X - Rebirth

Alrik Fassbauer · April 20, 2011

Hello, everyone,

well, it seems that Egosoft does kind of a "reboot" of the X series ? I don't quite understand everything right now, but fact is, they have started a new game : "X Rebirth".

Link : http://www.x-rebirth.com
Trailer : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LabrDe4XJo0

According to the brand new newsletter, the Premiere is scheduled to be on the Fed Con in Germany next weekend ...
I won't go there, because it just is too expensive for me ...

But I'm still curious ...

The game goals will remain the same - in principle, says the newsletter. But it also says that the new game will contain many new things they just couldn't implement in the old games ...

Alrik

Von Paulus · April 20, 2011

Good news. We have a deficit of space games.

Roi Danton · April 21, 2011

Von Paulus said:
Good news. We have a deficit of space games.

Yes we do. But sadly (or thankfully for those who like it) X is more Elite than Wing Commander.

To much trading and talking and not enough shooting and story stuff.

Ha, no matter. I'll just continue playing Fresspace 2.

Nerevarine · April 21, 2011

Roi Danton said:
Yes we do. But sadly (or thankfully for those who like it) X is more Elite than Wing Commander. To much trading and talking and not enough shooting and story stuff.

Ha, no matter. I'll just continue playing Fresspace 2.

Have you played Darkstar One? It pales in comparison to Freespace 2, but it's still a fun and solid game that is good for a space sim fix. Also, it focuses more on the combat or "mercenary" side than the economical side - which is a big plus in my book when it comes to space sims. I'd much rather be a badass fighter pilot than a glorified stockbroking agent/errand boy

(I say that despite the fact that X3 ate up more hours of my life than I'd like to share and is an incredible game

)

Roi Danton · April 21, 2011

Nerevarine said:
Have you played Darkstar One? It pales in comparison to Freespace 2, but it's still a fun and solid game that is good for a space sim fix. Also, it focuses more on the combat or "mercenary" side than the economical side - which is a big plus in my book when it comes to space sims. I'd much rather be a badass fighter pilot than a glorified stockbroking agent/errand boy (I say that despite the fact that X3 ate up more hours of my life than I'd like to share and is an incredible game )

Yeah, I actually bought Darkstar One on release day and enjoyed it. I'll plan to buy the GOG version as soon as I have time to play it again.

The thing is: I don't mind a bit of trading and stuff, I just want a good campaign (aka Freelancer or Privateer). And I just don't understand why there aren't at least one or two moderate to big budget space sims out there. With todays garphics (like X) it would be awesome and you could sell on consoles because the two analog sticks are good for playing stuff like that.

But whatever, I'm also waiting on a new Mech game. But there should at least be a Mechwarrior in development - unless they canceled it and I didn't notice.

Nerevarine · April 21, 2011

Roi Danton said:
Yeah, I actually bought Darkstar One on release day and enjoyed it. I'll plan to buy the GOG version as soon as I have time to play it again.

The thing is: I don't mind a bit of trading and stuff, I just want a good campaign (aka Freelancer or Privateer). And I just don't understand why there aren't at least one or two moderate to big budget space sims out there. With todays garphics (like X) it would be awesome and you could sell on consoles because the two analog sticks are good for playing stuff like that.

But whatever, I'm also waiting on a new Mech game. But there should at least be a Mechwarrior in development - unless they canceled it and I didn't notice.

I just started playing Darkstar One last week, and I'm also enjoying it so far. My big complaint so far (and this may change as I get farther in the game) is that enemy fighters are a lot slower than the player, which takes a little bit of the thrill away dog-fights. Still, it's a fun game that seems well-made and well-designed. It's a real shame that the developer who made it went out of business before getting a chance to make a sequel to flesh the game out.

I completely understand where you are coming from with the economical aspects. I like to have it there and with solid depth included, but some games force the player to focus far too much on that side instead of creating exciting random encounters (Darkstar) or well-crafted, thrilling campaign missions (Freespace 2).

Sadly, the space-sim genre is all but dead…Darkstar One and X3 are the only recent space-sims to come out - and I believe Darkstar was released in 2006! It is confusing, because as you've pointed out, with the technology that is available, a developer could make a truly amazing space-sim almost as a "spiritual successor" to Elite, Wing Commander, and Freespace. Sadly, the need to have a joystick seems to limit the potential market for space-sims on the PC, and it's already a niche market to begin with. I'm not sure how well a space-sim would do on a console either; they might have two analog sticks available, but every space-sim I've played requires a lot of different button presses throughout the keyboard that would make mapping a control scheme very difficult (but not impossible) on a console controller. Still, one can only hope that the genre will be revived - I'm sure there are a lot of people that would love another Freespace 2 experience.

