doing everything would be almost 100 hours. ... Order this game now, you won't regret it.

Solid game, from a solid game maker

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 7
Date: February 27, 2003
Author: Amazon User

This game tries to pull you in from the starting cinematic, and it does a pretty good job of it. What's nice is that you're really in control of things, and can decline any job that you don't want to do. Another neat tidbit is the possibility of running into random enemies as you do jobs. Once I was in a field of huge elongated asteroids (which you CAN run into and explode upon) and I had completed my mission, then all of a sudden a patrol of rogues wandered by and I had another battle on my hands.

The idea of flying without a joystick freaked me out at first, but flying with the mouse is very natural feeling.

Bottom line: Go buy this game, because it's just that good!

Where is the Joystick Support?

4 Rating: 4, Useful: 3 / 10
Date: February 28, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Well I played the demo and it is going to be a great game, but the mouse just does NOT have the "feel" of flying anything! Does anyone fly an F-15 Eagle or Stealth Fighter with a mouse? the lack of joystick support is truly disappointing. Maybe a future patch will include joystick support, or maybe some hack will write a "mod" that will give us the joystick support that this type of game demands. I just don't understand why you can't have mouse and/or joystick supported. It's a 4 star game until this issue is fixed or patched. (fin)

There IS 1st person mode...

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 16 / 16
Date: March 03, 2003
Author: Amazon User

My title is just there to help out the other 2-star guy. It's Ctrl+V. Also, you can shrink most of the HUD with the Backspace key, in case you were wondering...

This game is great. The demo is probably the longest and most entertaining I've ever played. You can't get to level 2, but you can explore an entire start system and gain many weapons during that time. You can play the demo for dozens of hours. And the full game has dozens of systems with the same scale as the single one in the demo. Dozens x Dozens = WOW! Also, because of the extended development time, the system requirements are relatively low, and the bugs are few (haven't found any yet). So just about everyone can play this game, and it looks beautiful.

The mouse support has been as principle design aspect for the whole development process. All the other space games using the joystick is the exact reason why this game doesn't. It's this way to appeal to a larger audience. Fast and furious action like a FPS, but sci-fi like, well, sci-fi games. And even if you did have joystick support, you'd invariably have to use the mouse for the menu-driven part of the interface. That's a LOT of desk space to take up, and it'd be unnecessary as the mouse is perfectly capable in both movement and menus.

Getting bored of the random missions is exactly like getting bored of random encounters in RPGs - if you are like this, the game probably isn't for you. But for those that like exploring and acquiring higher levels to get higher-level equipment, this will be great for you. And it has multiplayer so you can do this with your friends too. The mod community has already begun, and the game hasn't even been released yet. Get ready for some entertainment!

Very good space trader/fighter sim

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 4 / 4
Date: March 03, 2003
Author: Amazon User

Don't let the reviews bashing the mouse control feature scare you off this one. Although it isn't what a hardcore joystick pro might appreciate, its very intuitive and you get used to it real quick. I do have trouble with this game being called a flight sim, it's an RPG with space combat. It's similar to the MMORPG called Earth and Beyond but so much better than that. If you liked EnB you will love this game. The ship customizations are great. Lots of Weapons and other equipment to choose from that you can buy using payments from jobs or by selling items that you loot after space combat. The voice acting is good but a few of the lines are a bit cheesy. Compared to many other games though its pretty good. Theres an openness to this game that a I really like. In the demo after you complete the first few scenarios you're left to do what you want to (explore, fight , etc)... I took some missions, fly from station to station, pretty much whatever I wanted to. Your really out there on your own doing what YOU want to. Do the storyline or not.. its your call, and thats the big draw to this game I think. There's a demo (150mb +/-) for this game... I would highly recommend giving this game a try.

Very well done!

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: March 03, 2003
Author: Amazon User

I picked this up about a week ago, and just beat it this afternoon. Wow, talk about one heck of fun ride!

