Are there any that are still considered the best in the genre and better than post-retro ones? Is there any consensus on the best?Any that's not complex for the sake of complex and feeling like work?
>>11351062If you want less work, so more mission focused gameplay, you'll want games like the Wing Commander, X Wing or Freespace series.For my money, Wing Commander IV is my favourite.
>>11351093...that said, Freelancer is a fantastic game. Definitely one of the best in terms of merc/trading space sims, and the best space sim to play with a mouse and keyboard - you'll want a joystick for most anything else in the genre.
x2, also one of the best german games
>>11351093>Wing Commander IVyou think it's better than 3? i liked 3 but heard 4 isn't as good so i never bothered
X-Wing and Tie Fighter get a lot of praise but isn't X-Wing Alliance just better? Mechanically and graphics wise. Has anyone played them all?
>>11351154online lists are hard to take seriously with muh did it first and muh groundbreaking bonus
>>11351156I'm usually not a graphicsfag but for this type of genre atmosphere is kinda important.
>>11351151uh 4 is basically an update to 3
>>11351154do you get to fly besides darth vader to save the emperor in boring alliance? didn't think so
>>11351062Putting aside the adlibs the game is way, way better then most indie trash you will see. It also has a big ass fucking mod packages that overhaul so much stuff like Crossfire. or that one still ongoing mod i keep forgetting the name of that is so hueg the usual mod sites don't even keep it on there anymore and is a dedicated server with a small community to it.
>nobody has mentioned the very best one, to dateFrontier: Elite 2 is easily the best space sim, this includes anything made up to today as well. If it doesn't have it, you don't need it.
You posted it
>>11351062>best in the genre and better than post-retro onesYes, Wing Commander series and X-Wing/TIE Fighter series.
>>11351062this fucking game just refuses to work on my laptop, black screen after new game on my previous laptop the sound wouldn't work!it's not meant to be
>>11351408it was a decade too early, its 5 FPS made it unplayable
I remember some old mod for Freelancer that changed the physics just a bit and adjusted the AI to match, all to make the engine kill actually useful in combat. Hitting that and spinning around to shoot at people pursuing you was viable, as was going full turbo and killing engines, then strafing enemies from the side in a high-speed drive-by with a torpedo. If you tried to do dogfights like the base game, you would get torn up. It really improved the dogfights from flying around in circles, to jousts and ambushes with mines and torpedoes. Just can't remember what it was called.Played the fuck out of Freelancer online with that mod on a server running it. IIRC, it also had some nexus system added in that was really basic and they had a bunch of star wars and star trek ships for no apparent reason.
>is the god of sim games>nobody has played itso much for the mustard rice
>>11351062Tachyon the FringeWing Commander, though Privateer, III and Prophecy are the best.X-Wing and Tie FighterFreelancer and StarlancerFreespaceAnd this Absolute rarity of a gem that is Absolute Zerohttps://www.mobygames.com/game/4477/absolute-zero/A game ahead of its time.
>>11351857Despite the name they are not actual space simulators so nobody is going to mention a game that doesn't offer space dogfighting thread.
>>11351062God I love this game so much.
>>11351760Worked fine on my machine. People with 386SX's were fucked tho.
>>11351408This 1000%. The original dos version has a “bug” that lets you warp jump to all sorts of systems that were too far away originally. Not as if the traversable galaxay you do get would be not enough, it just adds that much more to it. It’s also based af. What other games let you become a slave trader and drug dealer on a galactic scale?
>>11352397It's deeper and more fun than the new Elite game, which is tiresome garbage. It hasn't been surpassed.
>>11351151Wing Commander IV from a couple of recent plays has slightly better graphics, felt a bit more responsive when using a joystick, has better production values for the cutscenes (which you really do notice in comparison to III) and has a slightly more intriguing story.They're both amazing games - but IV wins by a whisker for me. That said - I also liked Wing Commander Prophecy, so maybe you don't want to listen to me.>>11351154Tie Fighter is renowned generally as the best designed and balanced game of the series - you can play it in the original DOS flavour or with the update they did in the XWvTF engine. Alliance is pretty decent and the recent fan-made Hi def update is definitely worth looking into as well - I also haven't tried it, but there's a TC for Tie Fighter using the X Wing Alliance Upgrade engine that looks pretty interesting. >>11351676Speaking of fan-made updates, Freelancer has one that irons out a lot of modern system bugs and gives it some higher def visuals.>>11351857Anon - if you can convincingly write why I should play this game, I'll download it tonight.
>>11351246>>11352543wait wat so wing commander 4 is basically a remaster of 3? why call it 4
>>11351676>this fucking game just refuses to work on my laptop, black screen after new gameI can't even even get it to start,wants me to do something I can't, log into an account or insert CD or something I forgot.
>>11352656They mean in terms of the technical specs and the way the new story is told. 1-3 are a trilogy of the war. If you care a lot about the story then you pretty much have to play all three.
>>11352397>parking above a planet and demanding a ransom>they send up wave after wave of space cops>shoot 'em all down>they pay double
>>11352656It's a sequel, with a new story and missions, but I described the way I think it's slightly better.>>11352669You don't need an account, there's a reasonably decent guide on on of the sites you can get it off on how to make it work. I'd say it's worth the effort.
