Read some more, seems to me that everyone is just saying the same things on and on.

I really like the idea of having a home as the above post tells about... and a few other posts...

It might be a battleship which you might have some influence regarding assignments the battleship will do. But a Battleship will never be directly controlled by a player, but a player might be the commander of the ship (as mentioned before in an other post) not entirely as controlling small ships as the crew may disobey your orders if the orders dont seem serious or if you aint very thrusted (which might have something to do with reputation, but also what you have accomplished in similar missions before). Anyway players might directly control some big ships with passangers and maybe some crew people doing the boring stuff.

To make it happen that a base could move while a player is docked inside require the space outside to be loaded while you are onboard, thus making it difficult to make it a first person shooter like in HALO because I think that would require a huge amount of "computer-force" in certain situations in the game.

I personally think it shouldnt be a Freelancer 2 combined with realism. If the space sim game should be realistic I think it rather should have machine guns instead of the flashy tachyon and neutron guns and power shields, this is mainly my own opinion. Still some cool gun effects would be nice, like chemical weapons that affects for example ice asteroids better than machine guns.

I enjoy reading these pages, keep up the good work!

Edited by - erkolos on 9/14/2006 10:47:08 AM

I have some more ideas:

When it comes to long space travelling you dont necessearily nead jump gates and light speed or anything. It might be that you are frozen in a sleeper ship for hundreds of years (game time, not real time, it would just be a loading sequence) when travelling between solar systems, and then the game is about making a functioning station in the solar system or getting the resources to travel on. This would be a pretty distant space-sim to FL but it would maybe be more realistic.

You will have to calculate sleeper travels, also small travels between planets and asteroid/nebula fields, to get to the right destination. This means that I think that planets and suns should be in realistic sizes. When calculating, the factors would mainly be gravity, like when NASA found an efficient way getting Hubble out of the solar system by making a route between the planets where Hubble sometimes orbited planets before he flew on.

An other interesting thing would be that planets move/orbit, as well as the weather above them, and when you fly near a cloud or tornado you get into other enviornments which might also affect the maneuvering. The solar system mainly changes its structure when you are in frozen sleeper state. Only the main things about the solar system changes; like the areas where asteroids spawn, where to see clouds in distance, planet orbiting, which direction ships and asteroids are dragged in an atmosphere etc. - shouldn't require too much computer force.

I think you wouldnt be able to travel between Earth and Mars manually/non-sleeper-mode in a such game, Earth and Mars would pretty much be part of the skybox.

Well, I like the whole Real Space thing... It's dark out there!

Also I'd like to see players able to dock with other players! Like you could have someone that's a carrier class ship and can have other players dock with it to refuel or whatever the case may be.

Maybe an easier way to import models... It's been kinda tough for me so far.

More varieties of missles!!! And able to hold lots of missles!!! I can't help but have 3 or 4 different types of missles just to watch my enemies get chased down by them.

I'd suggest laser weapons, but those are normally lag producing.

I'd like to see an ever larger place to play... May 9 times or more the size of the Freelancer.

As said before, new types of ships, new classes of ships... Battleships, Carriers, Fighters, Short Range Fighters, Bombers, Etc.

A way to really interact with other players when on a planet. Maybe actually see one another in the bar?

So many more ideas... don't want too large of a post.

i have been reading up on the project for a few days now, it is an ambitous
project but very do'able
the things i liked about FL was its ease of play, great!
its spectacular scenery, very nice
and spaces to freely explore, a loose linear story to follow and
Open ended play.
What i didnt like is ridged adherance to fighting, the freighter class ship
wasnt a viable choice in linear play
the freighters were low / or no money makers, and the cargo differance
between them and the fight class ships was a laughable joke
armor/sheild ratings non reflective of size/scale differances
the fight and frieght
i wanted to play more as a merchant/explorer then a mercenary
these following proposals i put forth
1. a single seat fighter has no cargo capacity,why would it, its a gun w/ an engine.
b. it has no beamer thingy, maybe a "tether line" no "tow line"
c. no torpedo carry, and very limited missle carry
d. limited range, based from stationary or mobil platforms
2. heavy class combat craft increased payload{ordinance} some bigger
missle possible torpedo compliment
b. a torpedo/missle class ship/boat?
c. a howitzer/tank class?
e. a recon ship, light armed but higher electronics payload and faster
most definetly
3.longer range craft {the staple in space travel}
a. patrol craft, able to hold a few ppl and a limited cargo hold
b. small/medium transports, cargo and personal, plus some passengers
c. large transports/standard minimium core military/security ship
with 2-4fighter carry/launch/recover ability
d. very large ie a air craft carrier type
4. cargo unit standardized into a volume mesument , ie 1 person is alot
bigger than a diamond
5. armor shouldnt be as strong as sheilds?
6.all ships have armor?
7.alternative choices {profesion based} to perpetuate linear story
ie, do i have to be soldier again?
8. do i have to lead all the time, i dont want to be point, cant i be support?
9. possible crafting/making stuff as something to do throughout game?

