Freelancer for Windows

Gamers searching for that all-engrossing Wing Commander-type space shooter experience need look no further than Digital Anvil s Freelancer. In this space odyssey set in the future in a distant part of space, the player assumes the role of Edison Trent, one of the few survivors of a terrible accident aboard a local space station. When it becomes clear that the disappearance of other survivors of the disaster and the strange political events unfolding in the news are related, Trent and hard-nosed Liberty Police Officer Jun ko Zane will have to team up in solving the mystery. Their quest will take them through a number of different galaxies, submerging them in dark currents of constantly shifting alliances in an underworld where things are not as they seem.

Gameplay
As engaging as the game s storyline sounds, the best thing about it is the fact that you can choose to ignore it altogether. By no means is the player locked into Trent s struggle to find those who destroyed his ship; players are free to explore the vast Freelancer universe in whatever manner they see fit. Don t want to play the hero? Become a pirate and loot the numerous freighters and other vessels traversing the elaborate jump gate network to trade their wares, or become a smuggler and peddle illicit drugs and illegal alien artifacts to every dark corner of the universe.

Whichever way you want to play it, the key to becoming successful in the game is to sell commodities and earn credits. Whether or not you buy alloys from one person and sell to another, or jack someone for their cargo en route to a trade is completely up to you. Either way you go, with all the pirates, smugglers, corsairs, and other ne er-do-wells occupying this region of space, you d better make sure you ve got the right ship to keep what s yours in your hold. Luckily, there are over 40 different ships available to choose from each with their own strengths and weaknesses, scattered throughout the region.

Controlling the ships does take a bit of getting used to; as improbable as it would seem to produce a flight sim that does not use a flight stick or gamepad, Freelancer pulls it off with an inventive and intuitive use of both the mouse and the keyboard. Turns and rolls are controlled with the mouse, while the typically first-person shooter keys W, A, S, and D control acceleration, deceleration, left strafe, and right space respectively. It s all familiar FPS stuff, just the context in which the buttons are used here are different. Of course, the option to choose alternate configurations is selectable from the main menu. AI in this game isn t exactly stupid, so be sure to quickly find a combination that fits your style.

Graphics
Graphical elements in this game are a few pixels short of amazing. Daring to transcend the usual white-dots-on-black-background spacescapes, Freelancer s universe looks as though it was created from a painting of an actual region in space, sporting uniquely vivid color schemes, gas clouds, dynamic debris fields, and lighting effects to give each area individual personality. The ships, bases, and weapons effects are all exceptionally designed and detailed as well, all the way down to your ship s guns rotating in conjunction with the mouse movement. Very cool.

Sound
Quite simply, the music and sound effects for the game are nothing less than a treat for the ears. The sound development team clearly put a lot of effort into making a fantasy environment as realistic as possible. The game is abuzz with myriad sound effects that breathe life into each adventure, such as the magnetic hums of planetary docking rings, hard clacks of ordinance mounting, and the disparate whooshes of cruise engines and jump gates. Each weapon even has its own signature sound, unique to the point where eventually you ll be able to tell what weapon the enemy is firing just from hearing the discharge.

However, not even the spectacular sound effects can take away from the excellent musical compositions that comprise Freelancer s soundtrack. Not settling for the a handful of similar sounding tracks like some other games, the music team takes the extra step and blends mood music for each galaxy based on the culture of the race that inhabits that sector. For example, while the player will be treated to a proud old-fashioned style of anthem upon entering the Great Britain- derived Bretonia galaxy, placid and ethereal strings and winds will announce an entry into the Asian-founded Kusanagi galaxy. Combined with extra tunes for bars, cut scenes, and harried dogfights, these fitting arrangements are perfect for setting the mood for each new adventure.

Still, making an immersive interactive experience requires much more than cool effects and sweeping arrangements, the voice acting has to deliver as well. Knowing this, the Digital Anvil squad assembled an impressive list of acting talent to create the voices and personalities for the main characters. Beverly Hills 90210 fans will hear Ian Ziering as the brooding lone wolf protagonist Trent, backed up by the indubitable baritone presence of John Rhys-Davies enjoying far too small a share of the plot. Star Trek: TOS alum George Takei mans the helm again for a short but pivotal role, and the queen of cartoon voices Cree Summer is literally on a different world with her character here.

Replayability
With most games, once the story ends the game ends. This simply is not the case with Freelancer. The Go Get a Job message at the conclusion of the story mode lets you know that the adventure is truly just beginning. The Freelancer universe offers dozens of worlds to explore, dozens of missions to complete, and hundreds of butts to kick while doing so. Simply strap into your favorite fighter or freighter, plot a course, and go. Odds are you will be playing this for weeks (if not longer) after the storyline ends.

Online Multiplayer
If you ever manage to get completely bored with the multitude of galaxies, planets, missions, factions, and ships, simply take Freelancer online and see how successful you can be against real opponents. The online version of the game is pretty much exactly the same as the offline version join factions or go solo, be a hero or a villain except with real people joining in as your wingmen or enemies. Online players have the additional ability to trade cargo with other players, a very handy feature for when someone has that H-Fuel you want to move, but you don t have the Class 9 weaponry you would need to forcibly take it from him.

The only real concern with online multiplayer is lag. The functionality of the jump gates appear to be driven by the server, so tying to make a jump on a laggy server may keep you vulnerable in the jump gates queue for several minutes. Avoid all but the breeziest Freelancer servers and you should be ok.

For fans of epic space opera video gaming Freelancer is an essential purchase. This game immerses the player in a beautifully expansive universe with absolutely no limits to where you can go and how you behave when you get there. Not quite the Evercrack of space shooters, this game is definitely light years in the right direction.