Descent: FreeSpace – The Great War
"Descent: FreeSpace" was well received as a single-player space simulation that integrated all the desired features of its genre, from competent AI wingmen, to the presence of large capital ships that not only dwarf the fighters piloted by the player, but also explode spectacularly when destroyed. However, the game's multiplayer mode was criticised, as it was plagued by lag and inaccurate tracking of statistics. An expansion for the game, which was less well received, was also released in 1998 under the title of "Silent Threat", and focuses on events after the main game's campaign with the player working for an intelligence branch of the Terrans' armed forces that later attempt to overthrow the Terran government. A sequel to "Descent: FreeSpace" entitled "FreeSpace 2", was released in 1999 to critical acclaim.
Descent: FreeSpace – The Great War
The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences nominated "Descent: FreeSpace" for its 1998 "Simulation Game of the Year" award, although it lost to "". "Descent: FreeSpace" was a finalist for "Computer Games Strategy Plus"s "Sci-Fi Simulation of the Year" and "Computer Gaming World"s "Best Space Sim" awards in 1998, both of which ultimately went to "I-War". The editors of "Computer Gaming World" called it "an excellent game, featuring some of the best wing-man AI to hit the genre, but it was too derivative of previous space sims." "PC Gamer US" nominated it as the year's best action game, and its editors wrote that ""Freespace" came from nowhere to wrest the 3D space combat crown from the "Wing Commander" series with style." However, this award went to "Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six".