Freespace 2 Critic Reviews

Whether you've played the original or not, Freespace 2 takes its place among the greatest space-flight sims of all-time.

If you are any kind of space combat game fan, don't let this one get away!

It is highly addictive, due mainly to the trite but compelling story, is great fun to play, and should provide as much of a challenge to those who aren't familiar with this genre as it does to space-sim veterans.

One of the best space sims ever made and is a solid candidate for game of the year.

Breathtaking action, atmosphere, story, and graphics come together to create a truly compelling combat experience.

From beginning to end, the involving storyline and varying mission types will keep you wanting more, which is provided by the sufficient multiplayer capabilities, and the interesting SquadWar ladder system.

The new ships, new weapons (such as the extraordinarily nasty TAG missile...you'll see), the unbelievably large cap ships, and just the sheer joy of playing this title makes it an easy pick for space combat sim of the year.

As far as I'm concerned, there's nothing like this in the genre, much less among the space sims released in 1999. Is it an all-time classic? Probably not, but it's damn close.

Multiplayer of course shines, and there's never been a better excuse to splash out for that cable modem than the multi-tiered dogfights possible in FreeSpace 2. The best of its kind yet.

The final mission is by far the coolest and depending on how you finish it depends on the final cut scene.

The emphasis on story and involving missions, combined with great visuals, audio, and exceptional control make this a top-notch game.

The enemy AI isn't really what it should be. This is a minor criticism, but when a game reaches this level things like this tend to stand out.

Manages to do what few sequels can--retain all of the good things in the original and improve on them, while still incorporating new features and gameplay elements never before seen.

Still very derivative of the games that came before it. What's different this time around is that Volition has added to the genre instead of just cloning it.

Graphically, FreeSpace 2 is absolutely stunning.

But playing the game makes you realise just how little effect any one pilot has on a war, and how futile and dehumanising the whole thing is. I'm sure it wasn't meant to, but there you go... The world's first pacifist space combat sim?