Rebel Galaxy

It plays like naval combat in space - only turning left and right, firing broadsides. Not what one expects from this kind of game. And controls are very obviously laid out for console gamers. Plus a lack of some obvious options - no in-flight inventory control/freight management, for example. But strangely, these deficits don't even matter when you're flying across this galaxy, looking for bounties (and selling their stuff). This game works excellently, plain and simple.

Like in many similar games, I never feel like I'm commanding a cruiser sized ship because of the total lack of any interaction with the crew that thing must have. Other than that the gameplay is fun and the graphics look nice. What I've seen of the main plot looks well written too. Being stuck to a single plane doesn't really bother me that much, although I think it's a bit lazy of the devs.

I have to say, I am really enjoying this game. While it can get monotonous, if you are into this kind of a space shooting / freelancing, you won't mind the monotony. One thing that takes some getting used to is that the game doesn't allow you to change your position vertially - but that's probably good, since otherwise you would never be able to line up your broadsides. The game is really polished, has some pretty decent voiceover and a range of activities to keep you occupied while you're not following the storyline, pretty impressive ship designs and fun gameplay. You can trade, but it likely won't ever be your main source of income - I would say that the missions should probably pay a little more than they do, because as it is it takes a lot of grinding to move forward with upgrading your equipment and ship. Pros: You get to fly at least a frigate, with destroyers in the future, the shooting and destruction of enemy ships is satisfying, the story doesn't seem half bad, the graphics are really pretty and it can be pretty addictive Cons: Grinding, lack of proper tutorial, takes quite a bit of getting used to in terms of not being able to move vertically. I would say overall 9/10 but I'd give it 5 stars because it's more a 9 towards 10 than 8.

It was free. I wouldn't buy it though. The spaceship is stuck in a flat plane, which causes the fights to be a boxed kill and ruins exploration possibilities. Usually when a game is this restrictive it has a story. The terrible controls and obscure interface ensure I won't get to see that story. BUT it was free. (opinion only) - The redneck music is loud and annoying and takes away from the atmosphere.

I really want to love Rebel Galaxy, and I suppose I do on some level. It's a space trading and fighting game in the vein of Freelancer that looks great, runs great and does a lot of things right. Trading in particular is an amusing diversion, especially when you choose to engage in smuggling and wind up fleeing from overzealous enforcers. The story so far (a few missions in) is passable, and might yet prove interesting enough to keep me playing, and the cowboy-esque sci-fi universe is charming. Sadly, the naval-style combat and lack of Z-axis player movement are massive sources of frustration—very near dealbreaking frustration, if I'm totally honest. As a result of this design choice, the camera is highly restricted and behaves in a wonky manner when tracking enemies. Smaller varieties of baddies (the majority) are perfectly able to zip around your floating brick of a ship in three dimensions, as well as attack from above and below. If the developers had set the game on a water planet, with ships and submarines instead of spacecraft, maybe things would be different, but the science geek in me just can't get over the "space is an ocean" trope. I tentatively recommend Rebel Galaxy on the basis of everything except the movement and combat. Sadly, movement and combat permeate almost every aspect of the game, and these things never improve no matter how good the rest of the experience is.