I remember years and years ago when the original Freespace came out. I played it every day every night. It made me a gamer. That was then. I never was able to get a hold of FS2 however, until 2 years ago via gog.com . I played it before upgrading anything. It was my childhood all over again only BETTER! This is one of the best games our there even to this day. The storyline, while helpful that it is to know form the original, is well summarized form the start. you have simple but helpful instructions and training that when finally completed even earns you one of many medals that you feel like you always have EARNED. the promotion system is rewarding, while subtle, the debriefings always realistic, weather you shoot your friends and die or jump out early or just finished the mission. You even are allowed finally to move on if you fail 5 times, which believe me for some mission is a send. You are a pilot though, and you never forget that is ALL you are, but its not a bad thing, no you feel that rush of your adrenaline trying to destroy this or that. you hear teh warning of the missile alert your constantly adjusting engine shield weapon power, your never at a lost or hesitant with your controls and every single control IS changable. That is just the tip of the iceberg. The graphics even before they were upgraded by the scp project are astounding the music perfect and the sounds riveting! voice acting could be a SMIDGE better but not overly much. the storyline is immensely immersive however. you finish the game with a loss that is wonderful but heartbreaking. You want to know more, you want to continue the fight even after all that has happened....but you cant...the worst and saddest part of this game is the fact that despite the MASSIVE mods and enhancements out there..there is no conclusion..there is no end to the story. This game is going to make you fall in love with space...if only to feel its loss knowing its gone. Get this game. There isn't anything more unique and more amazing.
