Yeah, never heard about it either. Apparently it's an open-ended space exploration game in the vein of Freelancer (there's mouse support)/Elite/Privateer. The developers are Croatian and it appears this will be their first game of this magnitude. It's actually a sequel but based on screenshots the predecessor plays quite differently. As my knowledge of the game is quite limited, I'll just cut/paste their FAQ and a random QA session. Watch the trailer first as it's quite impressive. Oh, and it's apparently being released in a few weeks and supposedly there will be a demo next week.
http://www.spaceforce-game.com/
http://youtube.com/watch?v=8XtPj2UsXEU
http://www.spaceforce-game.com/
http://youtube.com/watch?v=8XtPj2UsXEU
What is SpaceForce2?
Open-ended, beautiful and innovative dynamic three-dimensional space game dressed with stars, planets, moons, asteriods, comets, black holes, starbases, flying cities... is open for exploration, trade, diplomacy, crafting and fight. An in-depth storyline and plenty of opportunities which will inspire the action orientated player but also the real adventurer and trader . SF2 delivers small and huge space battles, a vast range of quests, and a story filled game.
What are your goals with SF2?
SF2 is a rpg space simulation with a heavy focus on ship development, an immersive Universe and freedom of choice . Upon leaving starting zone, SF2 opens up to almost unlimited exploration. SF2 is game in which you can play the role of a starship pilot who explores the space.
What types of gameplay experiences does SF2 offer?
Players will have the opportunity to engage in trade, exploration, fight, crafting, quest solving, and diplomacy in addition to ship development and player activities. The player may choose camera view in 1st or 3rd person. Player can choose beetween 10 professions and more then 14 spacecrafts. Earn money and experience points and advance to higher levels. Since AI plays a crucial part in SpaceForce2, it will create a thrilling playing experience throught the game.
What will starship fight be like?
Players will have the opportunity to engage in large-scale space fight, fighter or capitol ship class, with NPC enemy controlled vessels , each with their own individual characteristics and style . In between missions you get to customise your ship with a selection of different equipment.
How does trading work ?
SF2 is featuring a economic system that allows you to buy and sell stuff for profit and also to buy new ships or new upgrades for your ship . In the space station trade shop , use button to see a list of what goods are traded on the station . Check your ship's characteristic to see how much cargo space and weight you have and how much is already used. Prices and wares differ from one system to the next, so player have to do a little exploring to find the optimal trade routes.
What role does the play with Damage Booster?
Damage booster is neccesary upgrade for your fighter - it improves your damage fighting capitol ships and becomes a very deadly choise for large scale battles. It's better to avoid large ships without one.
Can I change my ship?
Player may choose beetwen 14 different fighter class ships. Every ship has different kind of major characteristic: weponary, shield, maneuverability, armor, speed, afterburner, jammer, target system, cargo space and weight. Player can buy a new ship or repair old one at any time in the game.
Which areas of space will I be able to explore?
After creating your character, you will be in your new ship, orbiting a space station . Player can visit 46 star systems through our Milky Way galaxy . Every system in galaxy has its own specificity: different starbase, buildings, NPC enemies, meteors, black holes.
Will you be able to travel and explore space in any directions ? Will I get to choose where I go next?
Player have complete freedom in movement and choises . How you reach your objectives however is up to you. SpaceForce2 is complete non-linear game.
How important is Diplomacy and how does it relate to other civilizations?
Our actions within the game determine diplomacy rating we made with a specific civilization.If our action is hostile against one civilization, and our rating drop below 80% they will treat us as their enemy. If that same rating drops below 20 %, we will surely be attacked by that civilizations patrols.
How do you improve your diplomacy rating with a civilization?
We can do that with different types of actions like solving their quests or paying them a tribute in credits. Attacking their enemy can be useful, too.
Can I play with mouse?
A mouse and a keyboard puts you in the game. An intuitive interface make SF2 easy to play. Smart controls allow players to quickly select targets and destinations in 3D space.
What sort of technology are we using for graphic engine for SF2?
Our engine supports latest hardware innovations: shaders 3.0,2.0, normal mapping, real time radiosity, true 64bit HDR rendering, HDR fresnel, HDR specular, HDR bloom and glow, star effect, adaptive exposure, HDR antialiasing, cool postprocesing effects – fullscreen motion blur, pixel doubling rendering, screen space refraction and distorsion, etc.
What kind of quest do you prefer?
