Anyone remember Freelancer?

[NoNameMcgee]

For those who don't know it, Freelancer is (according to Wikipedia) a space trading and combat simulation video game developed by Digital Anvil and published by Microsoft Game Studios. Released March 2003.

I remember playing this when it came out, thought it was excellent, I was 13 at the time though... It did receive mixed/fair reviews but mostly because it didn't live up to certain standards that had been expected of it. So I was thinking recently, there are no damn space sims released anymore, and this game popped into my head.

So I installed it, tested fine on windows 7 x64, and found some widescreen hacks. Although certain things about it now bug me as my tastes have matured (one terrible voice actor who voices all the nameless people, plus some reaaally grating dialogue cuts where characters say something completely unrelated in answer to a question or statement, not to mention the unlikeable bell-end of a protagonist) once I got out into space in the crappy little starter-ship that you're given, it all came flooding back to me. This game is awesome. The space combat is smooth and intuitive emphasizing mouse movement to steer the ship while using the keyboard to issue certain commands, and it gives this fantastic impression of the vastness of space that really sucks me in. If I remember right the whole buying/selling commodities business, visiting different cities on different planets, and interacting with people all breaks up the action nicely and is pretty fun in itself if you can forgive the awkwardness of some of the conversation.

So for those who haven't played it, give it a go, it's well worth a look.

For those who have, can you recommend me any similar space games? Thing is, I tried one of the X3 games, and it was too complex for me. I need something more intuitive, that's just the type of gamer I am I suppose.

 

[thespyisdead]

Steam currently is offering what i can only assume (yes i will make an ass out of you and me ) are similar games.

i currently would like to try, as i too played Freelancer (and i also though the voice acting was beyond aweful), Starpoint Gemeni(20e). and i think i saw another one similar in fashion, but i am not sure at this point



EDIT: there seems to be also a mobile game (for at least symbian) called "Galaxy on Fire," and i believe it also has a sequel...

 

[DoPo]

For those who have, can you recommend me any similar space games? Thing is, I tried one of the X3 games, and it was too complex for me. I need something more intuitive, that's just the type of gamer I am I suppose.

I remember the game fondly. I too played it when it came out. I even installed it and played it last year because I wanted some space sim goodness...well, the only complaint I have is that I just wanted to fly around, do trade, and do missions and I immediately was thrust into the main plot. Oh well, I had seen the mods that let you bypass the MQ but I decided to do it for old times sake. Well, by the end, I didn't really want to play Freelancer any more, which was a shame. I was thinking of playing it again some time soon but this time not doing the MQ at all.

As for similar stuff....I don't know. I know there is StarLancer - the predecessor for FreeLancer. But my information is limited - the two are only set in the same universe but are hundreds of years apart or so. Basically, some of Freelancer's backstory comes from there but that's it - there isn't much more of a connection plot-wise. And that's it, that's all I know. It might be worth checking out.

I don't think I've found anything comparable to that. But I haven't looked hard either.

 

[Albino Boo]

Try wing commander. They are a lot older but there had been fan made version come out this year http://www.wcsaga.com/. No trade more pure combat. There's the various version of Elite around, freelancer, X3, etc are all based on the it. You think Freelancers old, I bought the first version of Elite in 1984. The wiki page list a bunch of similar games http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elite_%28video_game%29

 

[OctalLord]

I could highly recomend(As I'm sure many people here would.) FreeSpace 2, a wonderful spacesim that has some of my favorite fleet-battles in space games. It also looks amazing and has quite alot of mod-support.

I'd also recommend Allegiance, a game that was intended to come out with Freelancer but got canned due to money reasons or some such, apparently the source code got released and modders not only completed the game but added to it in great detail. It's a RTS-Spacesim hybrid in which you could be a commander ordering units around to get into fighter battles, but the units are actual players! From the lowly scout ship to the high tier capitol ship! It has x3 Gameplay with wonderful graphics on top of that.

