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X3: Reunion Review
Publisher: Enlight Software
Developer: Egosoft
Release Date: 28/10/05
If you enjoy trading, exploring, and maybe even a little fighting, then this game is for you. But you also have to enjoy:
Capcom-esque controls[except more controls than any Capcom game in existence]
A learning curve that is like hitting a brick wall, then finding two more on the other side.
BUGS![I don't mean the alien kind]
A rather glaring error in the manual shows up almost as soon as you launch the menu -- that being that there are not any tutorials. The tutorial for the game is this; read the manual. Then after you read the 83 page manual the first time, read it again and hi-light any areas you don't understand. The object at this point is to go onto any number of forums created on fansites or on Egosoft's official website and find any one of a hundred threads from people that have never played an X game before. This should give you a relatively good idea of the basic controls.
The game, like many 4X games, starts you off with a ship[or two on easy mode] and a few credits. Right after the first loading screen you jump into a basic patrol mission which develops into a pitched firefight with a couple of Kha'ak scouting parties. The mission is relatively easy, and unfortunately the rest of the game isn't representative of the first mission.
After the first mission you're basically just dumped in space. You can continue on with the storyline, but at this point, I don't really suggest it. The storyline ramps up in difficulty from "Novice" on the first mission, to "Expert" on the second mission. You need a better ship with better weapons and shields to hope to succeed in the story arc. This means that you need money.
Money can be acquired in two ways:
1. Trade between stations in basic goods(Energy Cells, BoGas, Delaxian Wheat, Crystals, Silicon, and Ore being some of the basic resources in the X Universe)
2. Fight. You get money from fighting in a number of different ways. Many times the ships you destroy will have valuable cargo you can collect upon its destruction. Pilots will sometimes bail out of their craft before it is destroyed, giving you a ship to salvage, as well as a pilot to sell on the slave market. Or, if you have a good enough relationship with the race who's sector you are fighting in, you can purchase a Police licence and get paid for every pirate, Xenon, or Kha'ak raider you destroy.
Don't let me scare you away from this game. I like this game. It's difficult to master, but once you do you have literally an entire universe to explore. There are dozens of sectors with almost infinite variance between them. And the routes you can take in the game are just as varied. You can trade your way through the galaxy, eventually getting the resources to build factories, and purchase huge SuperFreighters to carry your cargo from sector to sector -- all in an entirely dynamic "Invisible Hand" economy. Or you can join one of the different factions in the game and fight your way to the top. Eventually being able to purchase Destroyers and an armada of fighter craft to do your bidding - for good or for ill.
The largest complaint that many people have with this game[in fact with the entire series] is the bugs located therein. Personally I can consider myself lucky, most of the bugs that I've encountered have to do with the AI doing odd things, or the economy going crazy. But many people have frequent CTD's, as well as large problems with control and slowdown issues, and problems with story missions. Happily, Egosoft seems to be addressing these as they are found in a timely fashion.
Summary
Gameplay:
Pros:
Deep, immersive gameplay, almost endless choices and replayability, game is heavily supported by Egosoft
Cons:
Steep learning curve, controls are numerous and difficult to master
Sound:
Pros:
The game has excellent special effects, the computer will tell you when you have a target lock, or when it is searching for a target, the weapons have decent sound effects and a good feel
Cons:
The music is repetitive and rather bland. It varies from sector to sector, but the loops are pretty short and when you spend a few hours between a couple of sectors you notice it pretty quickly.
Overall:
I really enjoyed this game, and will continue to enjoy it. The massive amounts of time that you can[and have to] sink into this game to build a trading empire in a completely dyanmic economy appeals to me on a basic level. The fighting aspect is rather beyond me, you need to be really good at it to succeed, but luckily with enough money I can buy ships and automated systems to do that for me.
I give this game:
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Images courtesy of Egosoft
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