Oblivion/STALKER-esque space sim

[jlee]

Freelancer, Freespace...? I like the open-ended gameplay but I'm tired of being stuck on the ground.

 

[Ika]

Mass Effect.

 

[Schadenfroh]

Do you want a go anywhere, do anything type space simulation? Give Star Control 2 (there is a free version out there now) a go if you do not mind it not being a shooter.

 

[shortylickens]

Freelancer is the only sandbox space game I know about. (I dont count MMO's). It gets boring once you complete the main quest, and since the best ship you can have at the end battle is dirt cheap (Anubis, with special Clan tech weapons which are also dirt cheap) you really dont need to waste time building up money or exploring the galaxy. After you beat the main game you can do some stuff. Going after the two mega ships capable of holding class-10 weapons is cool, but since theres nothing special to do with them its a waste of time.
If you download the Freelancer Mod Manager and get some mods to add a buttload more ships and weapons and stuff, then playing in the sandbox becomes a lot more rewarding.

X2 and X3 are supposed to be good but I had too many technical difficulties getting them to run, so I never found out.

Mass Effect isnt really an open ended game because it ends when you complete the main quest. The side quests are very boring "bring me 20 bear tusks" type deals and most of the planets you see are not explorable. The ones that are feel almost exactly the same, including the little buildings you have to invade.
Main quest is awesome and story is epic. But thats all.

 

[jlee]

I have Mass Effect on 360..haven't played it yet, though. I may give Freelancer & Star Control 2 a shot. Thx!

 

[EvilComputer92]

Mass Effect and Freelancer combined would make the most epic space game ever.

 

[Zenoth]

We really need a new Freespace... what the hell are they (any developers with the balls to try it) waiting for to do it, with today's hardware it would be amazing, if done right, that is.

 

[shortylickens]

Originally posted by: Zenoth
We really need a new Freespace... what the hell are they (any developers with the balls to try it) waiting for to do it, with today's hardware it would be amazing, if done right, that is.

The space genre kinda died with the exception of grizzled space marine shooters.
No one knows when its gonna revive. We've been waiting for a proper X-wing sequel for a while now. MOO3 almost killed the space conquest genre. Mass Effect brought back the space RPG, but it wasnt enough to encourage other devs to do the same thing. ME2 is on the way. Maybe if we're lucky it will have ship-to-ship combat.

 

[jlee]

Originally posted by: shortylickens

Originally posted by: Zenoth
We really need a new Freespace... what the hell are they (any developers with the balls to try it) waiting for to do it, with today's hardware it would be amazing, if done right, that is.

The space genre kinda died with the exception of grizzled space marine shooters.
No one knows when its gonna revive. We've been waiting for a proper X-wing sequel for a while now. MOO3 almost killed the space conquest genre. Mass Effect brought back the space RPG, but it wasnt enough to encourage other devs to do the same thing. ME2 is on the way. Maybe if we're lucky it will have ship-to-ship combat.

No kidding! If I could get the original X-Wing and TIE Fighter games rereleased with modern graphics, I'd be thrilled.

 

[JPS35]

Independence War 2
X3
Freelancer

 

[Dimmu]

Originally posted by: shortylickens
X2 and X3 are supposed to be good but I had too many technical difficulties getting them to run, so I never found out.

I bought X3: Terran Conflict during a Steam sale a month or two ago. I really enjoy it! This is coming from a former EVE fanatic that lost the time required to play, so take that as you will.

It's quite open-ended, and ship-based (solely, if that doesn't bother you), so JLEE, you might enjoy it!

 

[Jesusthewererabbit]

Wing Commander: Privateer (probably waaaay to old)
Star Control II is probably my favorite PC game of all time. If you enjoy it, give Escape Velocity: Nova a try. It is similar, but more open ended, and you really don't have to follow any story line if you don't want to. I've had a lot of fun just being a pirate.

 

[jlee]

Originally posted by: Jesusthewererabbit
Wing Commander: Privateer (probably waaaay to old)
Star Control II is probably my favorite PC game of all time. If you enjoy it, give Escape Velocity: Nova a try. It is similar, but more open ended, and you really don't have to follow any story line if you don't want to. I've had a lot of fun just being a pirate.

Damn, $30 and I can't find a used copy anywhere! :Q

 

[PepperBreath]

Darkstar One is very similar to Freelancer. I liked it although it's somewhat buggy.

 

[Via]

X2 is fantastic but you sure gotta like trading and economics.

