X3: Terran Conflict

The absolute gold standard when it comes to autistic sandbox space sims, if that is what you fancy then look no further! I feel it is on par with the likes of Oxygen not included, Factorio, Kerbal Space Program and the like, even if they are a totally different genres, in a sense that they allow you to do super complex stuff that takes a lot of knowledge about all the various systems these games offer, planning and preparation beforehand, and it is so ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ rewarding to actually get stuff done lol I've been playing this game on and off since it came out almost 20 years ago and i can safely say it is one of the most difficult games to fully master, but one that gives a back a LOT when you do. A true diamond for sure, albeit a rough one. There are stations that can form whole production complexes, a huuuge galaxy of many sectors that has a whole simulated economy, an ultra complex logistics system that you can set up and let loose, with hundreds of ships that ferry goods all over the place, like mining resources, feeding your factories, hauling stuff to be sold or to be stashed for later, or to be used to make more ships, or weapons to outfit these ships, and so on and so forth. Also there's like epic space battles and stuff, a handful of different story campaigns, exploration, factions, pirates, you name it X3 got it. But again, and this is really important - it is very hard to get into. All in all - i love it, easy 11/10 on my scale, one of the greats, no doubt about it. Oh, and it will run on a literal potato while still looking quite descent lol

I had been searching for a game in which I could relax and chill out, preferably with my own set of music, and I was fed up with my usual go-to games for this purpose. I needed something else entirely. That was the moment when I remembered I had a game exactly for that. Flying in space. That's the stuff! The X3 game for relaxing purposes? Insane, isn't it? Well, I'm not swayed that easily. Yeah, I was in the past, but not this time. It was... HELLA GRINDY! Absolutely confusing. I was pushed into infinite-universe dark waters without any understanding of what to do or how to do it. The learning curve is bonkers! Never in my life have I been so lost. Or was I? Yes, I suppose I was lost at the start of my gaming journey, when everything was so fresh and unknown. Just like in this game. Learn how to swim or drown, and failure wasn't an option. Despite its age and a terrible learning curve that put my many previous games to shame, the game itself was absolutely brilliant! The sandbox aspect is phenomenal. It can blend into whatever game you want: a Space Truck Simulator, a space combat game, an economy simulator, a strategy game, a taxi game, and even an idle game! Basically, whatever space-something you prefer. The X universe has vast lore! Sadly, the plot is not backing it up and is serviceable at best. Which is a shame. The premise for the first Terran campaign involving political intrigues and rogue artificial intelligence was mildly interesting. It took me 30 hours to finish, and there are at least 5 more? The world IS actually living, and being a part of it is so fun. Something is always happening in the universe! Starting with one ship and building your own trading empire with a huge trading fleet. Getting ahead of your trading competitors by mere seconds gets your heart pumping so hard. Exploration, and I don't mean in the usual sense. I found out about JumpDrive only after 48 hours. That'll certainly put my competitors to shame! Building your factories and flying on patrol missions with your boys. There's so much more to explore even after 95 hours. It's a great time sink. And you know what? The more you break into the game's complexities, the more addictive it becomes. And it's only the vanilla game! I still haven't tried Albion Prelude, which improves the game drastically. There's a huge modding community! It's scary. I didn't expect it to turn out like this!