now to ask some questions
1.is it going to be possible to modd out trade lanes and JUMP GATES after
your done?
its something i quite fancy is to be able to jump from one place , system to system using an inboard jump/hyper travel system, understandably as a failed
trader i would welcome that someday
2. are your "mini" story/quests going to perpetuate awhile after linear story ends?

possible idea referances
1. swg mmo {star wars galaxies online} has many element you are striving to achive.
2. universal combat by DreamCatcher Interactive is another spacesim/1/3rdperson shooter combo game that seamly flows together

thankyou for time i hope to enjoy your future project when it finds its completion

Hi all,

The best idea is the life, not the game. Stop !
Microsoft musn't continue the adventure. I said why in an other topic (Petition).
It's preferable that we don't see the same things on different servers : BAD THINGS !

Cya !

If freelancer 2 was to be made, it would require some huge portions of data for the ideas i have in mind. Here they are:

You should be able to walk around the city yourself, rather than click on an icon and it takes you to a place.

There should be more than one city on each planet and you can fly your ship to different cities.

On bases, you would be able to control a turret from a computer inside the base.

You could get trains with special tradelanes that take you to another planet or base if you don't have a ship. For a small fee, of course.

Planets should orbit around the sun and bases move with them. Also there's a day counter that shows the date and time on the game.

You should be able to design your own players apperance and on multiplayer you should be able to see other people walking around on the planet too.

Should make it so you can fight enemies on the ground aswell is in space and get handguns to take with you.

You would have to buy food and drink every now and then to keep your health up.

You should be able to get jobs other than killing people like a job to transport cargo to another system. You dont get money from selling the cargo but you do get money for bringing it there.

If they make Freelancer 2, they should make it as close to what real life could be like in the future as possible. Make it feel as if you are actually the person in the game.

I COULD GO ON FOREVER BUT THESE ARE JUST A FEW IDEAS MICROSOFT SHOULD DEFINITELY PUT IN.

ONE LAST THING, I THINK THAT THE STORY MODE SHOULD BE SET AS A SIMILAR IDEA TO THE CREATORS OF MONKEY UNIVERSE. THE 2nd NOMAD WAR COULD REALLY HEAT THINGS UP WHERE YOU COULD ACTUALLY SEE NOMAD SHIPS IN NEW YORK AND SEE POLICE AND OTHER FACTIONS FIGHTING SOME NOMADS IN ANY RANDOM PLACE.

Edited by - SILVERFIRE22 on 11/5/2006 8:39:14 AM

If you went to "REAL SPACE" physics...you could just about throw Freelancer out of the window. (It's quasi based on aeronautical flight characteristics).
I don't think anyone mentioned "BRING IN THE NOMAD MOTHER SHIP". (The one that blasted the Sun in the Terran System during the Alliance/Coalition conflict.)

Some of the stuff I've read reminds me of Universal Combat (R).
The nomads were the central focal point of the original freelancer story.

Sorry to rain of the parade...but Digital Anvil is GONE and Microsoft isn't going to release the source code. So, it's up to us to come up with something. However, you'ld be surprised what you can come up with using what you already have at hand.
Being able to "walk around a city" is gonna be really complicated..for this one reason alone....the cities you see that you land at are all "facades". There is no real depth to them. (in other words, you can't walk behind a building and see the back of the building because it isn't there).

I know BLACKHOLE is working on a very elaborate project. I don't know if I would have called it "Openlancer" though, but...that's just what he want's it to be.
I wish him the best of luck with his progress.

I think to be able to pull off a "transition" from space sim to land sim..you're probably gonna need a program "handoff". (Just a guess for the use of the current game engine since it won't support land based action.) If you're going to transition from Freelancer Space (one program) to "Freelancer Land" (another program)..you're gonna need two servers that work together....somehow. (Unless this dual zenon core technology can handle the concept).

Why have more powerful weapons? We've got all the mosh with what we already have. I don't see a need for it.
Some alien race is always going to be more powerful than we could ever have guessed....they'll come in and vaporize us with one shot. (Sure...why not...we've got power hungry people who want just that)...ROFLOL...someone always has to have a "bigger gun" to make up for lack of imagination and skill. (not to mention the psychological ramifications behind that one).

Give a monkey a loaded gun...and you get mayhem.

Someone mentioned...adding a 3rd dimension to the game....."elevation".
THAT alone will spiff up Freelancer in unexpected ways.
Nomads make a comback...but this time..they brought back their mother ship.
Now you accept a mission with a team of MP people...and you get a time limit to stop the mother ship...or...face the consequences of failure. But you and your team are not just going up against the nomad mother ship. Guess what....you're team is going to face incredible odds against you.
Wave after wave of nomad defenders are going to try to stop you. BUT...these are no lvl 10 nomads like you encountered in Mission 13. These nomads will rip you a new one if you're not on your toes.
But that's not all.....YOU AND YOUR TEAM must find a way to stop the mother ship from taking that one shot at the star that will kill you all in 5 minutes.
Your option? Failure is not an option. You win together or die together. If you fail, you get to see the star explode while you're frantically trying to find the nearest jump hole out of the system.
Momma is coming. better watch your six.

