Line #44 VideoGame/IndependenceWar2


1	[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/iw2_edge_of_chaos_1585.jpg]]
2	%%[[caption-width:350:some caption text]]
3
4	->'' "Here, on the very rim of known space-- [[CrapsackWorld justice is a long way away]]..." ''
5	-->-- '''Cal'''
6
7	''Independence War 2: Edge of Chaos'' is a space combat simulator, and the sequel to the original ''Independence War'' (1997). Developed by Particle Systems, Ltd. and published by Creator/{{Infogrames}}, the game was released to critical acclaim in 2001. Unfortunately, it was not a financial success.
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9	The game's plot concerns prepubescent Cal Johnson, who lives in the remote Badlands Cluster, and whose father is fatally indebted to ruthless industrialist [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Caleb Maas]]. After Cal's [[YouKilledMyFather father is murdered]], the boy falls into the care of Jefferson Clay (an [[BrainUploading AI echo of a centuries-dead Navy captain]]). Unfortunately, his juvenile attempts at piracy soon result in him being thrown in prison for fifteen years. By the time Cal escapes, Maas has risen to a position of supreme corporate power, and unpleasant things are happening around the Badlands cluster, mainly rampant Marauder attacks...
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11	While the original ''I-War'' was a relatively straightforward military campaign, ''Edge of Chaos'' put its emphasis on training and exploration, incorporating an enormous sandbox world. Gameplay revolves around combat, piracy and trade. Like its predecessor, the game is especially notable for featuring realistic Newtonian physics.
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13	[[http://www.gog.com/gamecard/independence_war_2 Currently sold on Good Old Games!]]
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15	----
16	!!This videogame provides examples of:
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18	* AcePilot: Cal.
19	* AllThereInTheManual: There's an in-game encyclopedia with a lot of information on the universe, with the occasional comment or notation by the characters.
20	* ArtificialAtmosphericActions: NPC ships travel between L-Points on cargo runs, hover around bases, attack marauders, etc.
21	* AsteroidMiners: Cal's father.
22	* AsteroidThicket: Many of them, some with habitat/bases attached to large rocks. The game's Instant Action mode is composed of nothing more than an asteroid belt and an L-Point.
23	* AttackDrone: The player can buy various turrets to defend their ship. Some of these turrets (controlled by other characters) can be detached to function as independent units.
24	* AwesomeButImpractical: Remote Missiles have a huge blast radius, deliver a massive punch (the most advanced kind being, in fact, capable of destroying an entire ''wing'' of small fighters) but have to be piloted and detonated ''manually''. Despite the fact that, with the right CPU upgrade, the ship can pilot and defend itself decently, it's still not a good idea launching the missile while under immediate threat. Furthermore, each missile slot can hold only one (for comparison, most dogfighting missiles come in four to six per-slot). Plus, the ship will lose the REM connection if the missile gets farther away than 50km, which means that even with a launch from a safe distance, the missile can still be a waste of time.
25	** The Gatling Cannon is tremendously effective by the time the player gets access to it. However, it will chew through enemy ships and ammo reserves with the same ease. In a game filled with long missions containing multiple firefights and (with a few exceptions) no chance of ammo reloading, the gun has a relatively short lifespan despite being theoretically on par and even superior, DPS-wise, to many late-game weapons.
26	** Turret fighters are incredibly accurate, they can mount any gun and missile in the game at the same time and produce no heat when firing. These little guys will watch your back even against target you can't see yourself, especially when equipped with Wide-Arc [=PBCs=], and will make encounters with minefields and fast enemy ships much easier. The only downsides are the absolute lack of restraint when firing missiles, which means that they will run out of ammo pretty fast and the fact that they can be destroyed. This, however, is a rare occurrence since the enemy will never fire on them deliberately (unless the player detaches them from the ship) and can still be rebuilt when in base.
27	** The beam weapons are only useful in some circumstances: namely, the assault on capital ships. They have no aim assist, a very short range and produce a lot of heat. However, they do their job tremendously well. When twin linked, they can rip open a Destroyer in mere ''seconds'' and are very useful for the most awesome ''Galactica''-style maneuver the game allows with its Newtonian physics: by strafing sideways through the hull of a destroyer, the beam can be targeted towards the turrets of the capital ship, both damaging the ship itself and leaving it defenseless in no time.
28	* BrainUploading: Jefferson Clay, though the procedure was done during the original game and is thus not shown in ''I-War 2''.
29	* BoringButPractical: [=PBCs=] can vary in size and power, but in their different incarnations they will be the first and last kind of weapon the player will use, with others relegated to tactical uses or extremely specialized operations.
30	* CasualInterstellarTravel
31	* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Caleb Maas, of the [[MegaCorp Maas Corporation]].
32	* CrapsackWorld: On the say-so of the aforementioned CorruptCorporateExecutive, Cal Johnston got sentenced to eighty years' hard labor for delinquency on a debt for which his father was slaughtered for nonpayment. Rough enough, but at the time, Cal was ''twelve years old''. And the [[AllThereInTheManual supporting documentation]] indicates that punishments such as that are ''not at all unusual'', and that any descendants of debtors will inherit their relatives' debts.
33	* CriticalExistenceFailure: There IS SubsystemDamage, but it will all eventually be repaired so long as you have just 1% of hull integrity and can escape.
34	* DeadpanSnarker: Cal, Jafs, and especially Clay.
