[Nik]

was curious to see how many of u guys reckon FS 2 is the best space sim ever made? Is this a fair enough proclamation?

I remember playing X-Wing back in the day but I've never seen anything quite like FS 2!

Thoughts?

[Roanoke]

strictly speaking, FS is more of an arcade style shoot 'em up.

Otherwise, yeah, I can't think of any that do it better.

[Nik]

yeah i can see where ur coming from abt the style, although its a bit deeper than an actual arcade space shooter lol.....

there games like Terminus which model physics very accurately and are more genuine "sims" but they just dont give as satisying a gaming experience for sci fi buffs.....Im not totally sure but isnt FS the only game with cap ships that big and able to fight each other....

I remember the cap ships from X-wing and Tie fighter but not quite like the behemoths in FS, cant remember the ones in Wing Commander etc

[ShivanSpS]

In combat, FS is the best of the best.

In effects, graphics, well, X3 have some better textures, planets, but FS have much better explocions, and we are not even talking about impact decals.

[Fergus]

Freespace has certainly been the most satisfying space sim/arcade shooter/explosions gallery I've ever played.  It's just filled with all those moments that make a game for me.  Diving out the way of the scariest looking ship I'd seen in a long long time, evading waves of flack and beam fire to drop that killing blow, frantically fighting off hordes of bombers and intercepting those devilish warheads, watching a vast warship the size of a small continent getting oblitterated by one the size of a planet.  Don't get me wrong, there are some good games out there (The X-wing series always has a place in my heart), but FS for me, is hands down, the best.

[Cyker]

My fav. space combat sim is still TIE Fighter, mainly because the plot really immersed me.

FS2's is a bit half-arsed, and the enemy AI is utter ****e compared to the X-Wing and TIE Fighter games.

FS2 scores points for scale - Everything is just HUGE... I feel so insignificant in FS2, whereas in TF and XW you often single-handedly destroy every cap ship in the mission

And it looks pretty

Freelancer and the Elite games still have a place in my heart because they are open-ended and just allow so much exploration.

[Mars]

At this point I think FS2O is pretty hard to beat, it certainly has some of the best graphics in a space sim. The pace is just right two, some of the I-War, from what I've X3, and the Wing Commander games, Privateer in preticular, were just too slow, and simple things took ages

[Ghostavo]

No other game makes use of pyric victories as good as FS and FS2.

The main enemy, although thwarted still looks almost as invincible as the first time it appeared and not a pushover like in other sims.

[Eishtmo]

You ask this question in a place that was basically created around the game?

Freespace 2 was so good, it practically killed the genre.

[Colonol Dekker]

I love Wing Commander and FS2 equaly in different ways, Somhow FS2 pulls off a more evolved combat method, WC has been part of my childhood and will stay with me, Hopefuly the WC mod will spawn a bastard child of both that will bring a new appreciation of both from the games opposite audience

[AlphaOne]

yep while fs 2 is more of an arcade stile its the best i've played so far!

[SadisticSid]

FS2's is a bit half-arsed, and the enemy AI is utter ****e compared to the X-Wing and TIE Fighter games.

I love the pre-XWA games as much as anyone, but that is a very far-fetched claim. Yes, Freespace's AI may crash into other ships a lot, but all the Star Wars space sim fighters did was attack you head on, fly straight for about 5 seconds so you could turn around and get a few shots off, then turn back towards you and repeat. To be fair, it's not much different in FS2, but attack patterns are a lot more varied and apart from the horrendous collision problems with big ships and formations, that's better for me.

[Flaser]

Anyone claiming that the FS2 AI is half arsed haven't got the guts to turn up the difficulty.
Which makes them pretty much that: difficult.

Slide capable ships like the Mara are particulary deadly.

[Tyrian]

FS2 is the best, but I'm basing that more on the player community than on the game's content itself (which is excellent).  Without the community, we wouldn't have such an incredible game today. 

[Off Topic]

Has anyone ever figured out what causes all those in game collisions?  An AI script error maybe?