Roi Danton · April 21, 2011

Nerevarine said:
I just started playing Darkstar One last week, and I'm also enjoying it so far. My big complaint so far (and this may change as I get farther in the game) is that enemy fighters are a lot slower than the player, which takes a little bit of the thrill away dog-fights. Still, it's a fun game that seems well-made and well-designed. It's a real shame that the developer who made it went out of business before getting a chance to make a sequel to flesh the game out.

I completely understand where you are coming from with the economical aspects. I like to have it there and with solid depth included, but some games force the player to focus far too much on that side instead of creating exciting random encounters (Darkstar) or well-crafted, thrilling campaign missions (Freespace 2).

Sadly, the space-sim genre is all but dead…Darkstar One and X3 are the only recent space-sims to come out - and I believe Darkstar was released in 2006! It is confusing, because as you've pointed out, with the technology that is available, a developer could make a truly amazing space-sim almost as a "spiritual successor" to Elite, Wing Commander, and Freespace. Sadly, the need to have a joystick seems to limit the potential market for space-sims on the PC, and it's already a niche market to begin with. I'm not sure how well a space-sim would do on a console either; they might have two analog sticks available, but every space-sim I've played requires a lot of different button presses throughout the keyboard that would make mapping a control scheme very difficult (but not impossible) on a console controller. Still, one can only hope that the genre will be revived - I'm sure there are a lot of people that would love another Freespace 2 experience.

It should be no problem to make a space sim playable by mouse. Freelancer did this and I think I played Darkstar One with mouse. And I recently noticed that even Freespace 2 is playable by mouse although it's not nearly as good as with a joystick. I do think though that the control problems, also with regard to console controlers, could be solved by an intelligent control scheme. If it's possible to play RPGs like Oblivion or Fallout New Vegas and shooters on consoles than this shouldn't be problem. Tom Clancys Hawks for example works rather well (the game isn't good IMO, but that has nothing to do with controls).

Now that I think of it I would really like space combat with a Fallout-like pause function. That could also solve some of the control problems.

Alrik Fassbauer · April 21, 2011

I would never buy a game that uses the mouse only.
That was my saddest "WTF ?!?!?!"-effect I had with a game : With Freelancer, that is.
I was sooo much looking forward to that game ! - And then - mouse support only. I hated it from that moment on.
And no matter what pople say, I outright refuse to play it that way.

Thrasher · April 21, 2011

What about Space Rangers 2? That looks like a lot of fun and variety, with the text adventures, RT mech missions, and arcade style black hole combats to mix things up.

Nerevarine · April 21, 2011

Roi Danton said:
It should be no problem to make a space sim playable by mouse. Freelancer did this and I think I played Darkstar One with mouse. And I recently noticed that even Freespace 2 is playable by mouse although it's not nearly as good as with a joystick. I do think though that the control problems, also with regard to console controlers, could be solved by an intelligent control scheme. If it's possible to play RPGs like Oblivion or Fallout New Vegas and shooters on consoles than this shouldn't be problem. Tom Clancys Hawks for example works rather well (the game isn't good IMO, but that has nothing to do with controls).

Now that I think of it I would really like space combat with a Fallout-like pause function. That could also solve some of the control problems.

You're absolutely right, there's no reason why a space-sim can't utilize the mouse+keyboard effectively. However, I just personally feel that it doesn't do the experience justice when compared to using a joystick, but that's just my personal taste. You're also right about console controllers and the need for a creative control scheme (which is why I said it would be difficult, but certainly not impossible). I think Mass Effect actually had a very effective control scheme for managing several different abilities/actions/commands that simply could not be mapped to a controller's individual buttons. The "ability wheel" or something similar might just work for a space-sim on a console controller, especially if bringing the wheel up paused the game.

Nerevarine · April 21, 2011

Alrik Fassbauer said:
I would never buy a game that uses the mouse only.
That was my saddest "WTF ?!?!?!"-effect I had with a game : With Freelancer, that is.
I was sooo much looking forward to that game ! - And then - mouse support only. I hated it from that moment on.
And no matter what pople say, I outright refuse to play it that way.

