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It's not set in space, but as a fellow Freespace 2 fan... the Ace Combat series nails everything else that made Freespace 2 fun. The AC series uses licensed re

It's not set in space, but as a fellow Freespace 2 fan... the Ace Combat series nails everything else that made Freespace 2 fun. The AC series uses licensed real-world fighter jets but is set in a "near future" Earth-like setting. So there are sci-fi elements like giant flying aircraft carriers and enormous doomsday weapons such as giant railguns. The plots are enjoyably goofy, full of drama and plot twists. Lots of radio banter. The overall "realism vs. fun" balance very closely approximates the good old spaceflight sims of yore like Freespace 2 and Tie Fighter. AC7 is available on Windows as well as console, a first for the series. I put about 100 hours into it, and needless to say I really loved it. AC6 (Xbox 360) was great fun too; it may run on XBox One as well. All AC games are all set in a shared fictional world ("Strangereal") but each game is a story about a different war and has a unique set of characters. So no worries about jumping into the series at some arbitrary random point; you're not going to be missing out on any context.

TeMPOraL 7y ago
Thanks! I'm going to dust off my old joystick and try it out!
friendlybus 7y ago
How do you get the license for real world jets?
- JohnBooty 7y ago
  It looks like Namco obtained licenses directly from the manufacturers. The title screen has a big, dense list of licensing information regarding the planes from Dassault, Boeing, and seemingly a million other manufacturers. I'm not sure exactly what parts of the planes require licensing. Do you need to pay to use their names? Their likenesses? Both? Neither? Maybe it's just a courtesy? It's a good question. I'd love to know more myself.
JohnBooty 7y ago
BTW, when I say "goofy"... the AC games themselves never break character. They always maintain a serious air. Think "Metal Gear Solid meets Top Gun." Gritty military stuff combined with kind of an anime-style "save the world" or "save the country" plot. The end result winds up being sort of absurd, but ultimately I think it's a really fun blend of gritty faux-realism and absurdity. A totally serious, military-accurate mood wouldn't quite work IMHO. Because then you bump up against realities like the fact that your jets are equipped with an absurd amount of missiles, and you will end each mission having shot down dozens of enemies, literally an order of magnitude more than any living pilot has shot down in an entire career. So, I think the AC games walk the realism/absurdity line in just the right way.

TeMPOraL 7y ago

Thanks! I'm going to dust off my old joystick and try it out!

friendlybus 7y ago

How do you get the license for real world jets?

JohnBooty 7y ago
It looks like Namco obtained licenses directly from the manufacturers. The title screen has a big, dense list of licensing information regarding the planes from Dassault, Boeing, and seemingly a million other manufacturers. I'm not sure exactly what parts of the planes require licensing. Do you need to pay to use their names? Their likenesses? Both? Neither? Maybe it's just a courtesy? It's a good question. I'd love to know more myself.

JohnBooty 7y ago

BTW, when I say "goofy"... the AC games themselves never break character. They always maintain a serious air. Think "Metal Gear Solid meets Top Gun." Gritty military stuff combined with kind of an anime-style "save the world" or "save the country" plot. The end result winds up being sort of absurd, but ultimately I think it's a really fun blend of gritty faux-realism and absurdity. A totally serious, military-accurate mood wouldn't quite work IMHO. Because then you bump up against realities like the fact that your jets are equipped with an absurd amount of missiles, and you will end each mission having shot down dozens of enemies, literally an order of magnitude more than any living pilot has shot down in an entire career. So, I think the AC games walk the realism/absurdity line in just the right way.