Anyone know any good space combat sims?

[Byr0m]

Ok, so, for some reason I really fancy a space combat sim/strategy/whatever - but one I haven't played before. I've played Nexus: The Jupiter Incident, Sins of a Solar Empire, Imperium Galactica 2 and I'm considering Homeworld /Homeworld 2 but don't know too much about it. Any ideas?

 

[TheYellowCellPhone]

There's the Source multiplayer mod Eternal Silence. A lot of space fighting in there, but there is infantry fights every once in a while. It's free, but you need a Source Engine game such as Half-Life 2.

EDIT: Oh, and Star Wars Battlefront 2 has some fun space combat in it, again with infantry combat too.

 

[Eclectic Dreck]

Freespace is the "gold standard" for such games but it is more than a bit dated. Freelancer was an interesting take on the subject (using a mouse and keyboard control scheme without even an option for a joystick). More recently, the game Darkstar One was fairly decent. If you want head crushing depth and freedom of action, the X series is incredible but very nearly impossible to get going in.

 

[Nooners]

If you have a Dreamcast, I highly recommend Starlancer. Come to think of it, I think they made a PC edition, too.

 

[Gill Kaiser]

Yeah, if you can manage to get through the nearly vertical learning curve, the X series is great. It's as close to modern-day Elite as is likely to come anytime soon. Try X3: Terran Conflict.

 

[Radeonx]

Freelancer is a fantastic space combat game.

 

[Dsdude]

Shattered Horizon is the first to come to mind. I've never played it though. You can get it on Steam.

 

[Serenegoose]

just fyi, the games you've mentioned are space strategies. Space sims are different, more akin to a tactical FPS in spaceships. You're going to get a lot of different suggestions in a different genre than you intend.

As far as 'space sims' go, Freespace 1 and 2 are glorious,glorious games. Freelancer is also a lot of fun, and X3 is good as a hypnotic sleep aid. OK that's cruel, I do enjoy X3, but it's very relaxed and sedate, but... does allow you to fly a capital ship, which most space sims won't let you near for fear that having a lot of firepower might be fun!

 

[muckinscavitch]

Star wars Tie fighter or X-wing, rather old but still awesome.

 

[Stryc9]

I see more people than normal suggesting the X series for a change, but they're all right, the learning curve is extremely steep. Once you get going it's fun and addicting though.

If it's strategy you're looking for take a look at Sword of the Stars, it's really good.

 

[Balmong7]

Star wars battlefront 2 still has the best space combat I have every played

 

[Irridium]

You might like Galactic Civ 2. Its a pretty damn amazing space strategy game.

 

[Kaytaro]

try "freeallegiance" old school mmo by microsoft that is now free and they even gave the source code away, so players have been adding more and balancing the game. Its a great space combat game!

http://www.freeallegiance.org/

 

[8M1ke8]

Can't go wrong with Homeworld 1 and 2. Other than that I agree with the others, you should try Freespace 1 and 2, they're awesome games.
Also, you should look for Independence War 1 and 2. IWar2 is an incredible game and not enough people know it which is sad really since it's one of the best games of the genre.

 

[Murmillos]

Independence War 2: Edge of Chaos

But I should say, you really need a joystick for this game. Mouse isn't a option until you are willing to dig thru 10 year old forums - and keyboard play doesn't work well for the physics behind this game.