Space Sims used to be a vibrant and well populated genre. Back in the 90s they command shelf real estate, right next to the latest and greatest RTS and Point and Click Adventure games. Coming at the tail end of this era was Tachyon: The Fringe, released in 2000 by Novalogic games, well known for their regular flight sims and the Delta Force series.
You play as Jake Logan, a freelancing mercenary, who quickly gets caught up in the midst of a fight for independence. A megacorporation has been given the legal rights to mine on the Fringe, and you have to decide whether to help them invade and conquer this space for profits, or defend the native population. And you do this all by flying your spaceship round and blowing shit up, as freelancers tend to do.
Do its gameplay and story combine into a compelling experience? Has Tachyon the Fringe stood the test of time, and is it worth strapping in to play a space sim? Or did this genre die for a reason?
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On this episode, we discuss:
Story
The initial presentation of the corporation Galspan and the defending natives, the Bora, seems to lack any kind of nuance. Galspan is fairly obviously evil and the natives are fighting the good fight. Does the dual split narrative reveal a deeper and more compelling story where both sides have a point, or is this a simple tale of good versus evil?
Level Design
The level design of Tachyon is a series of arenas connected by fast travel portals, not a big empty space. This allows you to quickly get to where you need to go, but is there a cost for giving the player such rapid convenience? How immersive does space feel if you barely move through it?
Combat
Tachyon spices up the usual space arcade fighter by adding a strafe/slide function and giving you the ability to shift energy around between your systems. Is this enough to elevate the action combat to brilliant fun, or is it just an endless series of repetitive battles?
We answer these questions and many more on the 126th episode of the Retro Spectives Podcast!
Intro Music: KieLoBot - Tanzen K
Outro Music: Rockit Maxx - One point to another
Tachyon: The Fringe OST: Tom Hays
How well did Tachyon: The Fringe’s multiplayer work back in its heyday? Does Freelancer really do what Tachyon was trying to do but better? Are there any other space sims that you think are genuinely better than both? Come let us know what you think on our community discord server!
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