Freelancer

"Repetitive but fun."

Introduction: Freelancer is a space simulation game that was in development for what seemed like an eternity. Now that it is out it has met decent reviews but I think the things this game gets right over what it gets wrong tips the scales in its favor.

Game play:8/10 This game is just plain fun. Blasting hundreds of spaceships with high powered laser cannons in an incredibly large universe just doesn't grow old for a while. The single player story mode is actually quite engaging. The storyline is very good with some tense moments and plot twists along the way reaching an incredible climax at the end. The last mission made me sweat profusely. The game provides a never ending amount of missions, but they do grow quite repetitive as they all involve move from point A to point B and kill a bunch of ships(the fun combat makes this formula work). This game is fun during the story mode but afterwards you should play the game online for maximum fun.
The multi player is thoroughly entertaining allowing you to make groups and complete quests with your buddies. This makes the missions much easier. The only downside is your character is saved to the server meaning you have to constantly play on the same server. What do you do after you obtain the ultimate ship, guns, and wealth nothing much unless you like to explore.

Graphics:9/10 The graphics in this game are excellent for such modest system requirements. This game actually plays well on the minimum requirements and looks good doing it. The character models during the scripted cinemas look great and move believably. The ship models look great as do the planets and just about anything in space. The only downside asteroids look pretty jagged but that problem is taken care of with antialiasing.

Sound:8/10 The sound in this game is of very high quality. The voice acting is great during the story mode but the random conversations that you have with people giving you jobs have quite poor voice acting. The sounds on the laser weapons you shoot are very cool and easy on the ears. Plus the explosions and sounds your ship make fit nicely. The constant cockpit chatter you hear gives you a real sense of being in space.

Controls:10/10 I love the controls in this game. Purists may complain about no joystick support, but with a nice mouse control system like this who cares? You will have no problem adapting to the controls in about ten minutes and this just makes the dog fights easier and much more entertaining to more casual players.

Buy or Rent: Buy it now.

This game is totally worth a purchase with great controls, visuals, story, and multi play you can't go wrong even if it is very repetitive.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 07/03/03, Updated 07/03/03