Descent: FreeSpace features two modes of play; a single player campaign and multiplayer matches, with the game's main menu designed around the interior of a ship's quarterdeck, with various elements (mostly doors) leading to different options, such as starting a new game, configuring the game, reviewing the crafts featured in the game and various story elements, and replaying completed single player missions. In both modes, the player controls their craft and other commands through either a joystick, or a keyboard (either on its own or with a mouse), and primarily view the game's environments from the first-person perspective of a cockpit within a starfighter. While the game features additional third-person camera viewpoints, the game's interface - the head-up display (HUD) - can only be viewed from the primary viewpoint, and can be customised with different colours. Because of the flexibility in the control scheme, some have categorised the game as being a flight simulator, since it has more controls and commands than a typical arcade game, yet its flight model is simple, and incorporates some elements of Newtonian physics such as precise collision physics.
The HUD[edit]
The HUD-only interface of the game, provides detailed information for players. The targeting system is currently set to automatically track the closest hostile target when the system is not tracking anything
When conducting a match or a single-player mission, players rely on the HUD of their craft to provide information for them. This includes: the state of their craft and its shields, the amount of energy for primary weapons and the craft's afterburners (both recharge over time), along with management of sub-systems and which primary and secondary weapons are being used; overall damage taken on the player's craft and sub-systems (the latter repairs over time, unless destroyed); information on both allied and hostile craft being targeted, displayed in the lower-left corner of the HUD, including their condition and condition of sub-systems, speed, and their distance to the player's own craft; a warning system that alerts the player about incoming enemy missiles; and an in-game radar that tracks all craft in the area around them (green for allies, red for enemies, and blue for craft entering or leaving the area). In single-player missions, the HUD also displays the condition of any wingmen the player has supporting them, represented by a circle that changes to a darker colour when the craft has taken critical damage and becomes an outline when the wingman has either departed or be killed in action, along with an "Escort" list that keeps track of notable vessels that the player either must escort or destroy, the number next to the vessel's name indicating how much hull integrity they have. The game features a flexible targeting system that works in conjunction with the HUD, allowing the player to track any craft around them or in front of them, as well as hostiles and any craft marked in the Escort list. While the player has full manual control of the system, they can also opt to have it automatically track the nearest hostile target, as well have their craft match its current target's speed through the targeting system.
Spacecraft[edit]
The starfighters available for use to the player in both modes, fall under several roles - space superiority, assault, recon, interceptor and bomber. Each type of craft available in the game for use, vary in speed, shielding, manoeuvrability, and the number of weapon banks available for primary and secondary weapons; the carrying capacity for secondary weapons also varies between crafts. Primary weapons cover guns that vary in damage and firing rate, and which drain the weapon energy banks of a starfighter when continuously used, with some specifically designed to do damage to either shields, hull, or subsystems. Secondary weapons cover missiles and bombs, each designed to be either a "dumb-fire", heat-seeking, or aspect-seeking projectile in combat. In both modes, the player can choose what craft they use and which weapons it is armed with, while in battle, they can opt to switch to between which primary weapons they use (provided the craft has more than one gun mount), as well as switch between secondary weapons and firing between single or double rounds. Along with weapons, each craft carries a set amount of countermeasures which can be used, along with skillful manoeuvring, to avoid incoming missiles. Along with control over weapons, players can alter their craft's main sub-systems - Weapons, Shields and Engines - via an energy management system, which dynamically affects their efficiency as a result; altering the energy level of the engines, affects their craft's maximum speed and the amount of energy available for its afterburners. Players also have access to a communication system that can be used to call in a support craft to repair destroyed sub-systems and re-arm secondary weapons, while in single-player mode, it can be used to call in reinforcements (if available) and direct wingmen (either a single craft, a wing, or all craft, depending on how many are still active) to either engage a player's target, engage all hostiles, protect a target, or depart from the battle.
Game modes[edit]
Single-player[edit]
In the game's single-player mode, players take on the role of a Terran pilot in the game's main campaign, who engages in a series of mission that become increasingly challenging as they progress into the game's main storyline; the difficulty of this campaign can be changed by the player, in between missions. Apart from other starfighters, the campaign sees the player sometimes encountering other vessels - cruisers, destroyers, medical ships, science vessels, transports, freighters and escape pods – along with stationary turrets, cargo containers, and large space-station installations, either friendly or hostile. To ease players into the various controls of the game, training missions are included in the campaign, mixed in between regular missions, that gradually introduce the player to advanced commands and techniques. For each mission that is undertaken, the player is given a briefing that details the relevant information pertaining to its circumstances and the objectives that are expected to be completed, although such briefings do not detail actual situations and objectives the player will face; in between some mission, a command briefing is given prior to a mission's briefing, outlying the current situation of the campaign, as well as details on new ships and weapons the player may use. To complete a mission and subsequently unlock the next one, players must meet a number of objectives defined for it and survive long enough to receive clearance to return to base; not all objectives can be completed, as some are scripted to be failed as part of the campaign's story. If a player dies on a mission, or fail to complete vital objectives (i.e. protecting an important ship), players can restart a mission and try it again. While objectives are not listed, the player is given a list of directives in their HUD, detailing what they must do (i.e. destroying a target(s)); multiple targets of a directive include numbers in brackets, which decreases when targets are destroyed or depart, while directives that are completed turn blue, and those failed turn red.
Before committing to a mission in the campaign, players are given control to denote what craft and weapons are used by both themselves and the wingmen they have control over at the start of the mission, which adds an element of strategy to the campaign, though what ships and weapons are available depend upon what stage of the campaign the player is on. Not all missions allow the load-out to be changed - in some missions, it is fixed; in others, it is whatever the player had for themselves and their wingmen from the previous mission, including the conditions their crafts were in. Once a mission is completed, the player receives a debriefing which outlays the result of the player's actions and what could have been done better; players can get a hint, defined as "Recommendations" in the game, that can detail what exactly they could do to improve their performance in the mission, and have the ability to restart a mission in order to approach it differently. In some missions, the results of the player's action can often affect later missions - for example, an enemy capital ship allowed to flee in a particular mission may return in a later mission. Players can earn medals in the campaign, either by completing specific missions, or completing hidden bonus objectives, along with promotions based on kills - each kill earns points depending on the type of craft destroyed, with the amount affected by the difficulty the player is set at - and badges based on total number of kills made. Any mission completed in the campaign, can be played again through in-game mission simulator found in the game's main menu. In addition to the game's standard campaign, the player may also make their own missions and campaigns through the use of a free editor bundled with the game - the FreeSpace Editor (FRED for short) - which allows players to have the same capabilities as Volition's development team in making their own missions, with the ability to import personal audio and 3D animation files.
Multiplayer[edit]
In the game's multiplayer mode, players compete in multiplayer matches online or over a local area network (LAN), in which they can band together to complete cooperative missions, or split up into teams to battle against one another. At the time the game was released, online gameplay was free over the services offered by Parallax Online, which also kept track of players' statistics and rankings, while voice chat is available, although reviewers advised it to be used only on broadband or LAN.