Once you've gotten used to (or gotten over) the 2D space mechanics, the general gameplay experience is very reminiscent of Privateer and Freelancer: grind a bit with trading to acquire nicer gear, then grind on missions to earn more money, etc. Like those games, there's an inconsequential story plotline to follow at your leisure - Rebel Galaxy's kind of felt derivative of Freelancer's (there are aliens, you're the snowflake to save the galaxy) and a mobile game called Asteroid Miner I played a few years ago. It isn't interesting. Stations have a bit less atmosphere than its inspirations, and the various star systems are pretty much indistinguishable from one another, unlike Privateer or Freelancer. Depending on how maneuverable a ship you've got, combat can range from dog-fighty to broadsidey. It's different from most action-oriented space sims. So the gameplay is an interesting pastiche of the past, it mostly obscures the all the spreadsheets that make a game like this tick. But the music - it's an excellent space-western, Firefly kind of soundtrack. Although the lyrics are a bit odd for games - one song's lyrics are about suicide, another is something like "she's a cold-hearted sleeze".