2000+ Missions include activation, protect, escort, strike, destroy and rescue operations.
Do I always begin at the same starting location?
No. Players begin by choosing an in-game character equipped with a spaceship ready to explore the Universe. Selecting the specific civilization, our starting location will be in their home system allowing us to start exploring in a different type of system.
Money - the most important thing in the Universe
Players can trade goods between space stations or conduct other money-making jobs such as mining asteroids, transporting goods or trading with other ships somewhere in space. Others players may elect to pursue a more dangerous path for money collecting such as piracy, smuggling or headhunters. You have a load of galactic press to read and do your research, by investing make more money or lose everything .
Can I see the galaxy map?
The map allowing you the opportunity to set a course avoiding hostile civilisation regions of space or to find the paying route for speedier travel.
What kind of weapons will the spaceships have?
The weapons systems your ships will have vary from Mass Drivers, Pulse Energizer, Microwave Crusher to missile systems like Ecstasy Warhead, Protorpedoes to extremely powerful weapons like Xenon Bombs, Ion Beams, Pulsar Cannons and Tesla Coil and a whole lot more to throw at your enemies.
What is the role of a cargo ships?
Ships carried cargo from base to the other space stations. Player can visit one of ten different cargo ship in the game to buy and sell items .
How fast can I travel?
In the SF2 jump gates allow travel between star systems. Jump gate is a artificial device which uses a stable tachyons condensation through space strings structure. To travel player must enter the jump gate and come out on the other side of the galaxy. Player can fast travel within the system, but only if enemies are not nearby.
Q: Can you explain a bit more indept the difference between the professions and give some examples of what certain professions can't and can do?
A: This is from my head. I will add if I think of anything else.
Trader - Better chance to trade with other hostile civilisations with ID cards. Bonus on cargo space and weight, id cards, mining tools and nano bots. Wingmen: 2
Spy - Can hide himself better. Less attacking ships when hacking or attacking buidling.
Lower negative diplomacy point when killing other races. Bonus on ID cards, speed and afterburner. Wingmen: 1
Soldier - Bonus on damage booster. 20% higher refund from dismissing wingmen. Bonus on armor, weaponary and maneuverability.Wingmen: 3
Scientist - Better crafting and mining deals. Bonus on shield, nano bots and jammer.
Wingmen: 1
Headhunter - Better reward when solving headhunter and counter strike quests. Bonus on weaponary and maneuverability. Wingmen: 2
Engineer - Price 20% off for repairing. Can modify mining tool to repair other ships (Heal wingmen). Bonus on speed, afterburner and cargo space.
Wingmen: 2
Pirate - Better faction with the pirates. Bonus on speed, afterburner, cargo space ad ID cards. Better chance for someone to drop his cargo to you. Wingmen: 3
Policeman - Lower diplomacy points if attacked by someone first. Better chance for someone to drop his cargo to you. Bonus on weaponary, maneuverability, speed and afterburner. Wingmen: 3
Adventurer - Better advance in experience. Nothing special. Not good in anything specific but not bad. Wingmen: 3
Q: What can we expect out of rank advancement? Can you tell us how many ranks you can gain and give an example or two?
A: You can gain 30 ranks/levels and some of them (names) you can find here on forum. On forum ranks depends on post count and in game rank depends on experience.
Q: Suppose you have gained a very high reputation in the galaxy what kind of advantages does that give us?
A: Higher reputation = lower chance to be attacked by that civilisation. So you can more safely fly on that sector and you have more ally to help you.
Better chance to trade with that civilisation, buy specific weapon from that civilisation or use specific building of that civilisation. Better chance to get wingman from that civilisation to help you. Every buidling has specific purpose. We building can repair you armor, other repair durability, ... rise diplomacy, clear map fog, trade minerals, trade ships by lower price, leave items repository etc.
Q: When you are in battle you said that NPC's will communicate with each other. Can we hear them talk or will you keep it as realistic as possible and we won't be able to hear a thing?
A: Yes you can read and hear what they are talking. Maybe it's not the most realistic but game is much more alive in that way.
Q: At the start of the game will players be able to choose out of different modes to play the game i.e. arcade or sim?
A: Yes and in SF2 we call it difficult (Easy, Normal, Hard). This will influance physics, AI, experience and difficult of game in global.
Q: Will all factions be playable or just the humans?
A: Almost all Factions are playable just not the Collective and Yah-An-Ra.
Q: Will Quests just be available at Station or Bases or can you talk to a battleship or some friendly ships to get some?
