Amazing game. Played this when it first came out. Great atmosphere. Missions structure, action, graphics for the time but that are still totally playable today. Some interesting features were the underwater currents that affected movement, the way you could upgrade turrets on the ships by purchasing better software. the base design, the world lore. In short, a hell **** that deserves to be rediscovered by gamers!
Loved it when it came out, (you know, the time when brand new PC-Games used to cost around 10,- Euros (20,-DM) :) Grandiose Atmosphere and easy, stable gameplay...nothing like the digital distribution from last year. Missions where a little unbalanced, some where so hard that you had to try a couple of times. The new version i tried is without video sequences, which is really bad ... i missed them. The software on the submarines where fun, liked to trade a lot to get the better ship soon as possible and went to the massage salon from time to time.
Sort of Privateer 2 under the sea instead of Space. Well presented, strong story, good graphics, terrific soundtrack. Innovative setting too.
It amazes me that I'm the first reviewer here. But then it only ever had a cult following I think.
Worth resurrecting your old PC for!
It sure isn't for everyone, but i gave up on Freespace/WingCommander becuase i wasn't good enough. Also it was just too much on rails for me. Privateer 2 hadn't enough story & was too open. I did love Descent 2 & 3 though. So for me it's a classic like "Baldur's Gate", "Diablo", "Doom", "Carmageddon", "NeedForSpeed", "Master of Otion 2", "C&C"... However i have to say, playing the GoG version with just a keyboard is hard (crashes when i try to use my ps4-pad), especially because it can't handle simoulteaneus keyboard presses (at least not all the time)! So yes today its way more buggy than back in 1996. And by todays standards it has broken controls, but so do all of the mentioned titles.
All the ridiculous praise surrounding this game tempted me into playing, especially that it was released on GOG lately - imagine my disappointment. Every good thing you've ever heard is just pure nostalgia haze (or maybe should I say narcotic trip?). Poorly designed, barely playable, bug-ridden, broken mess.
Not only very basics of the game are flawed (terribly unresponsive controls), targeting enemies sometimes works, sometimes does not, scripts often don't execute, making you restart missions, some ships you are to protect have 0.1 health and go down if someone even bumps them, this supposedly great trading system is just as linear and boring as in newer Aquanox, before you're halfway through the campaign everything becomes tedious and boring. Story is really basic, dialog is moronic (and poorly translated from german). Guys had good starting idea, but totally failed with execution.
Why some ppl call this turd "classic" and put it in the same league as "Baldur's Gate", "Doom","Carmageddon", or "Diablo", is beyond me. Don't waste money, don't waste time.