PC Gamer Review....

Well, I just got the magazine in the mail and they gave it an 81%. I read the article myself. I came. I saw. I conquered. And sometimes get conquered. "I´m Natrunner, I don´t really run TLR but I do have an understanding with those that do."

Yup. The UK and US versions are different. UK gave the 90%, and US must have given the 81%. (I´m in the US but haven´t seen the PC Gamer yet).

PCG US gave the 81%. The "sameness" cut most of the points off. The lack of joystick support didn´t help either.

yeah i was disapointed with PC Gamer´s review as well, and it kind of anoyed me that they brought up the joystick issue again, i would have thought that they would be above it, i guess that shows that even the hallowed editors at PC Gamer can be subject to stupid reasoning as well as us Peace through superior firepower. <img src=´http://tachyon15.homestead.com/files/Hammerhead[_ ´>SIG.JPG <A href=´http://www.roughnecks.org/fl/fl.swf´ Target=_Blank>The Best FL Squadron Around Wants You</a>

Your sig dont work entity... *I hate my old signature, so I changed it...to this*

The PC Gamer review was biased. 13 hours to beat the singleplayer!? only if you knew what you were doing. &quot;Sameness&quot;, That´s like saying that the US is boring because everything looks the same. Has the man looked out the window and seen the breathtaking visual or try to balance one faction against another or learn about the individual factions. I can´t believe people are so distracted by the voice acting for NPC. Yeah it´s bad but so what it´s better than nothing and there alot of NPC´s. I won´t even touch the joystick issue. Obviousely the reviewer wanted to play Freespace instead of Freelancer.

I mostly agreed with them, other than one minor mistake in the review ( they said you couldn´t target specific sub-systems on a ship, lol ) , especially about the random missions. I think a score of 85% would have been a tad more fair, but I think 90% is going a bit overboard. Don´t get me wrong, I love FL and play it for an inhuman number of hours a day, but I think there was room for improvement that DA missed.

Everyone I know finished it within 20 hours so the number hardly unrealistic, and honestly if you think FL wasn´t repetitive in the least, you need some better RPGs. 81 was a perfectly good score if you put it into context of how they score everyone else, especially if they wrote their review after only finishing the SP campaign.

If they only played the SP campaign then they missed like the other 70% of the game. I completed SP in about 15 hours or so with some stops to make sure I had money. Now Ive got only 10 systems ´completely´ explored and IM already double that time, 30 hours. I dont see how anyone could get the full jist of this game without playing it for at least 60 hours. Seeing the wrecks, reading the vast amount of text info that they put into the game, and the other extras.

Something alone 84% to 86% would have been more justified to me. And that joystick issue. ArGh. I miss the days of Gary Whitta.

I agreed with alot of their review. Most should understand that 81% is quite high considering how tough PC Gamer can be on games. Repetitive dialogue with the same voice actors and general lack of mission variety were my main gripes. Also, I felt that I was forced to follow the single player missions unlike Privateer. Otherwise I have no other gripes or concerns. Don´t get me wrong. I have been following this game for a long time and I am a big fan. BUT these gripes can only help DA improve the game with an expansion pack and/or sequel. <img src=smilies/icon_smile_big.gif width=15 height=15 border=0 align=middle> I came. I saw. I conquered. And sometimes get conquered. &quot;I´m Natrunner, I don´t really run TLR but I do have an understanding with those that do.&quot;

Time to defend my former fav. mag. <font size=1 face="trebuchet ms"><BLOCKQUOTE><hr size=1 noshade>yeah i was disapointed with PC Gamer´s review as well, and it kind of anoyed me that they brought up the joystick issue again, i would have thought that they would be above it, i guess that shows that even the hallowed editors at PC Gamer can be subject to stupid reasoning as well as us <hr size=1 noshade></BLOCKQUOTE></font><font face=´trebuchet ms, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica´ size=2> PC Gamer back in the day, their favorite games were X-Wing, TIE Fighter, and X-Wing vs. TIE Fighter. 2+2, they just miss those days. A valid complaint but DA went around it nicely. <font size=1 face="trebuchet ms"><BLOCKQUOTE><hr size=1 noshade>The PC Gamer review was biased. 13 hours to beat the singleplayer!? only if you knew what you were doing. &quot;Sameness&quot;, That´s like saying that the US is boring because everything looks the same. Has the man looked out the window and seen the breathtaking visual or try to balance one faction against another or learn about the individual factions. I can´t believe people are so distracted by the voice acting for NPC. Yeah it´s bad but so what it´s better than nothing and there alot of NPC´s. I won´t even touch the joystick issue. Obviousely the reviewer wanted to play Freespace instead of Freelancer. <hr size=1 noshade></BLOCKQUOTE></font><font face=´trebuchet ms, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica´ size=2> I don´t think it´s biased. To be biased, you have to have something else to lean towards. See: XBox vs Gamecube. They simply had issues with Freelancer, and see my above comment for the joystick. Plus, when they review a game, they have to review the single player story. And FL´s is damned short, you can´t really count the fact the universe stays to do whatever for much. However, multiplayer should´ve factored in. Going from how in 94 they were DROOLING for a game like this to come out someday, I would expect they would´ve givin it higher. But times and staff change I guess. <font size=1 face="trebuchet ms"><BLOCKQUOTE><hr size=1 noshade> mostly agreed with them, other than one minor mistake in the review ( they said you couldn´t target specific sub-systems on a ship, lol ) , especially about the random missions. I think a score of 85% would have been a tad more fair, but I think 90% is going a bit overboard. Don´t get me wrong, I love FL and play it for an inhuman number of hours a day, but I think there was room for improvement that DA missed <hr size=1 noshade></BLOCKQUOTE></font><font face=´trebuchet ms, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica´ size=2> I 100% agree with you EXCEPT: the subsystems. Targetting a turret is not targetting a subsystem. In Freespace you could target engine power to cut their thrust, guns, shield systems, hell, in most space sims you can target just about ANYTHING to disable their ship. Freelancer lacked this. The Ship Scan View was basically useless. <font size=1 face="trebuchet ms"><BLOCKQUOTE><hr size=1 noshade>If they only played the SP campaign then they missed like the other 70% of the game. I completed SP in about 15 hours or so with some stops to make sure I had money. Now Ive got only 10 systems ´completely´ explored and IM already double that time, 30 hours. I dont see how anyone could get the full jist of this game without playing it for at least 60 hours. Seeing the wrecks, reading the vast amount of text info that they put into the game, and the other extras. <hr size=1 noshade></BLOCKQUOTE></font><font face=´trebuchet ms, Verdana, Arial, Helvetica´ size=2> As a game reviewer you don´t <b>have </b> 60 hours to put into ANY game. They had to review what was glaring, and the single player is what most people will get into. While great, it´s very short and it´s lacking compared to epics like Freespace. Freelancer was great, but not classic. Does not deserve the 90% range. Mid 80´s at best. Unfortunatly, with a game of this scale, to remove all the problems people have with it, would´ve tacked on mabye even <b>years </b> to development time. I´m glad it got released and I´m glad it´s tons of fun. Remember folks, 80-90% range is hardly a bad review. In fact, it´s a glowing one. To get above 90% (as they said years ago in the Duke3D vs Quake deal, where pepole got enraged Quake &quot;only&quot; got 90%), means your game is absolutly incredible and a must buy. Hell, even 50-60% is AVERAGE! Not great but not bad! FL is terrific but a little bit flawed. I´d say they were almost right on the spot. Sorry for the huge post <img src=smilies/icon_smile.gif width=15 height=15 border=0 align=middle> --- No funny sig. Deal.

