<s>
Freelancer	B-Language
is	O
a	O
space	O
trading	O
and	O
combat	O
simulation	O
video	O
game	O
developed	O
by	O
Digital	O
Anvil	O
and	O
published	O
by	O
Microsoft	O
Game	O
Studios	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
It	O
is	O
a	O
chronological	O
sequel	O
to	O
Digital	O
Anvil	O
's	O
Starlancer	B-Application
,	O
a	O
combat	O
flight	O
simulator	O
released	O
in	O
2000	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
also	O
engage	O
in	O
dogfights	B-Device
with	O
other	O
pilots	O
(	O
player	O
-	O
and	O
computer-controlled	O
)	O
to	O
protect	O
traders	O
or	O
engage	O
in	O
piracy	O
themselves	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
single-player	O
mode	O
puts	O
the	O
player	O
in	O
the	O
role	O
of	O
Edison	B-Language
Trent	I-Language
,	O
who	O
goes	O
through	O
a	O
series	O
of	O
missions	O
to	O
save	O
the	O
Sirius	O
sector	O
from	O
a	O
mysterious	O
alien	O
force	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
This	O
system	O
is	O
also	O
used	O
to	O
control	O
the	O
spacecraft	O
,	O
a	O
breakaway	O
from	O
the	O
traditional	O
use	O
of	O
joysticks	B-Device
for	O
space	O
flight	O
simulators	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Freelancers	B-Language
spacecraft	O
follow	O
simplistic	O
flight	O
dynamics	O
;	O
however	O
,	O
a	O
dash	O
of	O
realism	O
is	O
implemented	O
by	O
allowing	O
the	O
vessels	O
to	O
cut	O
power	O
to	O
their	O
engines	O
and	O
turn	O
to	O
face	O
any	O
direction	O
while	O
drifting	O
along	O
their	O
original	O
pathconservation	O
of	O
momentum	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
interface	O
has	O
no	O
radar	B-Application
display	O
;	O
the	O
location	O
of	O
objects	O
not	O
shown	O
on	O
the	O
screen	O
are	O
indicated	O
by	O
pointers	O
at	O
the	O
screen	O
's	O
edges	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Freelancers	B-Language
economy	O
consists	O
of	O
buying	O
and	O
selling	O
spacecraft	O
,	O
their	O
armaments	O
and	O
components	O
,	O
and	O
commodities	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Freelancer	B-Language
features	O
a	O
multiplayer	O
mode	O
,	O
allowing	O
up	O
to	O
128players	O
to	O
play	O
together	O
in	O
a	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Multiplayer	O
games	O
are	O
hosted	O
on	O
game	B-Application
servers	I-Application
;	O
personal	O
computers	O
that	O
meet	O
the	O
requirements	O
for	O
the	O
game	O
can	O
act	O
as	O
a	O
server	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
A	O
persistent	B-Protocol
virtual	I-Protocol
galaxy	I-Protocol
is	O
thus	O
maintained	O
for	O
them	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
events	O
in	O
Freelancer	B-Language
take	O
place	O
800years	O
after	O
those	O
in	O
the	O
video	O
game	O
Starlancer	B-Application
(	O
2000	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Solar	O
System	O
was	O
engulfed	O
in	O
a	O
civil	B-Application
war	I-Application
,	O
fought	O
between	O
the	O
Western	O
Alliance	O
and	O
the	O
Eastern	O
Coalition	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Freelancers	B-Language
planetary	O
bodies	O
and	O
space	O
stations	O
lie	O
close	O
to	O
a	O
single	B-Algorithm
plane	I-Algorithm
in	O
each	O
system	O
,	O
although	O
some	O
are	O
above	O
or	O
below	O
this	O
plane	O
and	O
ships	O
can	O
travel	O
out	O
of	O
the	O
plane	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Merchant	O
ships	O
ply	O
the	O
trade	B-Language
lanes	I-Language
,	O
carrying	O
cargo	O
from	O
system	O
to	O
system	O
and	O
occasionally	O
coming	O
under	O
attack	O
by	O
pirates	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
player	O
