X2 Verdict

[BigVern]

Well I've just finished the main plot after two months of gameplay which I guess represents value for money. That said, most of the time is spent building up your ships and property to play the last few scripted missions.

As others have reported I did get a vague sense of anti climax on returning to Argon Prime after the Omicron Mission. After the credits rolled about 10 mins ago I'm wonderingwhat to do next.

I guess that's the problem of trying to satisfy both a scripted pre-determined course (such as Wing Commander/X-Wing etc.) where there is no deviation from the mission tree or total freedom such as Frontier. Have to say the missions didn't really grip as in, say, WC3 with the nail biting bomber run on Kilrah Prime and again as others have said it's a bit of an anticlimax. The Khaak are still around so you haven't eliminated "The Threat". I would have liked it to end with the jumpgate to Earth restored and more trading possibilities. I know you can carry on trading/fighting but who played Privateer/Righteous Fire/Privateer 2 beyond the end of the main plot.

[Brianetta]

I must say this reflects badly on any future purchase I might make.

Not sure why you felt it necessary to share this with the rest of Egosoft's customers, rather than Egosoft (who, in case you weren't aware, do not regularly check this particular forum). This thread's just a poll run by a member of the gaming public, and your future purchasing plans are, well, not really our business. (:

[Benji Mouse]

Mod, Mod, Mod, Mod, Mod...Need I say more!

Seems to be that the easier it is to modify a game, the more popular it tends to become.

Look at Bf1942 - Only became super-popular with Desert Combat mod (and people who don't like (understandably) Counter-Strike)

I'm not saying X2 is rubbish, far from it. - I'm just saying any total-mods out there could be very interesting.

I've had a good time playing this game, though I do have other games..other things to do....

Its like love...first few weeks/months - you're real passionate about it, can't stop doing it...moves on to the 'get to know' stage...next - starts to fizzle and wane...before you know it, you're walking down the aisle

[esd]

It seems to me many people just don't know what they are buying when they buy X2. They're carrying lots of assumptions about what the game should be.

XBTF had a plot, but you could only fly the XPerimental Shuttle. Xtension came about with a tiny tiny dollop of plot right at the point where you're buying a TL. Apart from that, NO PLOT AT ALL.

The community then pressured Egosoft for more of the same, and they gave it to us.

To me, this is definately one of the greatest games of all time - and it's only gonna get better.

(BTW, I did the plot only the other night. I've been playing since December, and did the plot only to see what it was like. Now it's over, and I am more than happy to continue playing, constructing my empire, planning my next move. This is where the THINK section of the game description comes in.)

[Benji Mouse]

Like I say - Its like boyfriends or girlfriends - you meet em, play around a bit, (a lot) later its a 50-50 to whether you move on or get married.

Can you imagine life if everything stayed the same forever?

Do u think u have never changed?

Thats why we have mods!

A mod is like your personality - essentially the same, but over time changes, mutates...to become...what you are (it is).

[White Tiger 30]

Well, they have never surrendered to me.... meaning that you could get money by fighting OR trading, but in the games current state, its only trading that gets you money.

Well, even if they don't surrender, you could take the missions at the bbs systems that ask you to eliminate x personage.

Also, i don't think reloading over and over again until the ship surrenders is my type of fun.

Interesting Idea, but I find it totaly unnecessary. Pirate craft (my current hunting preference) are so plentifull that even if they don't surrender, I just go find another one. I also purchase the 'police hunting license' from the Trading Stations in each country's area, which means that if they don't decide to surrender, I get 500, 1000, or 5000 when I kill them, depending on size. (I'm sure cap ships are more, but I havn't encountered any yet)

They could have just done a weapon that disables the ship, which forces the pilot to eject.

As far as I've been made aware, they did. It's called the Ion Disrupter, but it takes some work to use. (I'm still trying to figure out how to use the one I just bought properly.) Having a weapon that is exactly how you described would be Really unfair... like putting a 'all your base are belong to us' button in your ship. Hit it, and why bother firing anything at the enemy. (although imagine having that same weapon on an enemy ship... Pirates would love it, and they would have no shortage of ships to fly. 'Target another.... ready.... hit it... heh, our ship. Ok, target another.... in range... hit it.... Hahaha.. our ship....'

[White Tiger 30]

... but who played Privateer... beyond the end of the main plot.

There was a plot/storyline in Privateer?

JK, I actually had more fun playing other aspects of the game, to the point that when I got to the plot, I got bored WHILE running through it and went on to other games... Come to think of it... I don't think I've ever seen the end of that game... Interesting. When I get bored with X2, I'll have to reload it and try and see the end of the storyline.

[Paris_Hilton]

Because X2 is only the third space sim I've played (the other are I-War2 and Freelancer), I consider it as the best. But it really needs more enchancement, though. Even some basic features weren' included by Egosoft

[Gazzareth]

It is good, although they could have made a lot more of it with a little thought....... Just a couple of suggestions:

Wars - or at least Skirmishes on the borders between "nations".... also anyone bordering the Xenon should occaisionally have a "pop" at them for killing their freighters....