Эх, сколько великих империй было построено, сколько славных битв выиграно... Может когда-нибудь запилю руководство по этой замечательной игре. А пока держите пару куплетов по мотивам широко известной в узких кругах песни на тему непростого пути путешественников во вселенной X. Новый доход. Торговцы летят минуя врата. Вперёд и назад — и в никуда. Истребители хищные затаились во тьме. Готов переход от мира к войне. Торговцы ищут новый доход. Пираты их грабят, гоняет ксенон. Хааки не дремлют, а полицаи — Груз незаконный весь отбирают. Очередь ограбленных — напрасная жалоба. Груз сбрасывай иль сам за борт — добро пожаловать. Воет сирена, система повреждена! Врагов на радаре очередная волна. И пусть эфир ревёт от голосов торгашей! Всем понятно, куда эта трасса ведёт. К полуночной звезде я лечу не один. Мы ждём когда явится новый доход. Весть о доходе гонер везёт. Он странник что ищет, но никак не найдёт... Путь к жёлтой звезде и планете одной, Прародине нашей, чей небесный свод голубой. Он достанет писание из сундука. Сокровищ там нет — лишь чудные слова. Он укажет на место, где были врата... Он закурит и дымом взовьется строка: "И последние первыми станут, но ты — Никогда не вырвешься из нищеты. Ты получишь в тёмные воды билет. Но у тебя есть твой аспид и плазмы дуплет. Пачка ракет и цель для неё. Струя PBG — крещенье твоё." И пусть эфир ревёт от голосов торгаше-еэ-э-эй! Всем понятно куда эта трасса ведёт. К полуночной звезде я лечу не один. Мы ждём когда явится новый доход. Помнишь он говорил: "там меня ты ищи, Где торговец от страха криком кричит. Где лазеры мощные пляшут по корпусам. Где неведомый разум, мама, я буду там! Там, где кто-то пытается встать во весь рост. Где флотилий обломки, где горит аванпост. Обещаю тебе, не промедлю ни дня. Пролети сквозь врата — и увидишь меня." И пусть эфир ревёт от голосов торгашей — еэ-э-эй! Всем понятно куда эта трасса ведёт. У полночной звезды я лечу не один. Мы ждём когда явится новый доход...

After a long reflection, I can finally write a review on this game. 2000 hours on a single player game, how is that possible? It wasn't until 20 hours into the game that I found the game inside this game, the realization that I can own every ship I see. There was also a lot of research into the game while I was having lunch at work, first smartphone, browsing the x3tc wiki, while in line at a Chinese takeout (also realizing I will never have to wait again, I will always be able todo something while in line). Due to the mod like development, many feature where hidden behind strange menu choices, not obvious to discover. This added a lot of excitement. Any normal developer would have would have highlighted new features, would have shown their work. But that would have spoiled the discovery. So, I boarded my first Hyperion maybe 200 hours into the game? Again, part of the excitement was the research to figure it out. Building my first 22 station mega complex... then sitting there and wondering: "How do I turn this thing on?", did not roll over by itself, so awesome. Someone said this game changes from a first person shooter to a spreadsheet game, they're not wrong. Macroing the traders, in your trade empire, is a whole new game in itself. Collecting all the ships and.... Hunting for the Aran, I was hallucinating seeing a ship in a sea of asteroids, finally found it. It did not blow up, I was lucky. Later I shot it with a repair laser and had better marines. Even space walked it once from a Hyperion (or was that in X3AP?) Then the Perma Death plan. Getting a UPC so the PC power would stay up, removed unneeded Windows services that could interrupt the game play, no windows update plz. Played a normal game in parallel with the Perma Death game, so I could practice the next steps, take notes. I do not count attempts that ended in under 24 hours. First run ended after 400 hours, with 6 main missions done, my Boreas appeared inside a Tyr after I went through a gate in Terran space. I took 6 months off. Second try, now with satellites at every gate in Terran space, I managed to grab the achievement. The final act was reversing the WAD file, pulling all the sector data into a html/js file. I kinda knew I'm done playing, because now I'm peeking behind the curtain. Funny note, some asteroids have duplicates, that explained why I could not tow one of my mines. I don't think the experience I got from this game could be replicated today. The was a multitude of website that supported this game (at the time, for me): X3TC wiki, x3tc.ru sector map (now .net), Roguey guides, Wolfsburgs complex calculator, Seizewell community and of course the developers boards. TL;DR a game should hold features back, hide them from the player, allow for surprising discovery. Allow for research outside the game.

Really didn't have fun with this one, and honestly, it's probably my bad for not having touched this one for over a decade after it released. Either way, it looked fun, but I was disappointed. 4/10

Мощнейшая экономическая стратегия скрывающаяся за фасадом космической леталки. Не позвольте ввести себя в заблуждение! =) Игра не про "вижу врага - пиу-пиу, куплю новый корабль", а про "варажеская фракция перекрыла путь снабжения - производство авианосцев упало, нужно отправить 5 и 7 флоты отбить сектор" Симулятор таблиц и бегунков. =) Это не недостаток - просто вы должны быть осведомлены.

This has got to be some sort of joke. This does NOT have controller support despite literally showing a controller schematic in game. Also, no idea how to turn the music down (tried many different ways in volume music but nothing worked 🙃) which would be REALLY nice because someone decided the music is vastly more important to hear than whatever the narrator is trying to say. Literally can’t hear what they’re saying at all.