takes	O
on	O
the	O
role	O
of	O
Edison	B-Language
Trent	I-Language
,	O
a	O
"	O
mercenary	O
freebooter	O
"	O
,	O
in	O
single-player	O
mode	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Several	O
NPCs	O
with	O
major	O
roles	O
are	O
voiced	O
by	O
professional	O
voice	O
actors	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
Ian	O
Ziering	O
(	O
Beverly	O
Hills	O
,	O
90210	O
)	O
,	O
Jennifer	O
Hale	O
(	O
Metroid	B-Application
games	O
)	O
,	O
George	O
Takei	O
(	O
Star	B-Operating_System
Trek	I-Operating_System
)	O
,	O
and	O
John	O
Rhys-Davies	O
(	O
Indiana	O
Jones	O
films	O
and	O
Sliders	O
)	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
plot	O
of	O
Freelancers	B-Language
single-player	O
campaign	O
is	O
illustrated	O
with	O
two	O
hours	O
worth	O
of	O
in-game	O
cutscenes	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
On	O
starting	O
single-player	O
mode	O
,	O
a	O
cutscene	O
shows	O
the	O
destruction	O
of	O
space	O
station	O
Freeport	B-Language
7	I-Language
by	O
unknown	O
forces	O
,	O
leaving	O
Trent	O
without	O
money	O
or	O
ship	O
on	O
the	O
planet	O
Manhattan	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
His	O
death	O
is	O
later	O
announced	O
,	O
and	O
Trent	O
is	O
contacted	O
by	O
a	O
thief	O
who	O
reveals	O
that	O
a	O
mystery	O
party	O
destroyed	O
Freeport	B-Language
7	I-Language
to	O
get	O
an	O
artifact	O
in	O
the	O
thief	O
's	O
possession	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Zane	O
and	O
Trent	O
are	O
forced	O
to	O
flee	O
Liberty	O
space	O
,	O
traveling	O
across	O
approximately	O
half	O
of	O
the	O
Freelancer	B-Language
world	O
in	O
their	O
flight	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Nomads	O
can	O
possess	O
humans	O
and	O
have	O
slowly	O
infiltrated	O
the	O
four	O
Houses	O
in	O
this	O
manner	O
,	O
planning	O
to	O
ignite	O
a	O
civil	B-Application
war	I-Application
to	O
weaken	O
the	O
humans	O
for	O
elimination	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
With	O
the	O
Nomads	O
 '	O
defeat	O
,	O
events	O
return	O
to	O
normal	O
in	O
the	O
Freelancer	B-Language
world	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
1997	O
,	O
Chris	O
Roberts	O
began	O
work	O
on	O
a	O
vision	O
he	O
had	O
since	O
he	O
first	O
conceived	O
Wing	B-Application
Commander	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
Roberts	O
envisioned	O
thousands	O
of	O
players	O
simultaneously	O
interacting	O
with	O
and	O
influencing	O
this	O
world	O
through	O
a	O
unique	O
and	O
intuitive	O
user	B-Application
interface	I-Application
never	O
seen	O
before	O
in	O
other	O
games	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Artificial	B-Application
intelligence	I-Application
would	O
fly	O
the	O
players	O
 '	O
spacecraft	O
,	O
letting	O
them	O
concentrate	O
on	O
combat	O
or	O
other	O
tasks	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
By	O
the	O
end	O
of	O
1997	O
,	O
it	O
was	O
officially	O
announced	O
that	O
Freelancer	B-Language
was	O
in	O
the	O
early	O
stages	O
of	O
a	O
two-and-a-half-year	O
development	O
schedule	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Roberts	O
admitted	O
that	O
his	O
team	O
required	O
large	O
sums	O
of	O
money	O
,	O
which	O
only	O
a	O
huge	O
company	O
could	O
provide	O
,	O
to	O
continue	O
developing	O
Freelancer	B-Language
with	O
its	O
"	O
wildly	O
ambitious	O
"	O
features	O
and	O
unpredictable	O
schedule	O
;	O
the	O
project	O
had	O
overshot	O
its	O
original	O
development	O
projection	O
of	O
three	O
years	O
by	O
18months	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Roberts	O
trusted	O
that	O
Microsoft	O
would	O
