A vast range of planets await exploration, along with brightly burning stars, nebulas, treacherous asteroid fields and vast expanses of space junk (often home to hostile outcasts).
The star systems themselves are beautifully detailed. He also has the option of taking freelance combat missions offered by the many factions that inhabit the 48 star systems within the game. While the story progresses through the completion of specific storyline missions, Trent is free to spend time exploring, trading, or even smuggling. Having lost the deal of a lifetime (worth a million credits) in the attack, Trent teams up with Jun'ko ‘Juni’ Zane, of the Liberty Security Force, and together they begin to investigate events connected to the attack. Set 800 years after the events of Starlancer, the game revolves around the adventures of freelance pilot Edison Trent, survivor of an attack on the space station Freeport 7. Due to the involvement of Wing Commander's creator Chris Roberts it is largely considered to be the spiritual successor to Origin Systems’ Wing Commander: Privateer.
However, unlike its predecessor Freelancer combines combat and trading within an open world environment. Freelancer is a direct sequel to Microsoft’s mission-based space combat simulator Starlancer.
