X2: The Threat

[Renzatic Gear]

What a damn cool game! If anyone here likes space sims then you need to go out and buy it..like..NOW! It can basically be described as a far more ambitious and complicated Freelancer, in that title you basically played the part of a single person trying to make his way in life this game whereas in X2 you're responsible for being both a pilot and the head of your own trading or pirating organization. You can build fleets of trading ships, space stations, defenses...you name it you can pretty much do it. I also believe that you can take up being a strict fighterpilot, but I haven't explored that option too deeply just yet as the trading aspect is far more interesting.

It does have its problems, though. Mainly the total lack of multiplayer (forgivable since the singleplayer game is so interesting), and only limited control customization. Since you use practically every key on the keyboard it can get pretty messy until you get used to the default setup. Beyond that, and the massive framerate hit when you're in a conversation scene, the game is amazing.

It gets 1 1/2 Renzatic Thumbs Up. A patch would help iron out some of the rough spots, but it's great as it is.

[meagher72]

Do you have the specs for the game?

Also, what are your recommended specs?

[Renzatic Gear]

The box specs say a PIII 733 with a 32 meg graphics card..

I'd recommend at least a 1.5 Ghz processor, a Geforce 4 equivalent and around 512 megs o' ram. It's a graphically intense game, using the same features and technology games like Doom 3 and Halo 2 uses.

Edit: You can check out a more indepth preview HERE (http://www.wickedtoast.com/article.php?id=96)

[E.T.]

Description caught my attention, being a lover of strategy [esp RTS].
"...comlicated..." sounds good!
I know its touted as Space Sim, but it sounds like a mix of genres, almost like it has RTS elements?
Indulge me:
[1] Action in real time?

[2] Freedom to roam?

[3] This "building"...gives me the impression resources must be aquired?

[4]Any NPC interaction?

[5] What about perspective, first/third person?

Thanks!

[DBS]

I was just checking this out today and after reading alittle I hear it outshines Freelancer is depth but not in polish. Is this true ?? I enjoyed Freelancer although I was hoping for a little more to it.

[Renzatic Gear]

It's all real-time and action based much like freelancer, but you have access to hundreds of thousands of AI controlled ships, freighters, capital class cruisers, space stations, mining colonies...you either own them (and thus can switch to whatever ship you want via your own personal space station) or you interact with them via comlink and tell them what you want. If they're a part of your organization they'll do it, otherwise they require cash to do certain things.

I'll take building a space station as an example. In the simulation (tutorial) you're just in a small freighter. Not too fast and only large enough to carry small suppilies...when you wanna build your station you'll have to contact a capital class freighter that has enough room to carry the materials needed for it. They'll negotiate a price range for the amount carried and per jump and once you come to an agreement you'll tell them to meet you at the nearest space station carrying the materials you need. You'll contact their com officer (you can talk to multiple people on any large ship via the comlink...there are usually about 6-8 people onboard) and give tell them where you wanna go, dock at the space station and buy all the parts you need which will be transported to the larger ship. Once you do that you fly out to whichever sector you wanna build your station at and let them do their thing. Complicated, sure..but it's really damn cool.

Also the game has multiple perspectives. While you're in a cockpit you can activate 2 seperate monitors showing your various gun turrets (even the most basic ships have a rear gun cockpit) or an external view. Overall you have about 6 different views you can cycle through on your ship alone, along with being able to freelook around your cockpit using a joystick hat or the numpad keys.

Overall I'd say that the game is a bit rougher around the edges than Freelancer was. You don't have any shortcuts to do anything, every action has to be initiated the same way without any assignable hotkeys you can use. Really I'd say that a major portion of the problems with the game involve the oversensitive joystick controls (it varys from slow rotation to spinning out of control) and not being able to customize your keys...stuff that can be fixed easily in a patch, but should've been in the game to begin with.

lol, there's alot more I can mention about the game, like being able to leave your ship and float around in space or jumping on the back of a docked freighter and breaking in to steal small cargo...being able to actually fly around inside space stations (unless you have a docking computer you have to dock and park your ship manually)...and tons of other stuff, but I wanna keep this post relatively short. It's a great game though, far better than even Freelancer..and I thought that game was awesome.

[Hieremias]

Hmm, I saw a video of this game (I think it was this game) that just looked ridiculous. Your ship was firing these little purple balls, reminded me of the old Wing Commander days. Am I wrong on this? I could be thinking of another game.

[Renzatic Gear]

Did it look at all like this:

http://users.chartertn.net/greymatt/x2screen21.jpg

?

[Fandango]

Is there an actually story to this game or is it like BCM?

[Fandango]

Another question when you go into a space station or what not do you actually control your character or is it like Freelancer where you just see your character stand there?

[BortiiS, The]

Sounds like the game BCM tried to be, except no action or stuff on planet/moon/whatever surfaces.
I'll check it out if I see it in the stores, sounds pretty appealing to me.

[Renzatic Gear]

From what I can tell there is a fairly detailed story you can follow throughout the game...and it does seem to brance in certain directions so it's not a linear progression.

The game begins with your character being debriefed by a man named Ben Danna, a captain of sorts who is responsible for your early release from prison. He has you released due to the fact that you're a superb pilot, practically without peer, and assumes that since you've been given this last chance you'll take up his offer and follow it to the letter. Once you're out in space you can either follow his orders or blatantly abuse his trust and take off to do your own thing. I've only progressed a tiny bit past that so I can't really offer any more comments on the plot...but the game does revolve around alot of key characters that you can ally yourself with in each sector, characters that will apparently play larger roles as the game progresses.

The only time you'll actually depart your ship and walk around onboard a space station is during conversation scenes (with branching dialog, too..very RPG-like), everything beyond that is done from the menu in your cockpit.

lol, and from what I hear about BCM this game isn't really remotely similar. It's really more like a multitiered freelancer, you have control of entire fleets of ships that can accompany you on trading runs or pirate attacks...you can either pilot the frigate you're using to haul cargo and take command of the many gun turrets onboard, or you can set the AI to control the frigate and accompany it using a smaller fighter and be responsible for its defense. You can't just instantly hop from one ship to another with the touch of a button, though. You actually have to hop out of one ship and spacewalk your way over to the next ship you wanna take command of. In other words you're not playing as an all-seeing commander, but as a single character.

[Fandango]

Are humans the only race in this game?

[Hieremias]

<div class=\"smallfont\">Did it look at all like this:

?</div>

Dunno, in that picture you aren't shooting anything.

I probably have the wrong game. But I really hate space "sims" that have you shooting little bright slow-moving balls. Zombies and energy balls, I'm not really fans of either.

[Renzatic Gear]

Fandango: I believe that that there are a total of 4 races you can interact with ingame. Not too sure, though..there might be a couple more later on.

And Hieremias...it's the FUTURE! You won't be shooting plain ole artillery while flying around space in a decked out ship, you're gonna be shooting big pink glowy beams of asskick. What's the matter, you don't like the FUTURE?

lol, yeah..the weaponry pretty much is about like you described, which is pretty much how it is for every space sim you play.

[Hellblazer]

Actualy if you have the patience to get the money you can buy an transporter that let you jump from ship to ship but the cost is around 500k+. Everything in this game is expensive wich is good cause i hate games that i actualy finish in less than 20 hours.

[Suicides-by-Steve]

Amen to that! The longer the game is- the better.