When Origin first released Wing Commander, it proved a groundbreaking game, pushing the limits of the PC and bringing about a new experience in interactive entertainment.
I loved it. Finally, a sim game that didn't suffer from poor, boring polygonal graphics and landscapes that left everything to be desired. Instead, Wing Commander took us into space, out into the black void beyond, at once eliminating the blocky terrain graphics of the time and creating an attractive backdrop of stars in one fell swoop.
But for years, as games improved, the technology I had didn't. Then I bought a Mac. There's no software for Macs (as much as I like them). So I made do.
After purchasing my new PC, though, I vowed to get back into those sim games. And I did. But Wing Commander was old. I wanted something new, a new space sim that would test the limits of my system. I'd read several good things about Freespace 2 and upon a friend's recommendation and a cheap price tag, I decided to take the dive and buy it. And a joystick.
I don't know how I EVER played Wing Commander without a joystick.
Diving into the game proved easy. The three disks were switched in and out of my CD-Rom in a 10 minute download/set-up extravaganza and after a quick reboot and plugging in my new Logitech Wingman Attack joystick, I sat in my chair, prepared to be teleported into the cockpit of an advanced space fighter craft.
The gameplay proved to be almost identical to that of Wing Commander, so making the jump wasn't complicated at all. All the commands are customizable to the keyboard but there are literally so many of them that remapping all the keys is a virtual impossibility. But you'd be crazy to use all the keystrokes anyway. It allows you to remap the keys you DO use where YOU want them, though, and that helps a lot. Everything from the graphics to joystick sensitivity is also customizable to adapt to varying types of computer systems. But for the most part, the game runs smoothly with good joystick response. With five difficulty settings, you're able to easily adjust the gameplay to your skill level, even from mission to mission. Freespace gives the usual bank of mission experiences from the "convoy protect" to all out elimination sweeps (my favorite) with smooth frame-rates and some nice dog-fighting to complement the pretty graphics and sweet ship designs. In the game-play department, I have no complaints except that it's a little bit TOO similar to Wing Commander. I kept expecting the Kilrathi to show up.
One reason I really enjoyed the old Wing Commander series was that it plopped you into a pilot's role in a grander story. Freespace does the same, but the pilot is missing the personality from Wing Commander. Where the old game sat you in the head of the character, giving you dialogue and a face, Freespace's main character is an everyman. And though some may like the unfettered Freespace gameplay without the soap operatic elements of WC, it does feel a little sterile. The story is interesting enough, but without the main character to drive it, it just lacks the soul of its predecessor. It's also got some rather cliche aspects to it like the faceless Shivan enemy that's just purely destructive without any real characteristic beyond that. At least the Kilrathi had some sort of code of honor (Klingon ripoff).
But Freespace makes up for it in spades with some beautiful graphics, lighting effects and particle effects along with some kick ass voice acting and some highly appropriate sound effects. I don't know where Interplay went to find their voice-actor but they're easily some of the best voices I've ever heard in a video game, console or otherwise. And let's not forget those graphics. Each ship is finely detailed and textured without the old Wing Commander pixelation (since we're not talking about sprites anymore). But the graphics aren't fully appreciated until you fly close along the hull of one of the capital ships. That's an experience in and of itself, as the sheer size of the things become apparent. They range everywhere from several hundred meters to several kilometers in virtual length. The size of these polygons are breathtaking with the ability to take your mind easily off the fact they in fact are made up of computer animated shapes. And a beam battle between two or three of these craft is just impressive to watch with sharp, blasts of light being exchanged between them and the tiny little fighters you fly weaving between them.
It's space battle as it's meant to be.
I don't have a good internet connection so I can't really review the internet play, and I haven't played around with the mission editor at all either so there's not much I can say about it, either. Still, even without those two added bonuses, Freespace 2 stands on its own as one of the more impressive flight simulators available, offering up an interesting plot, lovely visuals and some of the best voice and sound I've heard in a game.
Watch out for that whine.
It usually means you're about to get a beam shot up your nether regions.
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