Even with all the excellent features to this game. It does have its problems, Several missions quickly became repetative when you are required to replay them.

I bought this game immediately after it came out and was well worth all the fun. And with multiple paths, this game is fun for sure.

"Good graphics countered by Artificial Ineptitude"
Starlancer reminds me of Wing Commander Prophecy and Secret Ops. The graphics are, of course, much better, to the point of being amazing. The missions are nicely done, with enough surprises to keep a player content.
However. The friendly AI is *amazingly* stupid. I've watched FIVE wingmen go up against a SINGLE enemy fighter (stealth fighter, but even so), and within minutes, 3 were down, and the other two didn't make any headway. Compared to Freespace 2, this is pathetic. Freespace 2 offered EXCELLENT friendly AI . . . as did Wing Commander IV, for instance. Prophecy and Secret Ops were not as good, but still head and shoulders above Starlancer. I could live with that, since the player is the hero and should be given the limelight. Two things, though: 1) On the killboard, other pilots, those who excel only when it's time to leave you handling the difficult tasks, get lots of kills. Certainly not in the course of missions you, the player, fly, as they don't do much, aside from yelling a lot and getting shot down. Yet despite this, they get kills galore. 2) The ENEMY AI isn't much better. Compared to Freespace 2, the AI is simply inept. In Freespace 2, surviving a battle against five enemy fighters was very, very difficult, even on medium difficulty. In Starlancer, I routinely managed to take out NINE Basilisks without breaking into sweat. Whereas Freespace 2 ships will dodge, weave, and fling missiles at you to get you off their tails, Starlancer's ships will usually only dodge a little. Another annoying thing is that the cutscenes cannot be skipped. Usually, hitting Escape (or Space) will allow a player to skip a cutscene, which can be useful when you have to replay a mission for the umpteenth time because your wingmates decided not to carry out orders. The cutscenes themselves are quite pretty, but they did not excite me the same way Freespace 2's did. Starlancer could have been a lot more -- if the both the friendly and enemy AI had been done right. As it is, I got the impression that Starlancer was rushed out half-finished. Finally, there is no patch available whatsoever, despite quite a few issues with soundcards. That's why I haven't given more than three stars.

"Only one thing I would change..."
and that is the AI for the wingman.

This is a graphicaly beautiful game, with an excellent storyline and a wonderful feel to it. It creates a pausible world, with a military infrsturcture that makes sense. Capital ships are scary. Space stations are massive. All in all it's wonderful.

BUT it would have been considerably more fun if the wingman you flew with were a bit more active in the game. I can understand that it is difficult for a designer to balance out the need for the player to be the protagonist in a game and the amount of support given to the protagonist by the cast, but I think the designers put far to much responsibility on the player. It feels like no one else is relaible. No other pilot kills anything. All the responsibility falls on the player pilot.

In conclusion, buy this game if you are into action orientated plots, and fascinating space shooter, but be prepared to do the work of a six ship squadron all by your lonesome.