Freelancer Review - PC Game Reviews

Freelancer Review

In Freelancer you get to experience a vast, open-ended universe filled with an “infinite” number of adventures. You play the role of the freelancer Edison Trent, and have the freedom to pursue a career path of your choice - naval hero, mercenary, bounty hunter, trader or pirate. Besides the normal story objectives, you have the freedom to pick and choose other missions.

There are over 40 military, civilian, and criminal organizations spread throughout space offering employment. Every time you complete a mission for a certain organization, your status with them increases while your status with their enemies decreases. If you want to be able to deal with your enemies you have the option of using hackers to change your reputation and standing. The action is endless as you make your way through 48 known star systems. You can transport goods from place to place, hijack others as they transport goods or protect trade lanes from pirates.

You can even work for the police or military, carrying out assassinations of rogues in space. Your choices are pretty diverse.
Solar systems are linked together with both artificial and man-made jump-gates. The only way to get to another solar system is through these gates so keep their locations in mind. Travelling between the different locations within a solar system is done through a series of trade-lanes, similar to highways. You can use these to move from one point to another at high speeds. You can use the ships computer to plot a course through the vastness of space, set the auto-pilot and just sit back and wait. Bear in mind though that these lanes can be intercepted by pirates. This leaves you stranded in the middle of nowhere surrounded by enemies. You can travel using only your ship’s thrusters and cruise engines but this would take much, much longer… Once you dock with space stations or planets you have access to a variety of services. You can buy and sell goods, buy new ships and weapons or fix your old ones and visit the local bar where you can search for jobs. Unfortunately the conversations you have in these bars all sound almost similar. After a few hours of play, you’re gonna get sick of being asked if “you’re new around here.”


The graphics of this game look slightly dated in parts but are impressive overall. Spaceships come in all shapes, sizes and configurations. Some can carry large amounts of cargo while others bristle with unique and varied weapons. Freelancer has a new particle effect system for weapons, explosions, and engine exhaust that is highly detailed. The best part of the graphics are the detailed backgrounds that will leave you breathless.
Perhaps the most innovative feature of Freelancer is the mouse control. Previously, joysticks weren’t just the best choice in flight simulations, they were the only choice. The developers of Freelancer caused a furore when they announced that it would be a mouse-driven game. They have succeeded admirably as this is the single best control setup I’ve ever seen in a space simulation. No matter how furious the dogfight, the mouse flight comes through. Besides the single player campaign, you also have the option of playing online where you can either team up with or attack ships controlled by other players. Just as in the single player game you can roam the galaxy, getting more experienced as you go along.


Overall this game is not the revolution it was promised to be. However it’s a decent space simulation that will keep you interested for some type. Fans of the Wing Commander and Freespace series will find a lot to love in this title.


HIGHS: Vast Universe, Good effects, Varied Weapons & Ships
LOWS: Patchy Voice Acting, Repetitive
NUTSHELL: A Flawed Beauty.
Christof Rating: 87%