PC Gamer Annual - UK (2022)

UNDER THE HUD

There’s a lot going on in Freespace 2’s HUD. Here’s a breakdown

modding community and smart
creative decisions of the time,
Freespace 2 has been exceptionally
well preserved. The game only looks
noticeably old during its few quiet
moments, when you’ve got time to
dwell upon the angular spaceships
and the painted-on skyboxes.
The moment combat commences,
however, Freespace 2 literally
explodes with colour. The
pockmarked black of space is
suddenly illuminated with motley
bands of laser-fire, golden missile-
tracers, and the searing green and
blue bars of mighty beam weapons
from larger ships like frigates and
destroyers. Speaking of explosions,
Freespace 2 does those brilliantly too.
Damaged ships will trail sparks like
clusters of baby stars, before erupting
in a bright and soupy fireball. The
best moments in Freespace 2 happen
when the largest ships go boom,
sending out a massive blue halo as
they burst into smithereens.
Sound and scale play equally
significant roles in making the game’s
combat so satisfying. Every weapon
in the game’s vast arsenal has a
palpable weight behind it, whether
it’s the thud of your lasers or the roar

1

WINGMEN

Squadrons’

status.

White = fine.

Red = damaged.

Hollow = dead.

2

MONITORING

Displays the

health of the

key ships that

are taking part

in the battle.

3

WEAPONS

Shows the

available and

selected

weapons at your

disposal.

4

GSE

The power level

of systems.

G = guns.

S = shields.

E = engine.

5

SHIELDS

Shows the

shield status of

both your ship

(left) and target

ship (right).

6

MINIMAP

A snapshot of

the battle

showing

enemies and

friendly ships.

1

2

3

4

6

5

EXTRA LIFE

DIARY I MOD SPOTLIGHT I REINSTALL (^) I WHY I LOVE
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The spritework on
explosions is phenomenal.
I’m sure there’s nothing
weird or dangerous in there.