Yeah, this game came out a few years ago. You can find it at some discount bin at some video game shop or order it online for really cheap. But how does it stack up today?


The story is a typical conspiracy plot. You're Edison Trent, the typical mercenary-with-a-heart-of-gold. You were on Freeport 7, a space port that got mysteriously destroyed. You luckily survive and take up work with the Liberty Security Force. They are obsessed with destroying the Order, a terrorist organization. The game finds you switching sides as you race to stop aliens from taking over the human race. Every group that you think is bad in the beginning turns out to be the real good guys.

While this is a quite common storyline, there are a few neat things. In this world, sometime in the far future, space travel is easily accessible and America, Britain, Germany, and Japan have now colonized their own solar systems. The USA is now the Liberty System and Germany is the Rhineland system, etc. The systems have been at peace since the 80 Years' War and now it's being threatened with Rhineland being uncommonly hostile...

The story is also well-presented, as common as it is, and I found myself really getting into it. None of the characters are unique though. Trent is the merc-with-heart-of-gold. A real tough guy. First he's in it for the credits and then fights to save the galaxy. (Cloud from FFVII is another example of the m.w.h.o.g.). Juni is the no-nonsense-good-girl. Quintaine is the slighty senile scientist. Nothing special with the characters. A lot of people also sacrifice their lives kamikaze-style in this game. It gets a bit trite after the third one or so.



The game is fun though. Graphics are still good even in 2005. Ships are nicely rendered, and your laser guns really light up the skies. Planets are mostly just big balls of gas or look like our own Earth. Character models could use a little work, as they do look a little creepy at times, but it gets the job done. Just don't expect a Halo 2 or a Half-Life 2, keep in mind that it's old, and you'll be pleasantly surprised by the graphics. I was a little disturbed by how bad one character's cigarette looked, but maybe they just have green cigs in the future. Sound is nice, there's a good variety of music, and those lasers sound cool. Ship sounds are cool. I dislike the click of the missle launchers that mean you ran out of ammo though...



Controls are incredibly simple and intuitive. Instead of having joystick-like controls for a flight sim, you can get the job done with just the mouse. Hold the left mouse button and then by pointing it in different directions, your ship will turn then. Let go of the mouse and it'll go straight. There's also a mode called "mouse flight" where you don't have to hold the mouse down, but to keep going straight you have to keep the mouse pointed straight ahead. The right mouse button is to fire, and you can assign certain weapons to fire together. There are keyboard controls for throttle, strafing, afterburners, etc. You can go into "cruise mode" where you go faster but can't use weapons. Buttons on the screen let you dock with planets, space stations, and trade lanes (like space highways). I've never played a flight sim with controls like this and I like it!



There's a lot to customize. By doing more missions or increasing your net worth, you can level up. Then you can buy better weapons and ships. When choosing guns, the major trade-off you have to consider is damage dealt per shot vs rate of fire. But there's also energy consuption to consider, and certain weapons are more effective against certain enemies. You can also get missile launchers, mines, better shields, better afterburners, etc.



Ships come in a few categories. Freighters are big and bulky. You can carry the most cargo with them (and make some cash by trading), and they have the most weapon mounts. Unfortunately, they are the least agile. Light fighters are quick and nimble, but have few weapon mounts and have less armor. Heavy fighters offer a good compromise. Trade-offs and customization is always good in video games. Do you want to make a lot of money freighting diamonds around? Or do you want to do a lot of combat missions? The choice is up to you.

The worlds in this game are huge, but sometimes it's a pain to get around. Also it's weird how all ships have the same top speed. A minivan does not go as fast as a Corvette.



The random missions, not the story missions, get a bit repetitive. Go to point A. Kill person X. Sometimes you have to tractor in his escape pod. Sometimes you have to blow up the base. They're really all the same though.



Dialogue also gets really annoying. People in each planet say the same thing.

Person: Can I help you?
Trent (in a really hostile voice): Do you have anything for me?
Person: Are you new around here?
Trent: I guess you can say that.
Person: Well I work for _________. We don't run the place but we have an understanding with the people who do.

If they offer you a job, then you go into the random mission standard dialogue. If they give you advice, Trent always says "Good to know" or "Every little bit helps", no matter if they tell you that carbon has several isotope or if they tell you that everyone's out to kill you. LAME! It's like they didn't feel like doing it anymore. Oh, and you can't walk around on planets. Just go to different places through a menu and click on people you want to talk to.



While the world of Freelancer is pretty free, it's not THAT free. Certain systems aren't open until you do some missions. Also, certain weapons aren't unlocked until you reach a certain level. So you can't just go around without doing the story missions. Replay value is slim, because without the story missions, you get those cookie-cutter missions and those get boring after a while. Online play sounds fun, but I don't think anyone plays this online anymore. Correct me if I'm wrong, because I think it'd be fun to play online.

Still, it's up to you whether you take jobs or just become a pirate by blowing up ships and taking their cargo. Or you can be a boring trader. If you do too much pirating, all the corporations will hate you and you'll get a bad rep and a lot of people will shoot you on site. If you do too much peaceful trading, you will become a big bore. The choice is yours.




This game isn't the best thing ever, but it's pretty good. I'm not even a big fan of flight sims and I liked it. Simple controls, engaging story, and plenty of room for customization. Recommended for sci-fi fans and conspiracy especially. It's a keeper. Now if only they put more effort into the random missions and the dialogue, it'd be a classic.

xo,

underdawg

Recommended: Yes