Pirate Sectors - need revamping - you should need to be armed to the teeth to go through them - ie you WILL be attacked more than once by groups of fighters....

....

[blackflame]

There was one, and to me only one real flaw with this game. And that is the lack of a challenge.

I dont mean that in as 'there's nothing to do' - there's always something to do. But I really only want to work at a game in order to achieve the position needed to win. And let's be realistic, mining, trading, setting up stations is work. Maybe fighting isn't, that might be fun in it's own right, but unless you attack a cap ship in something small, even that's not 'challenging'.

I'll wander off into comparison territory. Being mobbed by nomads in Freelancer flying the Anubis was hard. The storyline in Privateer often forced me into working to improve my ship before I could move onto the next stage. Flying into the Death Star in X-Wing Alliance was impressive. Freespace2 was spectacular, and once I cranked up the difficulty, killed me frequently - the alien Cap Ships beams could melt you in one hit.

Thats enough Flight Sims, let's go for empire building. Once you have a good empire in Civ3, you either win, or at least get to smash your neighbours. I have spent more of my life building globe or galaxy spanning empire (MOO, MOO2, err. NOT MOO3, Civ, Civ2, Civ3, Civ:Call to Power, Call to Power 2, Alpha Centauri... cant think of any more variations on that style) than anything else. But you built your empire to win!

And that's where X2 has fallen down for me. I also fell into the trap of listening to Ban Danna - 'build a trade empire, you will need lots of funds and ships' - HA HA HA! I have built an empire, a fleet, and.... now what? I could attack the Khaak, have attacked the Xenon, and it's not challenging. I didn't need the fleet. I have gone back to online FPSs for now - Im rubbish, so it's challenging, I can improve.

Now don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the time I spent playing X2, but I feel slightly misled. Yes, you build an empire, but I need a reason. It is ultimately the same reason I gave up playing EVE. I had loads of ships, up to a Moa class Cruiser bought from my corporation, but even with the online roleplaying nature it still felt like work, rather than play.

So I only gave this the 4th level option - it was ok, but won't keep me around - Im actually enjoying the forum more than the game now

[Wolfkin]

So this game isn't perfect (yet)

compared to all other spacesims I played inc, star wars (severall), privateer, freelancer, iwar2 and on and on, the only game to even come close is Elite in terms of freedom and gameplay. There's no match when it
comes to graffics and fx's except for maybe EVE-Online but X2 is
definately the winner when it comes to value for money and overall
game experience.

Maybe there is more to come in the future with addons and patches,
a new storyline, all out war among the races or coallitions of races, continuement (is there such a word?) of the present storyline and
ofcourse multplayer. Who knows what EGOSOFT is planing.

Here's a challange for all you modders and scrippters out there:
Let your fantasies and imagination run free and create your own storyline

Or why not start a clan or comunity to develop another story

Sadly I'm not skilled enough to create mods or scripts though I do have some ideas for a storry

Please keep spawning new ideas and plots and abowe all KEEP PLAYING

[SteveMill]

There was one, and to me only one real flaw with this game. And that is the lack of a challenge.

I dont mean that in as 'there's nothing to do' - there's always something to do. But I really only want to work at a game in order to achieve the position needed to win. And let's be realistic, mining, trading, setting up stations is work. Maybe fighting isn't, that might be fun in it's own right, but unless you attack a cap ship in something small, even that's not 'challenging'.

I'll wander off into comparison territory. Being mobbed by nomads in Freelancer flying the Anubis was hard. The storyline in Privateer often forced me into working to improve my ship before I could move onto the next stage. Flying into the Death Star in X-Wing Alliance was impressive. Freespace2 was spectacular, and once I cranked up the difficulty, killed me frequently - the alien Cap Ships beams could melt you in one hit.

Thats enough Flight Sims, let's go for empire building. Once you have a good empire in Civ3, you either win, or at least get to smash your neighbours. I have spent more of my life building globe or galaxy spanning empire (MOO, MOO2, err. NOT MOO3, Civ, Civ2, Civ3, Civ:Call to Power, Call to Power 2, Alpha Centauri... cant think of any more variations on that style) than anything else. But you built your empire to win!

And that's where X2 has fallen down for me. I also fell into the trap of listening to Ban Danna - 'build a trade empire, you will need lots of funds and ships' - HA HA HA! I have built an empire, a fleet, and.... now what? I could attack the Khaak, have attacked the Xenon, and it's not challenging. I didn't need the fleet. I have gone back to online FPSs for now - Im rubbish, so it's challenging, I can improve.

Now don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the time I spent playing X2, but I feel slightly misled. Yes, you build an empire, but I need a reason. It is ultimately the same reason I gave up playing EVE. I had loads of ships, up to a Moa class Cruiser bought from my corporation, but even with the online roleplaying nature it still felt like work, rather than play.