If you do (and you get a kick out of seeing your economic empire grow) you can get lost in that universe for months.

 

[Krakn3Dfx]

There's nothing like Stalker except Stalker IMO. That game is pretty much a genre all to itself. The closest I can think of is like System Shock.

 

[Jesusthewererabbit]

Originally posted by: JLee

Originally posted by: Jesusthewererabbit
Wing Commander: Privateer (probably waaaay to old)
Star Control II is probably my favorite PC game of all time. If you enjoy it, give Escape Velocity: Nova a try. It is similar, but more open ended, and you really don't have to follow any story line if you don't want to. I've had a lot of fun just being a pirate.

Damn, $30 and I can't find a used copy anywhere! :Q

Yeah, but you can play it for I think 2 weeks for free. I don't think you can see and do everything that quickly, but it's fun to try. And it can be modded into the first two EV games, that only came out on Mac.

 

[coloumb]

SWG - Jump to Lightspeed!

Darkstar One on GOG: http://www.gog.com/en/gamecard/darkstar_one [demo available - search google]

Freelancer - http://www.microsoft.com/games/freelancer/ [demo available]

 

[Mide]

Darkstar One was not fun. Freelancer was great but way too easy.

 

[allthatisman]

Wing Commander Privateer and Freelancer were two of the best space sim/sandbox games ever IMO. I played both twice, although much less rewarding the second time around, they had great stories and a lot of freedom. Freelancer in particular had a lot of side stories and history regarding ship wrecks and loot that could be found off the beaten path. Much of it you have to use the internet to find though...

As far as FPS... I always thought if you took the "Hell" element out of Doom 3, the imagery and setting was really cool I thought. They did a great job of making everything look like a space station set on mars, but that is where my recomendation ends... I have head that Dead Space is a pretty good game, but I haven't played it though.

I would be all for another, more modern Elite Force... set ONLY in space and only with ship to ship combat.

 

[aka1nas]

Originally posted by: Via
X2 is fantastic but you sure gotta like trading and economics.

If you do (and you get a kick out of seeing your economic empire grow) you can get lost in that universe for months.

X3: Terran Conflict is a lot more combat centric than past titles in the series.

 

[TantrumusMaximus]

ELITE on the Commodore 64. That was SO much game for the day. If you remember that game you are old just like me.

Wing Commander OMG! 6MB! This game is 6MB installed! That's like 10% of my HD!!!! WoW!

Privateer... totally missed out on that one, friend had it.

Freelancer was totally the bomb with a very unique control scheme for the genre and I wish more would come out with this type of gameplay "feel." My favorite.

I want Freelancer but more deep. Going to give the X series a go until the next thing.

 

[DannyLove]

Originally posted by: JLee

Originally posted by: shortylickens

Originally posted by: Zenoth
We really need a new Freespace... what the hell are they (any developers with the balls to try it) waiting for to do it, with today's hardware it would be amazing, if done right, that is.

The space genre kinda died with the exception of grizzled space marine shooters.
No one knows when its gonna revive. We've been waiting for a proper X-wing sequel for a while now. MOO3 almost killed the space conquest genre. Mass Effect brought back the space RPG, but it wasnt enough to encourage other devs to do the same thing. ME2 is on the way. Maybe if we're lucky it will have ship-to-ship combat.

No kidding! If I could get the original X-Wing and TIE Fighter games rereleased with modern graphics, I'd be thrilled.

This always comes up when talked about space type games.

And I'm with you guys. I'm truly amazed how no one is picking this up. Either they have a really bad market team and lack market research, cause anything to x-wing, tie fighter would be a massive hit. Instead, every game is going commercial and catering to retards. *sigh* sad sad world. I haven't gotten into recent gaming because of this. Thank god for BF2 and other good games that still hold true to-date.

 

[TantrumusMaximus]

Almost every game now has to be FPS it seems. I think that FPS is getting old.

 

[Liet]

Independence War 2!

It's one of THE finest space sim games you'll ever play (gameplay-wise), especially when you add one or two mods. It's just plain impeccable. The engine startup sound still gives me chills.

I'm not even sure where you'd get it nowadays, but http://www.i-war2.com/ is the best resource for mods (some are complete reworks), news, database info, and tips.

Edit: Oh sweet, you can buy it for $10 HEREhere! I'm going to do that when I get home. I also forgot to mention that it's got a complex, in-depth universe that's easy to fall in love with, if you enjoy long backstory and technology descriptions, which as a geek I know I do. WOW, so that's how a Quad Light PBC works!