Developed way back in the space games hayday(1999 and what not) these games can run well on pretty low-end systems too!

Here's the links for both games.

http://www.gog.com/gamecard/freespace_2

http://www.freeallegiance.org/ (Again: Free download and free to play!)

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

It's a little known fact that Freelancer was a spinoff of a more conventional combat flight sim called Starlancer, developed by Chris Roberts (the Wing Commander guy) in the twilight of the genre. I have a copy of it, and while I'm sure it's an awesome game if you know how to play it, for me it's a poster child for why the genre eventually died: it was friggin' complicated, and did nothing to ease you into the gameplay. When I tried to play it, I couldn't get past the first mission, because I couldn't find the button to lock onto the torpedoes I was supposed to be destroying. If you've played through Freelancer, though, I'd imagine the control scheme is effectively the same; it might be worth a shot if you run across a copy (mine is from a thrift shop and, surprisingly, was complete in box. It's a testament to the complexity of the game that even with a manual and years of practice with the X-Wing series, I couldn't figure the darned thing out XD)

 

[NoNameMcgee]

snip

Can't speak for Starlancer, since I never played it, but Freelancer is incredibly easy to control. I agree with you that I just can't get to grips with the more complex space sims, but Freelancer hits the sweet spot just perfectly between arcade and depth. I've yet to find another space sim that quite does that. I'd definitely recommend giving it a go.

I could highly recomend(As I'm sure many people here would.) FreeSpace 2, a wonderful spacesim that has some of my favorite fleet-battles in space games. It also looks amazing and has quite alot of mod-support.

Already on it! I bought a copy from GOG I'll get around to it after I've finished with Freelancer again though.

 

[Owyn_Merrilin]

For those who have, can you recommend me any similar space games? Thing is, I tried one of the X3 games, and it was too complex for me. I need something more intuitive, that's just the type of gamer I am I suppose.

Ooh! Darkstar One: Broken Alliance for the xbox 360. It's basically Freelancer all over with a bit better graphics. It's the only game of its kind on consoles. I'm pretty sure it's on PC too.

It is, I picked it up during the Christmas Steam sale this year. I haven't played it yet, though; I managed to but a lot of new games just in time to no longer have the free time to play them.

 

[Idocreating]

Freelancer still has a large mod community to it. Google Discovery Freelancer 4.86 for the latest version. Now with player=run stations.

 

[NoNameMcgee]

Ooh! Darkstar One: Broken Alliance for the xbox 360. It's basically Freelancer all over with a bit better graphics. It's the only game of its kind on consoles. I'm pretty sure it's on PC too.

After a bit of Googling it would appear that its incompatible with Windows 7 and can't seem to find any info on a fix Can't risk getting the game if I don't know if I can make it work

 

[The Madman]

Freelancer was pretty good as I recall, I remember I played using a mod that added some Star Wars ships to the game and I spent most of it flying around in a tie fighter. Fun times! Not fun enough that I've ever felt particularly eager to try the game out again and see if it holds up at all, but fun for its time.

As for suggestions, Freespace 2 really is the most obvious one. It's pretty much the king of the entire space-sim genre. This overbearing presence that glares down from a throne made of the skulls of its dead competitors, silently judging each new game and always finding them unworthy! You can't be a fan of that genre and not have played Freespace 2.

Mind you it's also more of a linear mission based game as opposed to Freelancers more open-world elements. Freespace 2 by contrast having a hub that you return to between missions for briefings and the like. So if it's that open-worldness that you're after the X series is probably your best bet... it's not really that large of a genre these days and that series has more or less made 'open world space sim' into its calling card. But overall Freespace 2 still reigns supreme. Works absolutely brilliantly with a force-feedback joystick as well, nothing quite like it! Fantastic soundtrack as well!

Freespace 2 has also become pretty renown for its huge library of mods, from new ships and graphical improvements to entirely new campaign with different settings and style. It's pretty amazing what's been done with that game.

 

[RicoGrey]

I miss this game so much, I could cry.