I'm new to this game and while I know it's been out for a while and none of what I write here really matters, I wanted to give my general impression of the game so far.

First I should say that it is easily one of the best space sims I've ever played. I may not have the deepest exposure to space sims, but I have place some early Wing Commander games, the Privateers (the first was awesome), X-Wing, Tie Fighter, X Wing Alliance, X:BTF and X-Tension... I've missed some great ones like Freespace 2 and Tachyon, but oh well.

Definitely has a different feel than the Star Wars games in terms of combat. In the Star Wars games I would spend a few moments to lead the target then hit the trigger, realign, hit the trigger, repeat. It definitely fits with the style of the movies, but I found the combat in Starlancer more fun in a way. I like trying to get in behind your opponents and just unload on them. Sure each individual shot might do less damage, but it's more fun to be shooting all the time instead of aiming.

Next, this may not seem realistic and it may leave us wondering how the enemy pilots ever got behind the stick, but I like taking down 10 or 20 enemy ships a mission. It means I'm always in the thick of the fight without spending so much time on one ship that I get frustrated. Maybe this seems dumb, but I wanted to mention it because I feel like all of the little positives add up to create a strong experience.

One other thing is the setting. I love the fact that this is essentially a Cold War story with the action taking place in our Solar System. This was one of the first original storylines and backdrops I have encountered in a long time.

Things that bother me. First, I wish they would have spent the time on one patch. I know the game didn't sell well, but fix some of the bigger problems so most of the owners can get a relatively smooth experience. When my friend and I play in multiplayer, chatting too much crashes the game. Having other programs running at the same time also seems to contribute to crashes, so I don't runt Roger Wilco. Bottom line is I can't really communicate with my human wingmen, makes for an isolating experience in some ways.

Second, with such a great setting, I wish they would place the missions a little better during the briefings. On the maps, maybe start out by showing us where we are in relation to Neptune, or show a map with control areas marking major bases in relation to the planets, then zoom into the sector we'll be travelling in. Maybe I'm just being a dork, but I felt that even though I was familiar with the setting, I never really knew where I was... just flying out there in some sort of space. I would have liked more references to visualize where the action took place.

Last, maybe less action stopping cut-scenes in space. In one mission Steiner shows up in his fancy ship - stop action to comment on his fancy ship. I might have liked it better if the guy made his comment about the ship, then if I really cared to look at it, I could do my own fly by or something. Who know if this really would have worked better.

All in all, this is an outstanding game and it's a shame it wasn't a bigger hit.