The game’s initial technical demos impressed reviewers, but after the Microsoft buyout and Roberts’ departure from Digital Anvil, critics had doubts about the game. Roberts promised features such as automated flight maneuvers, dynamic economies, and a multiplayer mode that could host thousands of players, but diminished versions of these features were implemented in the final release. He wanted to realize a virtual galaxy, whose systems execute their own programs regardless of the players’ presence cities would be bustling with transports and each world’s weather changes on its own time.
In 1997, Chris Roberts began work on a vision he had since he first conceived Wing Commander. The game was initially announced by Chris Roberts in 1999, but it was only released 4 years later, with many cuts and changes from the original concept. As we can read on Wikipedia, Freelancer is a space simulation that was developed by Digital Anvil and published by Microsoft Game Studios in 2003.
