I like Freelancer´s simplicity, and so in recommending (probably to no effect) what I´d like to see in FL2, I´d like to keep a lot of that. There are lot´s of ideas here for extended character development, such as joining factions, having charisma, wisdom, etc... But Freelancer is an RPG-Lite game. It´s meant to be accessible to everybody, with action at its core; the developers mentioned that they wanted players to sit down and start lighting up the skies, and that´s exactly what they´ve achieved. That said, I, like most folks here, desperately want to own more than one ship. It´s too limiting to go buy a freighter (250 cargo) to make a couple of runs for $$ and then have to fly back to *insert spoiler here* to pick up a Titan again. And then I´ve got to stow all my turrets until next time I have a freighter. And I´d like to have wingmen, though the game is called Freelancer. I want to belong to a group. I want interaction on the planets, too--maybe even meeting with my buddies in bars. And it would be nice to take out bases... So, a whole mess of these things can be solved very simply... Microsoft, please be listening... And the answer is....... Faction. That´s it. Why aren´t I, Trent, a faction? People and NPC´s could join my faction. I could shoot up a base, now it´s in my faction. When I land at a base controlled by ME, there´s one extra option on that menu bar where I can repair, replace defense turrets, create missions (paid out of my pocket), and set prices/inventory. It´s all seems so simple! Suddenly, after the single player campaign ends, I still have goals; I need to buy/sell/scrounge for guns and commodities to sell. I need to defend my various bases from rival factions. I need to hire people, or save their tails to get them into my faction. It increases the communication in the ´living universe´--I would have a message tab, where I can see who is doing what to me and my faction members/allies, etc. And it gives me a real stake in things, even without the continued storyline. Right now, I feel more like "what now?" since I have nothing to really shoot for. I can make money, but that´s it. Give me stuff I can claim, and then make me defend it, and the game comes to life. And with the small multiplayer size, factions are perfect!!! We can essentially be trying to build mini-empires, vying with one another! And yet, no simplicity is lost. So that´s my big idea. Unrelated additional wish list items On an unrelated note, after the SP game is over, it would be nice if, like, every 100ish missions, I ran into a character for a random mission. Make it feel like the game wasn´t "over." And planet´s need more than one docking ring--what, is there only 1 major city per planet? AND Ever heard of supply and demand? Would it be so hard to change prices? It seems illogical that I can run a freighter full of diamonds on a single North/South run over and over and over and over, and make an enourmous profit every time! Grr.