The game has a common progression.. you start at the bottom of the heap with a tiny cheap ship, and as the game progresses you use your money to buy new ships and upgrade weapons/shields/thrusters etc however you see fit. Its well done and never at any point felt too powerful for the battles or overwhelmed. You can also use a tractor beam in the middle of a dogfight to grab nanobots or shield charges (from the debris of annihilated enemies) to help you continue the fight or goods you can sell at a nearby station.

The whole immersive level of the game is pretty awesome, you'll frequently visit a nearby bar to look for missions. There you can also scan the news channels, pick up on rumours, or slip someone a little cash to fix your reputation with a certain group. If you're getting tired of fighting you can take a turn at transporting goods.. using the tried and true rule of buy low and sell high.

As for gameplay itself, its pretty fun. I guess some were complaining about the no joystick support.. but the mouse and keyboard setup is incredibly smooth and intuitive. The dogfights are incredibly fun, full of flashing laser beams, mines, missiles, debris, and explosions. In asteroid fields you can use asteroids for cover and swing around one to come up behind the person who was chasing you. Every fight was its own fun experience and I NEVER felt bored at any point. Later on in the campaign you start flying into places which gives a Star Wars Ep 4 feel to it as you weave throughout the insides of whatever you are infiltrating at the time (I'm trying not to give too much of the campaign away).

Overall, this game was a BLAST to play, had incredibly good graphics out in space (I was amazed at how many beautiful but different each system was), intuitive, and easy to learn and start having fun. I'd recommend it to anyone who is in the mood for a good space combat with an immersive world and fun plot.

Great Game So Far

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 2 / 2
Date: March 03, 2003
Author: Amazon User

The demo is excellent. The random missions add so much more game time into the game. The area you get to fly is is huge. The customization of your ship is good too. All these factors will make the game last a long time.

The 'no joystick' isn't so bad. I was use to the mouse the first couple minutes. But it would be nice if the developer could add joystick to it. The cockpit view (Ctrl+V) isn't so nice.

To sum it up, so far the game is great - graphic wise and gameplay.

Based on the Demo - A worthy successor to Elite, Privateer

5 Rating: 5, Useful: 11 / 12
Date: March 04, 2003
Author: Amazon User

If you have played the Elite or Privateer series, you are familar with the basic game structure - an open-ended trading, fighting, adventuring space combat sim.

The dog-fighting is fast and furious. The graphics are on par with Freespace 2. In the single system you get to play in the demo, there are about 12 different places to buy and sell. There are Nebulas, junk fields and hidden bases where pirates lurk. The full game has 48 systems and 30 ships you can purchase. So far I have seen over 40 different weapon systems you can buy or loot off your kills.

When I first read there was no joystick support I was disappointed. I figured that you would just click on your target, hit the 'a' key and hope for the best; then loot the rusty shortswords and run to the merchant to sell - I mean loot the machinery parts and sell at the starbase. But after playing the demo I was pleasantly surprised to find the dog fighting fast and furious. I am not sure the agility and precision provided by the mouse guidance could be matched with a stick.

Given the different types of ships, weapon systems, defensive system and other ship components available, the combat should provide a wide range of tactical possibilities.

The AI pilots I have encountered haven't been overly sophisticated, a well-timed lead turn is always victorious in one-on-one. But groups of them are capable of launching some dangerous ambushes on you, especially once you have bad faction with them. Perhaps the flight skills of opponents get stronger outside the first system.

I suspect that the programmers did the voice acting for the toon story sequences, and some of the dialog seems to have been written by their grade-school children. But these are minor flaws as far as I am concerned.

I have played Freespace, FS2, X-wing, Tie, Privateer, WC, Elite, etc., etc. I tend to get bored with the sims that provide static story lines and missions pretty quick. Here is a space combat sim that looks like it will provide many, many hours of fun.

I am buying this one. A resounding 4.5 stars!

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