Crossfire 1.82 and Discovery 4.85 (comparison by players)

*Sigh*
eventhough i dont believe that these 2 mods are comparable due to their different styles and concepts here are the main differences

Discovery is the mod with the largest online player base (multiplayer) while having a singleplayer mod in older mod version
Crossfire is the mod with the largest offline player base (singleplayer) while still having a server with a fairly good number of players

Both mods are based on the original Freelancer and cover massive Roleplay on the servers.
Crossfire is about 3-4 times bigger than Discovery but can not mess with the online performance of the Discovery servers because of that (can hold max 50-60 players on the server atm).
Discovery is mainly focused on the roleplay and online gameplay while Crossfire is focused on the amount of its features, high res graphics and a storyline.

It is clearly impossible to say which mod is better. They are just based on different concepts.

I'll make it quick: I guess it's about personal preference I suppose but yeah, they both are developed with different goals in mind:

If you want a large community, and get involved in RP while still experiencing a "vanilla" experience with a few additions try Discovery.

If you want an expanded universe, filled with new content and new places to explore with an "overhauled" experience get Crossfire.

Thats from my perspective anyway.. Just snoop around and find what you need best.

IMHO of why Discovery is so popular is, all the original server files are left intact so, anyone can run a server and play it the way they want it to be played by the indicidual and at any time you wish to go elsewhere, there's 15-20 Discovery servers to choose from and you don't have to change mods in order to change game play. This offers you, RP with strict rules, RP with less restrictions, Rp/PvP for fun no matter your faction alignment, No RP at all, a place to just relax and hang out with friends or, time to just enjoy the mod itself for what it is and nothing else. Discovery is credited mostly for it's availability to be hosted more-so by the individual than anything else.

Another thing is, you can play on a server that's hosted in your language than just in the English language so all can understand your game play. That's a restriction that's hard to deal with, especially if you don't speak the language the sever is operated by. Many server require that you speak English only and with that, and it being the only server out there, players are going to go where they aren't restricted as to what language they can and cannot speak. You must take language as a barrier for the amount of game play a server gets as well. I would much rather play on a server where 90% of all players speak English than 90% of all players are speaking German, Chinese, French, etc..etc... and Discovery makes that possible. I would also like to add that, Igiss has allowed others to make certain modifications to Discovery to allow it to be more of a challenge than it's original creation like, -=[Discovery of Discovery]=- modded by He||oween.

I'm not saying it's the best mod/server but, that it has more of an advantage than others due to the fact that it retains all files needed to host your own server for your type of gaming.

Well, I could go on but, I think I've posted a fair piece.

I play on the Underverse/SW:WT/Void mostly and FlyByU's when it was running. I have been on many servers though and have experienced most of the mods out there that are hosted on a server.

yes, the creators of discovery for sure have done something right

Killer Bee, I'm back.
I like Discovery 4.85 because I can play it anywhere (on my Mac Book or the Mac Pro). Besides, you don't need the disc and the storyline is just as compelling. I just got through making an alliance with the Colonial Remnant and have acquired one of their gunboats.

welcome back KB

I have played both mods.
Without spoiling too much I would sum it up.

Discovery has a deeper roleplay experience while Crossfire is the better mod.

Ok, I have been pondering the same question here, and this thread has helped a lot. Thanks to all you guys helping out us noobs. I do however have one further question. Will Crossfire and Discovery run on an Acer Aspireone? The vanilla game runs fine, but I know that both games boast improved graphics, and my poor net book can only handle so much . Also, I read above something about discovery not needing the disc. Will Crossfire not work in conjunction with a NoCD crack? It can just be a hassle to hook up my external DVD-ROM to my puter every time I wanna play a game.
Thanks in advance for your advice and knowledge guys!

Folgore, apologies. So many companies are releasing legitimate NoCD patches for older games, I often forget that many still aren't. In any case, I do appreciate your answer, it covered exactly what I needed to know.

overwriting the exe of Crossfire is indeed no good idea as it would damage the mod
however, you dont need to do that as that mod is based on the free ubisoft version of Freelancer which does not require the original CD

Discovery as far as i know does not really have that many graphic improvements so you dont need to worry about performace while in Crossfire you can freely do graphic settings and deactivate certain options

SWAT_OP-R8R, that answers the other part of my worries as well. I was unaware of a free version of Freelancer, actually. Is this still floating around, and if so, where, please?

It is not free... it just does not have a copy protection.
you very likely will be able to buy it at amazon.com