---

I think to be able to pull off a "transition" from space sim to land sim..you're probably gonna need a program "handoff". (Just a guess for the use of the current game engine since it won't support land based action.) If you're going to transition from Freelancer Space (one program) to "Freelancer Land" (another program)..you're gonna need two servers that work together....somehow. (Unless this dual zenon core technology can handle the concept).

---

While many people believe that the transition will be extraordinarily difficult, it will not be. For one thing, almost nothing on a planet is rendered until you get fairly close to it. Once you get within a certain range you are transferred to the planet's coordinates. This enables precise measurements on a planetary scale without needing insanely huge values for the solar system. Planets will pretty much be round balls until you come in close enough to make out the geographical features. Even then you have to get very close for the water, forests, fires and other such things to be rendered. Cities are only rendered in detail when you get extremely close, and even then NPCs on cities only exist where you can see them. The insides of buildings in the cities won't be rendered until you go inside.

To the player, it will all seem perfectly fluid. Visit our website for more information, i don't want to detract from the actual purpose of this thread too much.

Also, many people still seem to believe we're "modding" freelancer. We aren't. We're building a completely new game engine that will support whatever we want it to support. Openlancer will also contain its own seperate canon, and the storyline is being finalized as we speak.

Edited by - Blackhole on 11/13/2006 4:25:35 PM

Should a spacecraft fight really be determined by laserguns, mines and missiles? I think we really should think a bit more creative, why not... SWORDS!! Yeah let me just draw a pic here now...



See? A lot cooler, it would be like swordfights in Advent Children just with a lot more explosions and bypassing asteroids.

While you're at it, why not include lances, maces, hatchets...
oh...and horses too.

Why not, horses would ofcourse be aliens or space-scooters ofcourse.

Edit: Yeah and oh! Exo-suits for astronauts, they like fighting too, with swords!

Yet another edit: I got another idea! Like when everything is chaotic around you with lots of asteroids, debris, enemy ships and explosions you could do a trick which "make you think faster" or rather "making the game render the events slower" like when you "quicken" in the online-game Guardians of Altarris .

Edited by - erkolos on 11/18/2006 8:06:12 AM

I know I could put a human sized "ship" in space with the face of a pilot in it. (It would be unusually small considering the standard size of ships).
But to get them to swing an object like a "hard" weapon would be practially impossible unless you give it a "gun" that can't shoot. That gun is probably going to be at least half a size larger than the "spaceman" himself.
The spaceman would look awfully rediculous with "engine fire" coming out of his backside..because the fire would swallow him up.

Now on that "quickening"....not on this game engine.

Edited by - Rankor on 11/17/2006 6:07:22 PM

HEY!
Ships can be small, rockets as well, and exo-suits don't have to have human size, ever heard about LOD ranges? When a ship swings a blade it would be an animation or that the whole ship simply spin, the damage dealt would be calculated out of the which material who meets, the sharpness of the blade and not the least the force of which the blade slice. The damage dealt to the attacker would be less as it was probarbly a solid component/equipment which hit the enemy and the sharpness of the colliding part of the enemy ship are likely to be more blunt than the blade of the playership.

I am thinking a bit more of a new single-player game as quickening would be pretty stupid in a multiplayer game, but I really like the thought of quickening and then see my ship slowly slice an enemy ship to pieces while the enemy explodes. I might be a bit ambitious when I say "slice" however.

By the way, it would be nice if walkable surfaces (planets\asteroids) had some detail, however that would require a lot of bytes if there were to be detailed models of every planet and asteroids. I got an idea for a solution; what about having the computer somehow design the surface out of a little set of factors on the planet\asteroid. I am not too ambitious, it might just be that the computer put together some ready-designed tiles which fit to the terrain.

Edit: I'd really like to see some cool space acrobatic with exo-suits and spacecrafts, especially in different environments. Ships might use surroundings creatively, like they could shoot out a metal rope so that it will connect the playership with something (asteroids, enemy ships, allied ships) and then use this connection to swing/turn or something more creative, just as an example.

Edited by - erkolos on 11/18/2006 8:19:29 AM

I would like to see in FL2 the ability to make or build a station in the junk or asteroid fields. Mining equipment, power cells and robots left to work as you make money, return with more robots and power cells, equipment, life support, air locks, cargo air locks, pumps, O2, food, wine and a cute plaything for time out. Okay, no playthings. Building your own base with extra craft or different craft, storage and personal resupply.