35	* DeflectorShields: Notable in that they're more limited than most examples, where a typical player ship has only two [=LDAs=]-one on top, one on bottom-that can track ONE enemy each, and the very rear of all ships is exposed.
36	** You can also buy Aggressor Shields, which make [[RammingAlwaysWorks ramming ultra-deadly]].
37	* AnEntrepreneurIsYou: Once stolen, cargo can be traded, or forged into ammunition.
38	* EscortMission
39	* FantasticRacism: The Third Way. Towards whom, you might ask? Well...everyone, basically. They will never, ''ever'' stop being jerks to Cal, an attitude based solely on his supposed "lower caste" status.
40	* TheFederation
41	* GondorCallsForAid: Pretty much the whole plot of Act Two.
42	* JustifiedTutorial: Clay teaching kid Cal.
43	* HighSpeedMissileDodge: Oh, yeah. All the time. In fact, strafing is generally considered the best way not to get hit, due to the unreliability of the countermeasures.
44	** Given that you will frequently be on the receiving end of a MacrossMissileMassacre during the start of enemy engagements that usually have you outnumbered, you WILL have to master the art of missile-dodging or die trying.
45	* LagCancel: Quickly activating and deactivating your LDS drive immediately cancels your momentum and propels you 1,000 m/s in whatever direction you are facing. Knowing this makes the game ''much'' easier, especially using it to dodge missiles...as long as you're not fighting within an [=LDSi=] field.
46	* LawEnforcementInc: All the ports police themselves. Maas Corp facilities have a lot of police.
47	* LeftHanging
48	* MacGuffin: The alien artifact.
49	* MacrossMissileMassacre: A common battle tactic.
50	* MegaCorp: The Maas Corporation, among others.
51	* Mooks: The Marauders.
52	* NintendoHard: Getting used to the tricky control system and tough Newtonian physics would be easier if the player ''didn't'' start out in an unwieldy tug.
53	* OhCrap: When the aliens begin doing their thing.
54	* {{Old School Dogfight}}ing: [[AvertedTrope Averted]], due to the Newtonian flight model. You must learn to contend with inertia at all times.
55	* PointDefenseless: [[AvertedTrope Averted.]] A useful point defense device is available.
56	* PortalNetwork: The L-Points, due to the way [[FasterThanLightTravel capsule drives]] work.
57	* RandomlyDrops: Averted. Players have to intimidate passing cargo ships into abandoning their goods. There is no particular need to outright destroy them, just damage them enough for them to eject their cargo.
58	* RammingAlwaysWorks: It does if you have a military grade aggressor shield. [[TooDumbToLive But if you don't...]]
59	* RegeneratingHealth: Hull damage is automatically repaired, but ''[[GradualRegeneration very gradually]]'' (roughly one percent per second), so don't rely on it in a firefight.
60	** This is also why you want to finish off damaged enemy ships ASAP, while retreating and keeping your distance for as long as possible when you need to lick your wounds before returning to the fight.
61	* RetiredBadass: Clay is both this and a mentor for Cal.
62	* ScifiWritersHaveNoSenseOfScale: Averted. A fair amount of the game is spent travelling.
63	* SpaceClouds: Lucretia's Base is located in one for most of the game.
64	* SpaceIsAnOcean
65	* SpaceIsNoisy
66	* SpaceFighter: Unusually for the genre, the player mostly controls medium-sized patrol ships. Actual fighters are often seen as enemy escorts, and their small size and high speed makes them a nightmare to deal with, at least until [[FragileSpeedster you manage to hit them.]]
67	* SpaceMines: And sentry platforms.
68	* SpacePirates: Those damn Marauders.
69	** Cal's grandmother Lucrecia was also one, and Cal himself has to continue the tradition after escaping from prison. To garner the attention of the Stepsons and continue the storyline, [[ButThouMust you have to commit piracy.]] Legitimate trade in the vein of ''VideoGame/{{Elite}}'' and ''[[VideoGame/WingCommander Privateer]]'' is not an option.
70	*** That is unless you use the [[https://www.i-war2.com/downloads/download/14-unassociated-mods/123-zzfuturetrader_unigui FutureTrader]] mod.
71	* SpacePolice: Various port security officers, who ''will'' hold grudges. Also, the Sheriff in Firefrost.
72	* SpiritualSuccessor: To ''Warhead'', another space combat simulator that came out in 1990 and also used realistic Newtonian physics. It was made by Glyn Williams, one of the lead designers of both ''Independence War'' games.
73	* StarfishAliens: [[spoiler:Appearing at the eleventh hour, the Mysterious Glowy Aliens of Doom are completely inscrutable, consuming all in their path and wreaking havoc with everybody's previous plans.]]
74	* SubsystemDamage
75	* SuperPersistentMissile: Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep beep beep ''beep beep beep!''
76	* TakeYourTime: There's really no rush to complete any of the missions.
77	* TwoDSpace: Averted. Things are ''very'' three dimensional.
78	* UsedFuture
79	* WeWillSpendCreditsInTheFuture
80	* WideOpenSandbox: Although not a lot tends to be happening in non-mission specific areas.
81	* YouKilledMyFather
82	* YouNeverAsked: Essentially Cal's response to his fellow escaped inmates' surprise upon seeing Lucrecia's Base for the first time, albeit not verbatim.
83	** "Your grandma preferred blast shielding to white picket fences, huh?"
84	** "Cal, that's a fortress!"

Context VideoGame / IndependenceWar2