[Premium] Giant Bomb Talk Radio
» starts in
- News
- New Games
-
Reviews
PS3, X360- Dragon's Dogma
- Review
- Capcom has delivered an open-world game with tremendously fun combat, a hilariously crazy ending, and not much else.
PS3, X360, PC- Game of Thrones
- Review
- There is probably a great role-playing game to be made out of George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire novels, but Game of Thrones isn't it.
MAC, PC- Diablo III
- Review
- The first Diablo game in over a decade is also one of the most insidiously satisfying loot treadmills in almost as long.
PS3N, PS3, X360, PC- Prototype 2
- Review
- Prototype 2 gives you some interesting abilities that can be fun to use, but it doesn't give you enough good opportunities to cut loose with all that power.
An open-ended space adventure that allows the player to explore 270 star systems and 800 planets. Explore the final frontier in search of knowledge or combat.
Game Play
Title Screen (DOS)
Plot
The story begins on a planet named Arth. Years earlier, scientists discovered a deep shaft in the crust of the planet, leading to a vast and ancient underground network. Investigation of this network revealed it to have been built by the first colonists of Arth (remnants of an ancient society called the Old Empire). In addition to this historical data, scientists also uncovered sufficient technical data which allowed them reconstruct some of the Old Empire's technology. The most significant discovery was that of a mysterious crystalline substance known as Endurium, which served as the fuel for their superphotonic (faster than light) technology.
Space Travel
As resources are built and more of the galaxy is explored, this initial setup (while seemingly simple) eventually gives way to a more complex over-arching narrative. Through a series of events (involving hostile alien races, ancient artifacts, and a mysterious Crystal Planet), the fate of the entire galaxy ends up in the player's hands!
The Making of Starflight
The Starflight Team
The Dream
"Back in 1982, we approached E.A. with the idea of creating a universe on a disk that would let people experience the feeling of exploring the universe. It was an ambitious idea. We knew it would require a lot of time and the development of some new technology. We were more right than we knew."
The Cutting Room Floor
"We rewrote the game script several times as we struggled to achieve our goals. We wanted the universe to convey a gigantic sense of space, complexity, and life. And we wanted an exciting fantasy role-playing game, with a wide spectrum of character interaction and activity. It seemed like whenever we were close to finalizing the script, we'd find another way to make the game more fun."
The Planet Builder
"About nine months after we started the actual programming, we came up with the idea for the fractal generator. A fractal generator so powerful that it could create surfaces in space. It took 6 man-years to create the technology, but it gave us the ability to cram 800 complex and unique planets into each game, instead of the 50 we'd had before. There are so many that even we haven't explored them all."
The Aliens
"To find the right names for each race, we wrote long profiles and histories for each, then tossed random syllables at each other for several days. To handle their languages, behavior, and combat-action, we had to devote months to building a sophisticated artificial intelligence system. We threw away the communications module three times before we had exactly what we wanted. Sometimes we wondered which would come first, flying to the stars in Starflight, or flying to the stars in real life."
Breathing Ammonia
"Once the fractal generator builds a planet, the eco-system generator creates environmental conditions for it, like gravity, atmosphere, minerals, and temperature. Once we took a journey back to Earth, only to find the eco-system generator had given it new continents and an ammonia atmosphere. It took two years to perfect the technology."
15 Man-Years Later
"The last several months were spent tying all the various technologies together. Because of the program's complexity and scope, the play-testing alone took months. But all the time and effort has proven worthwhile. We had a vision of what an outer space fantasy game could be, and now that vision is a reality."
General Information
Edit
| Game Name | Starflight |
| Platform(s) | |
| Publisher(s) | |
| Developer(s) | |
| Genres |
|
| Themes |
Add a new theme
|
| Original US Release |
need a fuzzy date? |
| Original US Release | 1986 know the real date? |
| Aliases |
Related Games
Edit
Top Editors
-
Messier
102 points
- noibn 90 points
- Mistral 19 points
- fiye 5 points
- ahoodedfigure 4 points