not	O
compromise	O
his	O
vision	O
for	O
Freelancer	B-Language
,	O
and	O
was	O
convinced	O
the	O
software	O
giant	O
would	O
not	O
attempt	O
the	O
takeover	O
if	O
it	O
did	O
not	O
believe	O
Freelancer	B-Language
could	O
sell	O
at	O
least	O
500,000	O
copies	O
when	O
released	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Roberts	O
left	O
the	O
company	O
on	O
completion	O
of	O
the	O
deal	O
,	O
but	O
assumed	O
a	O
creative	O
consultant	O
role	O
on	O
Freelancer	B-Language
until	O
its	O
release	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
Freelancer	B-Language
team	O
kept	O
a	O
low	O
profile	O
throughout	O
2001	O
before	O
displaying	O
a	O
demo	O
of	O
their	O
latest	O
work	O
at	O
International	O
Games	O
Festival	O
2002	O
,	O
drawing	O
large	O
crowds	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
game	O
shipped	O
to	O
retailers	O
on	O
March4	O
,	O
2003	O
,	O
and	O
was	O
later	O
available	O
online	O
through	O
Yahoo	B-Application
's	O
Game	B-Application
on	I-Application
Demand	I-Application
service	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Digital	O
Anvil	O
's	O
role	O
on	O
Freelancer	B-Language
ended	O
on	O
June6	O
,	O
2003	O
,	O
with	O
their	O
delivery	O
of	O
a	O
software	O
patch	O
to	O
resolve	O
issues	O
on	O
the	O
server	O
and	O
cheating	O
;	O
the	O
staff	O
were	O
redeployed	O
to	O
other	O
departments	O
in	O
Microsoft	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Freelancers	B-Language
soundtrack	O
was	O
released	O
by	O
Sumthing	O
Else	O
Music	O
Works	O
on	O
November18	O
,	O
2003	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Communities	O
of	O
Freelancer	B-Language
players	O
banded	O
together	O
to	O
produce	O
modified	O
versions	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Certain	O
modifications	O
allowed	O
the	O
players	O
to	O
fly	O
ships	O
of	O
one	O
franchise	O
against	O
another	O
,	O
for	O
example	O
,	O
Star	B-Application
Wars	I-Application
versus	O
Wing	B-Application
Commander	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
communities	O
also	O
worked	O
around	O
the	O
loss	O
of	O
the	O
global	O
server	O
,	O
allowing	O
players	O
to	O
host	O
the	O
modified	O
games	O
on	O
their	O
servers	O
and	O
continuing	O
the	O
Freelancer	B-Language
multiple-player	O
online	O
gaming	O
world	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
the	O
United	O
Kingdom	O
,	O
Freelancer	B-Language
sold	O
roughly	O
20,000	O
units	O
during	O
the	O
first	O
half	O
of	O
2003	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Chris	O
Roberts	O
is	O
highly	O
regarded	O
in	O
the	O
field	O
of	O
spaceflight	O
combat	O
simulators	O
due	O
to	O
his	O
successful	O
Wing	B-Application
Commander	I-Application
franchise	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
In	O
its	O
first	O
public	O
showing	O
at	O
E3	O
1999	O
,	O
Roberts	O
's	O
Freelancer	B-Language
won	O
four	O
Game	O
Critics	O
Awards	O
,	O
including	O
Best	O
Game	O
of	O
the	O
Show	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Computer	O
Gaming	O
World	O
,	O
trusting	O
Roberts	O
's	O
vision	O
,	O
named	O
Freelancer	B-Language
as	O
a	O
game	O
that	O
would	O
revolutionize	O
the	O
gaming	O
industry	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
concerns	O
were	O
partially	O
realized	O
;	O
the	O
features	O
,	O
although	O
not	O
cut	O
,	O
were	O
reduced	O
,	O
leaving	O
Freelancer	B-Language
with	O
a	O
virtual	O
world	O
that	O
did	O
not	O
live	O
up	O
to	O
the	O
industry	O
's	O
expectations	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
According	O
to	O
Game	O
Nation	O
TV	O
,	O
after	O
playing	O