A: You can only get quest on station.
Q: Will there be secret systems that you find a jumpgate to get there hidden somewhere deep inside a dangerous place to get too?
A: Yes.
The graphics
Q: Will each system have its distinctive look next to different colors/textures for planets and space stations within that system?
A: Yes every system has different look (objects (count, type, position, scale), sky textures, clouds, nebulas, planets, sub systems, anomalies, buildings, ruins, ships). There is no same planet in any system. Every sector has 0 or more than one station. Also you can find another civilisation station in same system but only if they are friends. For example you can't find pirate station in solar system. All civilisations have same look main station except makkinist and draglon race so you can expect min 14 unique stations in game.
The gameplay
Q: How does the handling feel on the different types of ships we'll get to fly in SF2? Will they all feel the same or will we have to take certain things into account?
A: No it's not the same. We have light, medium and heavy types of fighters. Here starts the first defference. Larger fighter is more heavy and has better resistance to angular velocity. When ship gets hit by a laser or a projectile he gets kicked and gets a small angular velocity (spin). Bigger ship will get smaller influence. Capital ships don't have angular velocity.
Also manoeuvre depends on ship manoeuvre level. Some ships have better starting stats on weapons and other on speed or cargo space.
If our cargo is full our rotation was slower so it's better to dont go into battle with full cargo. You are gamble to loose it. Better leave it at repository. And ship with bigger cargo space and weight will have smaller influance on agility. And difficult on which you are plaing also influnce manoeuvre. For easy mode friction is much higher and is inertia is much lower so controling ship is easy. In hard mode you will much more glide before you kill engine and because of that battle is much more harder.
Q: What will exactly happen when we approach a station we would like to land on? Do we have to select different options on a communication channel to get clearance for landing?
Similar to Freelancer. You must be near station gate to see the enter sign. Then you just pres "Dock" key and short cut scene of entering will bring you in.
Q: How will mining actually take place and can you let us know which kind of materials we get to mine?
A: First buy mining tools. When you spend all mining tools you must buy new ones. When you have the mining tools you must approach an asteorid and target it. After that press mining key and with a yellow beam you start damaging the asteroid. After a few seconds the asteroid will be destroid and you can maybe find minerals between debrises. If you see something, teleport it with your teleport key as any other cargo. You will loose one mining tool only if you find something Chance to find something depends on your class and mining experience. More you mine, you have better chance to find something and loose less time. You can mine only bigger asteroids but not to big. If you find good mining field somewhere its good to mark this field with a bookmark. Collect materials for crafting or selling. If you don't want to carry all cargo leave it at the repository. Next time I will write some material names that we can mine.
Q: Will it be required during the course of the game to purchase all available ships to be able to survive in the universe or can the player upgrade the first ship he/she purchases/repairs enough with upgrades that he/she won't have need of another one?
A: You will need to buy at least one more ship because you starting with light fighter and this fighter can go more than level 5. Medium fighter can upgrade to level 7 and heavy to level 10. And you don't need to buy medium fighter before heavy.
Q: When you enter a new discovered system, will it be up to the player to discover special items or will you get notified on screen that there are special items to be found within that system and you just have to look for them (think about Darkstar One here)?
A: You will not be notified. You will need to discoverd them by yourself.
Q: How does it work to make a ship to drop the cargo for you?
A: You need to open comm channel and tell "Drop your cargo" . He will decide if he will do that. And this depends on your , rank, his rank, your class, his civilisation etc. or he will attack you.
Q: About channel com feature, What kind of usefull commands do we have? Orders to wingmens, droping cargo, anything else?
A: Send insult, request truce, join formation.
Q: Do we have "match speed with enemy" option? For the dog figthing...
A: Yes.
Q: Will missile, laser, torpedo, mines & counter measure mounts be interchangeable? (for example in FL you could switch missiles and lasers but mines, countermeasures and torpedoes/cruise distributors had their own special mounts.)
A: Something like that. Nano bots have special mount slot, mining tools, also. Primary weapons (laser) special slot and projectiles special slot. You can't mix them. You have special key to cycle through primary weapons(lasers) and special key through secondary(projectiles) wepons. Last selection is always full guns or full projectiles.
Q: Will guns have recoil? (i.e. if you shoot a powerfully weapon will you get a slight push back? or will the gun mounts themselves recoil(like in FL))
A: Only biggest one.
) and loved it. This just might be my next fix.