I think 81% is very fair for this game. The single player campaign ends so abruptly that it makes me think it was designed the same way the game mechanics were, &quot;not too complicated.&quot; The game lacks any unique combat challenges: you´re basically staying alive in a giant furball at every turn, and the &quot;puzzles&quot; in the SP campaign are very simplistic. The only thing saving SP from being a boring ride of &quot;you go first &gt; kill this &gt; run away &gt; land &gt; come back later&quot; is the beautiful and varied world: systems have themes, in appeareance, ships, equipment and even music. These things make playing through it MUCH less boring, even exciting at times. But, I think they could have done a lot more with such a huge world. Like making the story work around exploring, instead of occasionally giving you time off to get lost, then find your way back so you could continue the completely linear storyline. Its fun feeling like you´re part of something huge in the story, but it feels less enchanting the fifth time you´re told to go mess around so you can feel like you´re making some impact on the world. I just wanted to fly around on my own and pretend the story was still happening, behind the scenes. If one were to zoom through the story (as you might if you were reviewing the game), you would completely miss the enjoyment of exploring a system for the first time, on your own, with no guidance. The money requirements for continuing the story are very small... it´s easy to pass them without doing ANY exploring. So, what´s my point? Although some reviewers probably missed the real enjoyment of this game, cruising through beautiful systems, can you really blame them? The SP campaign is almost a rail shooter. NEVER are you told to go somewhere you may not be able to find by following a waypoint. And that´s what kept this game from being the &quot;revolution&quot; it was promised to be: instead of taking a new approach to the story, as a game this big seems to beg for, they built an interactive movie into an open ended universe. This game was probably re-built in many ways, and many times. It looks like they didn´t get enough time to build it the way they wanted.

Hmm, they brought up the joystick issue <i>again </i>? So they wrote another review before this one? I haven´t read the review, but since joystick support is something that most people are expecting in a game like FL, naturally they have to write that it isn´t there, otherwise it would be a lacking review. They can´t assume that their readers are on forums where this issue already has been discussed.

This has always been my favorite game mag, and I have to agree with their rating of FL. FL is such a departure from what we are used to... it´s not really a simulator and it´s not entirely an arcade game... it´s a fun blend of several genres that just doesn´t always please the masses. I like the game, I will continue to play it for several months at least since I spent that big money on it. But I think the review was fair. To be perfectly honest, I´m looking forward to seeing more about X2: The Threat although I have not played the original. Elite 4 is supposed to be nearing completion too... we shall see how they fare vs FL pretty soon. <img src=smilies/icon_smile.gif width=15 height=15 border=0 align=middle>

What difference does it make to any of you what score PC Gamer (either of them) gave the game? You already have Freelancer. You have already played Freelancer and formed your own opinion of the game - good, bad, or ugly. It´s not like they just trashed the game. Whether they gave it an 80% or a 90%, it´s a long way from eXtreme Paintbrawl´s 19% score. It doesn´t sound like they are telling people not to buy the game, right? --milo <A href=´http://www.starshatter.com´ Target=_Blank>http://www.starshatter.com</a>

&quot;Whether they gave it an 80% or a 90%, it´s a long way from eXtreme Paintbrawl´s 19% score.&quot; 19% score... lol. That game BITES.

for freelancer to have a great success it needs to appeal to the mass market, to people who only buy the occasional space game. We all want an expansion pack for the game so its essential that the gaming world see it as a good game to get sales up. Interestingly enough PCGamer UK brought up joysticks but in full support of the mouse control issue saying that a joystick wouldnt work with this game and a mouse seems more natural. Thats probably why pcg uk gave it 90% though. -arcon ------ <img src=´http://basil.acs.bolton.ac.uk/~wrm1ect/images/avatar3.jpg ´>