Freespace 2
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Easy-to-use mods brought me back to ‘Freespace 2’
Game genres can wax and wane in popularity. It's a sad truth that two of my favorites, real-time strategy and space simulation games, have been on the decline since the glory days of Tie Fighter and Warcraft. We may never see the likes of Warcraft 3 again, but in recent years there have been some valiant attempts to revive the space sim, with releases like Everspace, Rebel Galaxy, and Elite breathing new life into the genre. But I haven't been playing any of those, because all my free time has been completely consumed by Freespace 2.
Interplay retrieves Freespace IP from THQ for $7,500
Freespace, the interstellar combat series developed by Volition and published by Interplay, is now back in Interplay's library, fully and officially, following a stint at THQ. Interplay paid $7,500 to snag the Freespace rights in a THQ bankruptcy sale this month. THQ was bound to find some emotionally rich items in the back corners of its closet eventually – but Freespace wasn't going to save the company, it seems. Interplay never lost the right to sell Descent: Freespace and Freespace 2, even after THQ bought Volition in 2000, when Interplay itself neared bankruptcy. Let the rampant sequel speculation begin.
Someone had to go and bring up 'Freespace 3' again
Having your Google Alerts calibrated to detect the faintest murmurings of never-gonna-happen sequels -- like No One Lives Forever 3, Anachronox 2 and Shenmue 3 -- is a form of self-torture that's unique to the internet and acute within the games press. That's why it's a common flippin' courtesy, NowGamer, to avoid the tragic topic of Freespace 3 when you interview someone at Volition. "You have no idea," Volition producer Jim Boone says. "There is a group of people that would commit murder to do that game. The biggest problem that we have is... oh man, that game is so beloved. I did a bunch of missions for both games and it's so dear to my heart I can't even tell you. The problem we had was Freescape 2 didn't sell as well..." And the selfish problem we have now: Volition is doing good work on Saints Row and Red Faction with owner THQ, which hasn't dared to touch the Freespace rights. To be fair ... they must reek by now, having been pinned under the immobile body of Interplay since 1999. Boone is less direct in attributing failure, theorizing that the celebrated (and still supported) space sim lost out due to widespread adoption of keyboards and mice, and the accompanying dereliction of standalone joysticks. (The first game in the series, Descent: Freespace, was once included as a freebie with a couple of PC joysticks.) "So people just stopped getting joysticks. They were just gone," he says. "And then you still had console, but it was all digital - so my theory has been, ever since we've got analogue as a standard controller for consoles no one has done a heavy-duty, top, top quality space sim on console." If you missed Freespace 2 (despite the fact that it had ROBERT LOGGIA), you might find more relevance by ignoring the question of sequels and licenses, and considering why the space sim genre hasn't found good representation on modern consoles, outside of a few oddities like Project Sylpheed. Our controllers are complex enough to give impetus to simpler, motion-enabled alternatives, and we certainly haven't grown tired of shooting aliens. Also, how about you just call it Darkspacers? (Note to people arriving here from Google Alerts for No One Lives Forever 3, Anachronox 2 and Shenmue 3: welcome to the cycle of misery.)
