FA+
Shop
First Impressions: Black Prophecy
14 years ago
General
A couple of years ago, I was browsing youtube for EVE videos, and a video for Black Prophecy came up in the related section, and I was intrigued by it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ik61--E0EgY
I had signed up for the beta, but wasn't invited. Now that it's gone public, I decided to give it a shot. Why?
- Per Part ship customization
- Real time combat
- Looks like Freelancer... in MMO form...
- Free to play
Initial impressions:
+ Flight Learning Curve
If you've ever played Freelancer, the flight controls are pretty much identical. If you haven't, then it's similar to a FPS; using WASD for basic movement, with the mouse serving as both an aiming reticule, and for steering (AKA, Point the cross hair at what you want to fly to / shoot at).
+ Ship Customization
Every part has an effect on your ships overall performance. Do you go with the high durability hull, or sacrifice some durability for speed, or maneuverability?
+ Real Time, Free Foam Combat
Combat isn't left to the mechanization's of fate. You can move where you want within the mission, and can take cover behind debris. Careful... the AI can (and does) do it too.
+ Instanced Missions
Missions are in self-contained areas, so you don't have to worry about getting PvP'd while on a mission.
- System Requirements
The downloads in themselves combine to about 6gb, not counting patches. Also, the game requires some beefy hardware, especially in the video department. I have a 9800GT, and it lags. I've also had the game silently crash.
- Lag
Being in Beta, this is understandable, but it's worth noting that ship movement can become a bit jittery.
- Freelancer Missions
If you've ever played Freelancer, you're familiar with the missions. Go to A, blow up things, return, get paid, repeat. Since this is an MMO, it becomes a grind fest. Thankfully, the missions are somewhat short...
-Tutorials
The tutorials seem lackluster, since they only appear when you press the respective menu buttons.
- Bugs
I've seen reports of certain missions not functioning.
- Premium Store
Like most free MMO's, they have to have people buying things with real money to fund it.
As a whole, I'm still skeptical. It combines Freelancer (a game I love), with aspects of an MMO (which I hate). Right now, I'm still in the prologue, grinding levels to get better set for picking my faction, but I can see some people enjoying it.
If you miss freelancer / wanted a MMO version of it, or are looking for a small scale, real time, free alternative to EVE, go ahead and try it. I'm on there under the same name as here.
http://blackprophecy.com/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ik61--E0EgY
I had signed up for the beta, but wasn't invited. Now that it's gone public, I decided to give it a shot. Why?
- Per Part ship customization
- Real time combat
- Looks like Freelancer... in MMO form...
- Free to play
Initial impressions:
+ Flight Learning Curve
If you've ever played Freelancer, the flight controls are pretty much identical. If you haven't, then it's similar to a FPS; using WASD for basic movement, with the mouse serving as both an aiming reticule, and for steering (AKA, Point the cross hair at what you want to fly to / shoot at).
+ Ship Customization
Every part has an effect on your ships overall performance. Do you go with the high durability hull, or sacrifice some durability for speed, or maneuverability?
+ Real Time, Free Foam Combat
Combat isn't left to the mechanization's of fate. You can move where you want within the mission, and can take cover behind debris. Careful... the AI can (and does) do it too.
+ Instanced Missions
Missions are in self-contained areas, so you don't have to worry about getting PvP'd while on a mission.
- System Requirements
The downloads in themselves combine to about 6gb, not counting patches. Also, the game requires some beefy hardware, especially in the video department. I have a 9800GT, and it lags. I've also had the game silently crash.
- Lag
Being in Beta, this is understandable, but it's worth noting that ship movement can become a bit jittery.
- Freelancer Missions
If you've ever played Freelancer, you're familiar with the missions. Go to A, blow up things, return, get paid, repeat. Since this is an MMO, it becomes a grind fest. Thankfully, the missions are somewhat short...
-Tutorials
The tutorials seem lackluster, since they only appear when you press the respective menu buttons.
- Bugs
I've seen reports of certain missions not functioning.
- Premium Store
Like most free MMO's, they have to have people buying things with real money to fund it.
As a whole, I'm still skeptical. It combines Freelancer (a game I love), with aspects of an MMO (which I hate). Right now, I'm still in the prologue, grinding levels to get better set for picking my faction, but I can see some people enjoying it.
If you miss freelancer / wanted a MMO version of it, or are looking for a small scale, real time, free alternative to EVE, go ahead and try it. I'm on there under the same name as here.
http://blackprophecy.com/