So I only gave this the 4th level option - it was ok, but won't keep me around - Im actually enjoying the forum more than the game now

Absolutely spot on. The X-Universe should be a challenging sparring partner, not the same old punch-bag its been since XBTF. The whole interactive side of things hasn't improved one iota over XT. Race interaction system remains the same, the races remain the same passive entities whose only response to you cutting a swathe of destruction through their space is to love you a tiny bit less etc etc et-endlessly-rehashed-over-the-years-on-these-boards-cetera.

I remain so disappointed with this. A whole lot less wasted time on silly cut scenes and graphics most machines can't display in their full glory when more depth was sorely needed.

X2 remains the best space sim around but essentially it's XT with a new pair of fur knickers when a new wardrobe was called for. The areas that were crying out for improvement in XT still wail even more forlornly, aware now that they are wasting their breath.

[Mon Mothma]

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say that I enjoyed X2 as much as Freelancer, no more, no less. However, I feel x2 is more deserving of my gaming bux.

Freelancer was all flash. The plot was ok. . . but there was no real depth. The interface was hot, controls well mapped, everything well laid out. It was a bit prettier than x2, and had a lot more windowdressing.

However, all unmodified freelancer servers play the same way. First person on with expirience can get to level 34 in 4 hours or less, and can get whatever level 10 ship they want, with full nomad guns and all the goodies they want. After that it is just the same drudgery. Sure there is TONS of atmosphere in the game, but it is lacking any sort of longterm goal or purpose. And you absolutely cannot change the universe at all.

x2 is exactly the opposite. Worse plot, much weaker cutscenes, in general worse ship levels (There is a lot more overlap in freelancer, which I like) though there is a HELL of a lot more depth to the game. You can build and destroy fabs, buy and destroy capships. Fly nearly any ship in the game including cap ships. But the universe feels smaller. Much better mapped. And once you hit liquid assets in the billion range, things get a bit pointless.

However, x2 actively solicits ideas from its fanbase. There is a chance, however minor, that I could make a difference on the game. That is a HUGE added value to me, and one of the reasons I don't mind being able to finish the plot in a single night.

[NeverSnake]

X2 is one of the broadest games I've ever played. It's not very deep though which is where it falls down.

Factories are all identically managed, pilots will only eject in one circumstance, sectors are all minor variations on the same theme, ships of the same model are all identical (but I want blue displays on my 90million phoenix!), the AI uses the same tactics for all ship classes, the races are very similar, interior docking bays are identical, most BBS messages are phrased the same whatever race they are from.

It's a decent game but by the same you've got a corvette and TL there isn't much to do and see that you havn't done and seen already.

More story would be nice but I'd be happy if some depth was added and the universe was made more lively.

[welsh_woody]

There is no way this game is the best out.

[Lutzie]

Waiting for elite 4.....

Don't hold your breath!
I voted for the second option. For game that's kept me entertained longest it stands second to Halo. For game that I loved the most it stands fifth, next to FreeSpace 2, Halo, Phantasy Star 4 and Shining the Holy Ark.

All in all great effort, and it continues to get better and better the more I play.

[BigVern]

[quote="White Tiger 30]

There was a plot/storyline in Privateer?

[/quote]

Most definitely, both in 1, 1a (Righteous Fire) and 2. Some of the missions in the original Privateer were rock hard, like the one where you had to map various sectors out at Rygannon, full of asteroids, Kilrathi and assorted pirates. Even worse if you'd honked off the militia and Hunters by then.

[Iron Jaw]

X2 could take a few pointers off freespace about how to put the fear of god into a player, with the shear scale of the ships in freespace and the frenetic pace of teh battles.
And the Storyline! it was one of the best iv seen in a computer game, bar Dues Ex and Half life.

If we had freespace's battles and the same scale of ships with its same style of combat combined with X2's tradeing and Do anything, be anything way of thinking.
we would have a very strong game indeed.

As for the storyline, if you gona have one *which i feel this game doesnt need* you might as well make it a damn good one WITH A DECENT ENDING.

If the Khaak had HALF of the enegmatic fear induceingness of the Shevians of freespace this would be a much better game, instead they are just anoying bastards.

BTW i never played Freespace 2, since its been getting so much praise iv realised what iv missed, E-bay here i come

Dont get me wrong, i LOVE X2, i voted for option 2.

[JackScratch]

BTW i never played Freespace 2, since its been getting so much praise iv realised what iv missed, E-bay here i come

As a completely unrelated side note, in honor of it's 20th anniversary, Interplay is rereleasing Freespace2 available directly from their online store only.

[Hendar23]

It quite funny the amount of people who are saying "I spent two solid months having great fun building up my empire and now there is nothing to do, this game sux!" I spent five solid hours completing Halo, and then it was uninstalled and forgotten about. I know which game I prefer...