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game review

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Post Mon Dec 20, 2004 7:18 am

game review

Freelancer: here is another example of poor thought/programming given to a pc game. the ai leaves much to be desired. 90 percent of the time when exiting a jump gate you are beset by enemies, and not just one or two, which might be tolerable. you dont even have time to exit and engage your engine before a dozen ships are shooting at you. many time when attacked by one or two ships, if you dont kill them right away you will have 15 or more appear out of nowhere. if you dont hack the ini file and set the damage lower you have a hard time defending. apparently this game is set in 2d space. there is no way to roll the ship. after dogfighting many ships with all the turns you release the mouse button the ship unwinds to reorient to flat 2d space. homing missiles dont home, enemy ships turn faster. often your wingman doesnt attack the enemy and you are left to do all the fighting. i can understand denied access to jump gates without permission but why a jump hole? when attacking a storage depot with no other ships around you are suddenly attacked by defenders who appear out of nowhere. my opinion! this could have been a great game..

Post Mon Dec 20, 2004 10:35 am

Fortunately for Digital Anvil there are millions who completely disagree with you. Are you playing the original game or a mod? One of the biggest complaints of the original game, which mod makers have changed, is the number of AI ships attacking you. Most thought it was too easy and too few. Oh well, to each his own, I guess...

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
The Next Thing I Say To You Will Be True
The Last Thing I Said Was False

Post Tue Dec 21, 2004 12:02 pm

Hmm strange, the only time I get many off the AI trying to kill me is when I jump into a system inhabited by enemies of mine(which is everywhere but the borderworlds ) its quite fun actually.
But in the storyline, when most off the big companies if i can call them that were still friendly with me, I rarely got assulted as soon as I exited a jump hole.

Post Tue Dec 21, 2004 1:05 pm

@cdestroyer. nice to see someone logging on with some negative feedback, due to the fact that most of us only arrive here after we have already turned to the dark side perhaps we are a bit biased.

personally since i'm still on diall up i would like a more interactive SP version. e.g., mech warrior ( which you may condemn for other reasons ) had the capacity to allow you direct your AI team members.

the limited access to jumpholes helped the story ( which we all admit had its own failings )but you are right, how were we denied access to natural phenommenon? one solution might have been put have a radiation field around holes which destroyed ships up to level 3 stopping you from using them too early(--- i'm picking 3 'cause 4 would have precluded my attempted use of the Dagger throughout the plot---)

as for the realism of flight, if the flight sim were completely realistic i'd need to go back to college to learn how to play, for accessibility and playability some restrictions to realism must exist.

however i would like to know how to get a hold of you version. 15 maxed VHF's just 'aint a challenge to a cheap ass Dagger with home-less windstalkers.

my opinion! this is a great game, but just like most things in life, it could have been better.



"My sig is in the post but the man in the shop promised I will find it witty and topical when it arrives."

Post Wed Dec 29, 2004 8:51 am

i have another idea, maby they made the jump hole phase misaligned

Post Thu Jan 20, 2005 12:15 pm

I just saw this post. For old hands, the game may be to easy, but for a newbie to it, it can ge really tough. So I have a suggestion.

Get the Freelancer Mod Manager (FLMM for short). It comes witha few mods. Load the Uber shield mod that comes with the FLMM. Now, noone is going to kill you. A liberty cruiser can hit you with ts big gun, and you are still safe.

Use the Uber Shield as a training aid. Once you have developed skill with the game, loose the thing and replay the game again. You will see a marked difference.

Most mods make the game even more difficult. Now you can try them for a new challange.

Post Sat Jan 29, 2005 6:05 am

cdestroyer mentioned that he'd hacked the ini file, so he wouldn't need the shield mod.

I got to Dublin in SP before using this option - I got fed up with spending all my mission profit on shields and bots.

After having played for a while with no damage, and got used to some of the mods, I've now decided to go through the SP again "properly".

I understand his frustration with the hordes of bad guys jumping you.
Regarding the jump holes, I think you just have to get used to the limitations of the SP storyline - it would be counter-productive if you could jump out of Liberty early on, in my opinion.

Got the game beginning of January, so I haven't been playing a month yet, and it's already taken up way more of my time than my wife is happy with!

I was brought up on Elite on the Amstrad CPC, and although nothing can replace the granddaddy of space trading games, Freelancer is a pretty good replacement for me.

Post Sat Jan 29, 2005 6:53 pm

I have not played many games on the pc that have had the addition of an online component (actually only Diablo 2, and that i did not enjoy online as much as offline multiplayer...). Freelancer is an awesome game both on and offline. but I do have one question if someone would not mind indulging a fool and telling me does the story line end when you get rid of the nomads and are suddenly back on manhattan having the lone star medal given to you? I have tried several ways and even though at somoe point the game says that to level up i must complete a mission, i cannot seem to find any thread of the story to pick up. Regarless i am playing online now and enjoying it... A lot!

"Catapultam habeo. Nisi pecuniam omnem mihi dabis, ad caput tuum saxum
immane mittam."

Post Sun Jan 30, 2005 8:02 am

Yes, once you are back on Manhatten the story is over. You don't meet Juni or Orillion again, but you can now get to the higher levels (up to 38) in the SP game.

I'm not sure if further story elements were planned but not made, or whether the ending was leaving the door open for an expansion pack which didn't materialise. It's a shame, but some of the new mods really expand the gameplay, so I'm not that upset.

Some of the online servers allow you to go above level 38 in the MP game, you will need to check them out for details.

Post Tue Feb 01, 2005 9:59 pm

Yes, the story line does leave you wanting more story,but online play pits you against real people,far more unpredictable,as well as AI NPCs. And once you become a proficiant Freelancer,mods can provide an even greater challenge and a broader universe to explore.

Bats and bots be damned,your dead

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