I also remember being disappointed in how Freelancer's gameplay was implemented, and the lack of being able to use a joystick. However, that was done very intentionally; I remember years ago reading a comment from a developer who said something along the lines of wanting to make Freelancer more accessible (as in, so people other than space-sim enthusiasts with joysticks would be interested in the game), and to achieve this, the game was designed to use just the mouse+ keyboard. I still enjoyed the game, but it really wasn't anywhere near as enjoyable as using a joystick in something like Freespace 2.

Alrik Fassbauer · April 21, 2011

I do accept their design-decision; however, this decision is something I cannot live with, personally ...

(The bottom line is that I always had the feeling as if this was kind of "forced" by microsoft to push the sales of MS mice or so ...)

Von Paulus · April 21, 2011

Roi Danton said:
Yes we do. But sadly (or thankfully for those who like it) X is more Elite than Wing Commander. To much trading and talking and not enough shooting and story stuff.

Ha, no matter. I'll just continue playing Fresspace 2.

Actually I'm an Elite fan, since I played it in C64.
But now I'm in a mood for a Wing Commander or a Tie-Fighter type. That would be nice.
If you play Freespace you will have soon Wing Commander Saga. My main problem with Freespace is the absence of cockpit. I've seen that they are modding that.

dteowner · April 22, 2011

Thrasher said:
What about Space Rangers 2? That looks like a lot of fun and variety, with the text adventures, RT mech missions, and arcade style black hole combats to mix things up.

I had a good time with that one. Not the best game I've ever played, but I think I paid $20 for the boxed version and it was definately worth that loot. As you point out, there's more variety than your typical 4X game and some very light RPG aspects thrown in for good measure, which more than makes up for the somewhat simplistic design. Nice thing with it is that it's easy to play in bursts of different lengths- from the 20 minute quickie to the 8 hour marathon and it's not a major killer if you walk away from it for a week and then jump back in (unlike some TBS and RPG where you quickly lose your bearings if you're not playing every day or two).

Thrasher · April 22, 2011

Thanks, DTE! I may bump it up ahead of MoO2 and X3:Terran Conflict.

inakaguy · April 22, 2011

Very excited about this. Love the open world of the X series, but I would love to see some kind of system like the one in Mount and Blade, or going back, Sid Meier's Pirates, where you can take control of sectors for yourself or give them to one of the factions. I found in the X3 games, once I had a load of money and cap ships I ran out of things to do with them.

I also could not get into Freelancer because of the mouse controls. Just didn't feel right to me. Felt more like playing a game of missile defence.

Zloth · April 22, 2011

TIE fighters? X3's got them! (With a little modding. OK, a lot of modding.

)

There is that whole EVE thing, too. Big time space game, though I've never played it.

Starpoint Gemini would be even more recent. (Though I wasn't having all that much fun in the first few hours.)

Anyway... I haven't gotten the newsletter yet but I'm reading the forums. Looks like they are going to smooth the learning curve a bit. "It gets easy... at first." They've also mentioned that you have a female companion, though that could be Betty, your shipboard computer. We'll know more next weekend.

Not much time left for me to finish that HUB plot.

wiretripped · April 22, 2011

Pretty trailer.

Actually, I'm thinking of trying my hand at the X games. They sound pretty neat, but which one would you recommend?
I prefer one of the more recent ones. Which one is better? X3: Reunion or X3: Terran Conflict?

Zloth · April 22, 2011

I would say X3:TC. Essentially, they are all the same game. Egosoft has been working on it for many years now, adding more features and fixing more bugs. Every few years the put a bunch of new features together with new plots and release it as the next version. (This whole 'rebirth' thing is them actually dumping the original game completely and starting fresh.) So I would say X3:TC simply because it's the most advanced version of the game.

Stay away from the Terran start. Terran space is neat but they've got all those super-huge stations with super-huge docking lanes so it takes forever to park. It's much more enjoyable in there after you've bought a Paranid docking computer.

Tragos · April 28, 2011

inakaguy said:
once I had a load of money and cap ships I ran out of things to do with them

Did you try to eliminate all races in the universe?

X - Rebirth

TL;DR

Sentinel

Sentinel

Keeper of the Watch

Sentinel

Keeper of the Watch

Sentinel

TL;DR

Wheeee!

Keeper of the Watch

Keeper of the Watch

TL;DR

Sentinel

Shoegazer

Wheeee!

Traveler

I smell a... wumpus!?

Machiavellian

I smell a... wumpus!?

Otinanist