[Luis Dias]

Freespace needs a ****ton of buttons (half a keyboard), so no.

[An4ximandros]

 Selecting the target of my target's target of the target it is looking at while shooting a missile at the target it previously selected while targeting the target of the target's target of the mission objective is a superfluous command.

[The E]

Despite ShivanSpS' efforts, I am throroughly convinced that translating FS' formula into iOS or Android is basically impossible. You can make games set in that universe, but they won't be spacesims.

[deathfun]

Freespace needs a ****ton of buttons (half a keyboard), so no.

It does not need a ****ton of buttons. It just so happens to use a ****ton, but you can easily play the game without a whole crapton of those

[Luis Dias]

Yeah, but at least like twenty or so, already without counting basic maneuver skills (like roll!)

Like, 6 just for energy/shield/engine, Target nearest enemy, friendly, target, turret, etc., primary and secondary shooting, primary and secondary cycles, thrust, match speed, accelerate, decelerate, F4 for conversation, and so on and so on and so on.

Yeah, it's perfectly possible to design a game with a lot less buttons. But here's my point: That's not Freespace. That's a new game.

[Oddgrim]

The only way I could see Freespace work on a mobile device with would be to simplify the heck out of the controls and make it a rail shooter. The result would most likely be terrible but hey, we get deus ex: the fall on a mobile device and that was a first person shooter. :1 (And I predict it would be awful, just like the mass effect spin off on ios.)

[Luis Dias]

Yeah so why bother at all?

[ShivanSpS]

Despite ShivanSpS' efforts, I am throroughly convinced that translating FS' formula into iOS or Android is basically impossible. You can make games set in that universe, but they won't be spacesims.

My intention was to play FS2 on Android with keyboard, and later on figure out if a touch UI can even be viable... i do use my tablet with some chinese $10 later case + Keyboard, my HTPC is also a android based device.
There is also a few cheap 10" and 13" ARM laptops around, as long they can run linux, i can use them.

[Dragon]

It does not need a ****ton of buttons. It just so happens to use a ****ton, but you can easily play the game without a whole crapton of those

Indeed. I only used a few when I only had a joystick and a keyboard (for instance, I hardly even switched weapons). Later, when I got a better stick, I put some stuff there and started using it. Still, stuff like shield management wasn't needed (just mashing "Q" when things got hot). Now that I own a full CH HOTAS, I've got almost everything right under my fingers, and somehow, naturally, came to use all this keys. I don't know about the others, but I have a feeling that you only use as many keys as you can comfortably access, and a well designed control scheme (FS2 defaults do it quite well) will allow you to play with just that.

[Luis Dias]

Except in those sets you would not have that flexibility. You would just not have those commands.

Many mods, for instance, would not work. Again, it's a different game. And it's alright that it's a different game. Call it FS version iOS, or Wii Freespace or etc. You'd have to redesign not only the UI, but also gameplay and all the levels to recalibrate gameplay, difficulty, etc.

Personally speaking, I think FS belongs to the PC. Any ports to a different console would be a spin-off. Could be fun, not saying otherwise!

[SypheDMar]

Any spinoffs that can lead more players to PC FreeSpace might be a great thing! I imagine that any port would be simplified as well (maybe even a demo with a few missions ending with an encouragement to buy the "authentic" PC version), and that could garner interest in the franchise.

[Klaustrophobia]

a demo that convinces people to buy a DIFFERENT game would be a colossal failure in its intended purpose.  especially when the other game brings in $6 instead of the full price of a new game. 

when was the last time a demo was offered anyway?  a proper demo, not an alpha/beta release.

[Luis Dias]

Yes, exactly, might as well build an entire different IP with its own distinct awesomeness mythical story, etc. Of course, anything that has come after FS2 pales in comparison mythically wise, and it feels that if someone would just catch this IP again, then the magic would re-emerge. But I'm way more sceptical than that. FS2 is much deeper, intricate and richer than a cursory examination of it would suggest, and because its riches are ingrained in subtlety rather than obviousness, I am afraid I trust exactly zero people to catch this IP and do something worthwhile of it.

And if somehow such developers do understand FS2, then why wouldn't they just be able to do their own distinct IP anyway? Mass Effect was something interesting in its own right, for example.

[Starks]

We should just get a Kickstarter going and buy Freespace from Interplay.

With enough promoting on Reddit and other social media, we could easily give them double what they paid.

And then once we have the IP we give it to a competent developer or develop here like the SCP was. Maybe we could sell the a finished product through Kickstarter but not screw up like Ouya did.

[Phantom Hoover]

What's the point? The FS universe is in a pretty good place right now from modding efforts, I don't really see what there is to gain from buying the IP and making an 'official' FS3 beyond a kind of childish wish fulfilment.

[azile0]

Question. Since the SCP is technically using Freespace 2's source code, could Interplay claim copyright and "steal" the SCP to re-sell as a modern re-release?

[SypheDMar]

Volition Copyright (applies to original FreeSpace2 source code
developed and released by Volition):

"Copyright (C) Volition, Inc. 1999.  All rights reserved.

All source code herein is the property of Volition, Inc. You may not
sell or otherwise commercially exploit the source or things you
created based on the source."


Modifications by members of the FreeSpace Source Code Project are
released under whatever terms the individual authors choose, but the
above notice continues to apply to all fs2_open code.

I don't think so, unless we let them.

[karajorma]

From multi_sexp.h

/*
 * Created by Hassan "Karajorma" Kazmi for the FreeSpace2 Source Code Project.
 * You may not sell or otherwise commercially exploit the source or things you
 * create based on the source.
 */

Right back at you source thieves.


I know Goober uses pretty much the same wording for any files he created himself. IIRC Kazan's stuff also did something similar. So they'd need to work hard to remove all that stuff first.