for	O
a	O
while	O
,	O
every	O
character	O
and	O
place	O
looked	O
similar	O
to	O
the	O
extent	O
that	O
the	O
game	O
makes	O
"	O
Star	B-Operating_System
Trek	I-Operating_System
look	O
like	O
a	O
xenomorphic	O
zoo	O
"	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Freelancers	B-Language
graphics	O
software	O
was	O
of	O
older	O
technology	O
,	O
but	O
it	O
did	O
not	O
detract	O
from	O
FiringSquad	O
's	O
praise	O
of	O
the	O
game	O
's	O
artistic	O
quality	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Several	O
reviewers	O
found	O
it	O
easy	O
to	O
shoot	O
down	O
enemy	O
ships	O
with	O
the	O
intuitive	O
controls	O
,	O
but	O
others	O
pointed	O
out	O
that	O
aerobatic	O
maneuvers	O
,	O
such	O
as	O
jinking	O
or	O
barrel	O
rolls	O
,	O
cannot	O
be	O
performed	O
,	O
reducing	O
dogfights	B-Device
to	O
overly	O
simplistic	O
and	O
repetitive	O
"	O
chase	O
or	O
be	O
chased	O
"	O
sequences	O
that	O
pale	O
in	O
comparison	O
to	O
the	O
action	O
in	O
other	O
spaceflight	O
simulators	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
FiringSquad	O
said	O
Freelancers	B-Language
multiplayer	O
mode	O
encapsulated	O
the	O
"	O
best	O
and	O
worst	O
of	O
[	O
the	O
game ]	O
in	O
a	O
nutshell	O
"	O
:	O
although	O
players	O
can	O
move	O
their	O
characters	O
anywhere	O
,	O
group	O
with	O
others	O
for	O
missions	O
,	O
and	O
trade	O
ships	O
and	O
equipment	O
,	O
they	O
have	O
very	O
little	O
else	O
to	O
do	O
in	O
the	O
unchanging	O
virtual	O
galaxy	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
lack	O
of	O
substance	O
and	O
repetitiveness	O
led	O
the	O
gaming	O
site	O
to	O
wonder	O
how	O
long	O
Freelancer	B-Language
can	O
be	O
viable	O
as	O
a	O
commercial	O
multiplayer	O
product	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Whereas	O
massively	O
multiplayer	O
online	O
games	O
such	O
as	O
EverQuest	B-Protocol
have	O
thousands	O
of	O
players	O
in	O
a	O
vast	O
playing	O
area	O
,	O
Freelancer	B-Language
can	O
accommodate	O
only	O
up	O
to	O
128	O
;	O
the	O
loneliness	O
of	O
playing	O
in	O
such	O
a	O
sparsely	O
populated	O
virtual	O
world	O
gave	O
UGO	O
concern	O
as	O
well	O
over	O
the	O
longevity	O
of	O
Freelancers	B-Language
multiplayer	O
mode	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Overall	O
,	O
reviewers	O
acknowledged	O
Freelancer	B-Language
fell	O
short	O
of	O
the	O
promises	O
initially	O
made	O
by	O
Roberts	O
;	O
however	O
,	O
it	O
demonstrated	O
a	O
high	O
quality	O
of	O
work	O
in	O
its	O
implemented	O
features	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
Freelancer	B-Language
was	O
a	O
"	O
hugely	O
ambitious	O
game	O
"	O
,	O
as	O
admitted	O
by	O
Chris	O
Roberts	O
,	O
for	O
a	O
company	O
to	O
develop	O
without	O
the	O
necessary	O
capital	O
and	O
resources	O
.	O
</s>
<s>
The	O
editors	O
of	O
Computer	O
Gaming	O
World	O
nominated	O
Freelancer	B-Language
for	O
their	O
2003	O
"	O
Shooter	O
of	O
the	O
Year	O
"	O
award	O
,	O
which	O
ultimately	O
went	O
to	O
Call	B-Application
of	I-Application
Duty	I-Application
.	O
</s>
<s>
They	O
wrote	O
,	O
"	O
Freelancer	B-Language
dazzled	O
us	O
with	O
its	O
immersive	O
interstellar	O
world	O
,	O
wild	O
combat	O
,	O
and	O
ambitiously	O
open-ended	O
design	O
,	O
but	O
it	O
ca	O
n't	O
compete	O
with	O
the	O
cinematic	O
spectacle	O
of	O
Europe	O
at	O
war.	O
"	O
</s>
<s>
There	O
were	O
reports	O
that	O
Digital	O
Anvil	O
and	O
Microsoft	O
Game	O
Studios	O
worked	O
on	O
a	O
Freelancer	B-Language
sequel	O
called	O
Project	O
Lonestar	O
for	O
the	B-Operating_System
Xbox	I-Operating_System
360	I-Operating_System
until	O
Digital	O
Anvil	O
dissolved	O
in	O
2006	O
.	O
</s>
