The game is easy to get into and is overall solid in its execution. However every aspect lacks depth. The combat is bland, doesn't require aiming or timing your shots. Same goes for trading, which exibits the same issue as 2004 freelancer where every item takes the same amount of space in cargo, so only the most expensive items you can afford remain relevant.
Also not much is done in term of immersion, interaction with the environnement is shallow. For example docking at a station is just a matter of being close enouth to instantly transition to a menu screen. At no point do you feel like a pilot at the helm of a ship, you are the ship in a very artificial world.
Mild spoiler alert (I wont mention names)
Early on there is a mission where you need to meet someone and talk to them, and then bad guys try to kill you + the other person. You defend against the attackers, but SUDDENLY, FOR NO REASON, your ship starts to target the person you were meeting with and they comment on their ship taking damage and then they blow up. They randomly become enemies for NO REASON. So I figured, this is really bad because I lost reputation so I quit to the main menu since the game only lets you save when you dock with a station. I select my save game, load back in. WELL WELL WELL! WHAT DO YOU KNOW!? THE GAME SAVES WHEN YOU QUIT! Thanks a lot Double Damage Games. Thanks a whole lot. Now I have to live with this terrible choice that the game forced me into by having a bugged mission, or start my game all over again and suffer the grind and the tedium all over again. This is extremely rude and sneaky on the part of the developer for not allowing me to save at any time, and then forcing me to save when I didn't want to without my knowledge or consent, because I have essentially been railroaded into a decision that I did not want, and did not choose to make, and then forced to get stuck with the consequences of what are literally NOT my choices. I am so mad right now that I had to log back in and write this very frustrated review.
With all that being said, I don't regret my purchase at all. This game is AMAZING, and totally worth buying, even though the ship can only go left and right, not up and down. It's actually kind of convenient in a weird way, but I do prefer the freedom of moving in any angle. However, the game does a VERY good job of making the player forget that they are moving on a horizontal plane. I love how it lets you select your own custom music to play it in game and it's just a really fun and decent experience, aside from the few glaring issues here and there.
I'm having loads of fun, and I really think that this is a hidden gem
This is my first review - and I write it, so that others don't make the same mistake like me.
The game looks nice, the soundtrack is awesome, personally I'm always happy when I can play with starships. However, you can only move your ship in the horizontal plane. Basicly, you turn left or right, and you do this a lot because your starship is designed like a friggin sailing ship from Nelson: the cannons are on both sides... Yes, really, you have to exchange broadsides. This could be still fun, if you could aim. Alas, you can't. This is done automaticly. So, yes, basicly, you only fly left and right. :(
Buy only if you like to make money as a merchant.
Everything about this game is great -- combat, navigation, trading, exploration, factions, graphics, music are all excellent and make this game worth buying. I can't imagine anyone not enjoying this game.
Unfortunately, by the time you hit the third or forth system, the game starts to become a grind if you spend too much time taking missions, mining, and/or trading. You'll probably already have the best ship fairly early on, and though there are better weapons and systems to buy as the game progresses, they're just better versions of weapons and systems you probably already have.
I'd recommend trying to focus more on completing story quests rather trying to amass credits and exploring every sector of each system, and hopefully you'll be able to finish the game before it starts to feel repetitive.
Own this game on steam, and it is FANTASTIC. The problem with the modern space sim, is that it finds itself caught up in trying to cater to two different audiences. There are people who just want SPAAACE and all that it entails. Those guys who like to fly around and look at nebulas and stuff. Then there are people who just want a sandbox to play around in.
Rebel Galaxy steps it up a notch. It may seem streamlined and 'dumbed' down in comparison to the standing heavyweights like Starpoint Gemini 2, X3:Terran Conflict and Freelancer, but it outshines them all in one aspect. FUN. SPG2 couldn't get immersion right. X3:TC couldn't get entertainment and story right. Freelancer couldn't quite get challenge or ease of use right. Rebel Galaxy knocks it out of the park. Where Evochron Mercenary felt lifeless, this game has it in SPADES. Talking to bartenders, other pilots, and your enemies never gets old. Its similar to the X series where you can just hail other pilots and discuss trades, events, or things like that. Getting a tip on a sweet deal on the edge of the star system never gets old.
The game has procedurally generated galaxies, and each system feels BIG. I think they feel alot more alive and interesting then the ones in X3 or SPG2, mainly because it feels like SPACE. Those titles had so much STUFF in their systems I honestly felt like I was in an overcrowded fish tank.
Combat is enjoyable, but restricted to a horizontal playing field. You feel like a car...until you master combat. Being in a massive capital ship you have turrets, broadside cannons, and various other things. I don't think it would be as fun on a 3D playing field.
Graphically its very good looking, and the story is actually quite good! It rivals Freelancer's from what I've seen, and it blows SPG2 and X3's out of the water. My only worry is a lack of buyable ships (Easily under 20, depending on what factions you work with) and a lack of factional gameplay. GET. THIS GAME!