>>11352543>convincingly write why I should play this game, I'll download it tonight.Not him but it's considered, to this day, the most realistic space simulator. There's people still doing missions they started back in 1990s. IIRC one of these guys arrived at the Saturn orbit already.
>>11353294>>11353560How come 3 wins almost all the polls and rankings online if 4 has better mechanics and cutscenes?
whats the best SP mod for freelancer? are there fanpatches for frontier first encounters?
>>11355452because the price of the internet is having to read many retarded redditor opinions?
>>11355476Cross Play. There are some other overhaul mods too that I would recomend.
>>11355509list them by all means
>>11351062Depends what you mean by 'space sim'.Freespace 2 is fucking *great* but it's basically an arcade shooter in comparison to stuff like Elite 2 or X3.
>>11355513Freelancer RebalanceWings of the Federation88 FlakOther mods tends to just add content or overhaul other parts which for some is pretty good but for others is not what they want. There is also Tekagi's Treasure mod but that is an online mod. They also moved their website which fucked up the links when searching for whatever reason.
>>11351062I will never not be mad that Star Citizen showed there was huge demand for more games like this but then turned into a scam and no one else stepped up to make one.
I've got a list of many of the notable retro space sims:>Wing Commander and Privateer series>Freelancer>Starlancer>Independence War series>FreeSpace series>Elite series>X series>Star Wars: X-Wing series>Star Trek: Bridge Commander>Tachyon: The Fringe>X-COM: InterceptorAnything I'm missing?
>>11355452It is better then what people expect. Consider how many games with more then two games wind up having a really mediocre third+ series of games afterwards. Even when removing Reddit, Twitter, and Fagbook opinions you still have that gaming intuition that Wing Commander 3 is going to suck a pile of dicks.
>>11355769>Anything I'm missing?Star Trek Klingon Academy.
>>11351093Is Wing Comannder IV more standalone-ish than the previous 3 or are you missing out when playing it without the first 3? Apparently 3 is directly based on 1 and 2 so considering starting with 4 because no time for 4 games anytime soon
>>11355551Rebalance is a goofy clusterfuck of random add on stuff to the point where the setting doesn't even make sense anymore, but damn does it add some fun. There's something satisfying about working your way up to a monster capital ship with multiple ridiculous shields and turret batteries and parking yourself in a high traffic area to obliterate everything that comes near you.
>>11351852Sounds like 88 Flak
Why are so many space sims about le heckin mercenary smuggler?Are there any where you play as a pilot in a space force slaughtering the enemies of the space empire you're part of?
>>11351852Either Flak88 or Itani Circus maybe
>>11356217House of the Dying Sun should be right up your alley. Not retro though.
>>11356235Yeah I played that, it's fucking great. I wish there were more like it (and Colony Wars). It's exactly what I miss in space games.
>>11356220Itani Circus is more known for the NPC capital dogfights isn't it? I think it might be Flak88.
>>11355769Depending on your definition of 'space' and 'notable' I'd add:Darklight ConflictHardwarFury3/HellbenderBattlecruiser Millenium (notable perhaps for some of the wrong reasons, but crazy in it's vision for the time)
>>11355452I honestly think it's because it came first. Some people may prefer it as it's a bit closer to the first two in feel.
>>11355967You benefit from playing 1 and 2, but can easily play any of them as standalone games. They do all the stuff to introduce you to the characters.
>>11356217Most of the other games listed here are more that sort of thing. TIE Fighter even let's you literally be part of an evil Empire.
>>11355324>There's people still doing missions they started back in 1990s. IIRC one of these guys arrived at the Saturn orbit already.That is crazy. OK, I'll give it a go.
>>11356470>Empire>evilRebel scum
Which one of the games recommended in this thread either need a joystick or are much better with it?What about Tie Fighter?
>>11357030With Freelancer I don't recommend a joystick. It has pseudo 3D combat. I know that sounds weird when one sees it is fully 3D but all control of your ship is about being aligned and centered horizontally to your screen. So while you can be upside down or otherwise move perpendicular to objects actual combat is more like airplane-like dog fighting.
>>11357030tie fighter for dos can be played with mouse, i think all games starting from tie fighter for win95 require a joystick which is kinda sad, because it plays fine with mouse, i kinda prefer it even cause i've played like that from child
>>11357430Can you play it on Windows 10 with mouse?
>>11357339You can't play Freelancer with a joystick without essentially using a mouse tracker, as it was designed for mouse and keys. It was one of the unique features about it.>>11357030The only games that require a joystick are the X Wing series post X Wing vs. TIE Fighter. You might be able to trick it with a gamepad.>>11357460If you get the Steam or GOG version you have three options when you play, the DOS floppy version, the DOS CD version or the Windows upgrade - the DOS versions (all playable on Win 10) will let you play with keyboard and mouse.Personally, if you want the 90s experience, I'd consider getting a joystick, as a lot of these games were designed with those in mind. They are generally playable without though.
Is there a game like Freelancer but with more depth? Freelancer is a quite arcadey game that intentionally streamlined the more hardcore elements of older space sims. It doesn't even support HOTAS. I like the campaign and open-ended nature of it but I wish it played more like traditional space sim.
>>11357030Most of these games are better with a stick, including Tie Fighter. If you don’t already have one, the Logitech G Extreme 3D Pro is a great entry-level stick that is inexpensive.
