Privateer 2: The Darkening

aka: The Darkening
Moby ID: 363
DOS Specs

Description official descriptions

Privateer 2: The Darkening is a follow-up to Wing Commander: Privateer. The player takes control of Ser Lev Arris, who is searching to regain his identity and memory. Like its predecessors, the game combines space combat simulation with exploration and trading. Along the way, the player can trade commodities, go on missions, attack strange mutants, rescue damsels in distress, meet weird characters, and visit unusual planets. It is possible to hire wingmen and cargo ships, as well as upgrade the current ship or buy new ones. Live-action movies advance the story.

Spellings

  • 银河私掠者2:黑暗之渊 - Simplified Chinese spelling

Groups +

Screenshots

Promos

Videos

See any errors or missing info for this game?

You can submit a correction, contribute trivia, add to a game group, add a related site or alternate title.

Credits (DOS version)

262 People (253 developers, 9 thanks) · View all

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 82% (based on 17 ratings)

Players

Average score: 3.6 out of 5 (based on 65 ratings with 10 reviews)

A $40 frisbee

The Good
The CD had many uses:

-- Throw it like a frisbee (It could also be turned into one of those Chinese throwing stars with a little modification).

-- A coaster to set your coffee cup on while playing a good game.

-- If you're strapped for cash this holiday season, the CD makes a nice, shiny tree ornament.

-- If you're lost in the wilderness, you can use it as a signal mirror... it might save your life.

The Bad
CDs thrown like frisbees or throwing stars tend to shatter on impact, but there are two of them, so you'll have a replacement.

Seriously, though, this game is really, REALLY bad. The cut-scenes, although of decent cinematic quality, are cheesier than Monterey Jack. The game has absolutely nothing to do with the Wing Commander universe (the setting for the original Privateer). Instead, it's like a leech sucking up Privateer's good reputation in order to survive.

It didn't work.

The Bottom Line
In a word: crap.

DOS · by James Hicks (8) · 2000

A step back regarding game design

The Good
The story is quite fascinating. It is also developed in an interesting way. The acting is not bad for a computer game, although it cannot be compared to real movies. Most of the motivation is caused by wanting to get money for new ships and equipment.

The Bad
The game design is not as good as in Privateer 1. There you were first in a solar system where nothing really bad could happen to you. In Privateer 2 you are in the same area all the time. That means that at the beginning you have to deal with the same amount of pirates as later and at the beginnig they are unbeatable. So you have to save your game everytime you leave a planet and hope you do not encounter any enemies. Another option would be invulnerability but it should be possible to play the game without it. In this game it is not. Always coming to the same planets all through the game also gets a bit boring. The space combat is also quite tiring sometimes. As you can only jump to the next NAV-point when there are no enemies around, you have to kill them all first. But if it takes you too long, more and more of them will arrive and attack you. I sometimes came in a situation I could not escape, because there was an unlimited number of pirates and it was not a mission but just an ordinary flight. I had one of the best ships and killed about 100 of them without being severely wounded, but after fighting this battle more than an hour I was just frustrated and I had to restore the game. And this happened to me several times!

The Bottom Line
The concept has been stolen from Elite and a story was added. It is a game from Origin's Interactive Movie period.

DOS · by Mr Creosote (366) · 2000

For you to like this game you have to forget that this is a sequel and treat it as a totaly different product.

The Good
Great plot, large universe to play in and easy controls. I didnt like the idea of cargo ships at first but after a while it grows on you. Now i doubt that I would want to go back to the old way.

The Bad
The bad parts of this game are all well covered by the other reviews. And mostly I agree with the many problems that Privateer II has. However I do not think it is fair to totaly hate this game. Yes the designers went way off track with this title and yes they made parts of the game that were so great in the other game, terrible in this one. But for me when I started to play this game I fell in love with the story line. So what I did was treat this as a brand new title and didnt compare it to Privateer. At first I was angry that this had little to do with the orginal. But after you spend your allotment of cash (for single guys when you are married you go back to the allowence system again) you try to make do with what you got. (note: I could not return it) When the game was over I didnt think it was a great great game, but I though it had a place in my top 50 of all time. However I can totaly understand why Privateer fans hate this game with a passion. I can because I am a avid Privateer fan and when I started this game, like I said before I was ticked off.

The Bottom Line
To non privateer players give it a try just remember that the orginal is TOTALY different. To privateer fans if you cant seperate the two games dont bother.

DOS · by William Shawn McDonie (1131) · 2001

[ View all 10 player reviews ]

Discussion

Subject By Date
Will editing money make you skip side quests? Kreshna Aryaguna Aug 15, 2012

Trivia

For as much of a new game as it is, there is at least one nod to the original Privateer in the sequel. There's a random mission in which you have to approach and identify a derelict starfighter. Nothing major, but upon contact with the ship you'll see that it's a 3d-rendered version of the Talon, the singlemost common ship in the original Privateer. Look for it in the manual also.

Analytics

MobyPro Early Access

Upgrade to MobyPro to view research rankings!

Related Games

Privateer
Released 1983 on ZX Spectrum, ZX81
Loot River
Released 2022 on Windows, Xbox Series, 2023 on PlayStation 4...
The Riftbreaker
Released 2021 on Windows, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series
Battle for the Galaxy
Released 2014 on iPad, Android, 2016 on Browser...
Milky Way Map
Released 2018 on Windows
Dark Island
Released 2020 on Windows, Macintosh
Dark Reign 2
Released 2000 on Windows
The Spanish Privateer
Released 2022 on Windows, Macintosh, Linux

Related Sites +

Identifiers +

  • MobyGames ID: 363
  • [ Please login / register to view all identifiers ]

Contribute

Are you familiar with this game? Help document and preserve this entry in video game history! If your contribution is approved, you will earn points and be credited as a contributor.

Contributors to this Entry

Game added by Raphael.

Windows added by Reptil3.

Additional contributors: Zovni, Silverblade, CaesarZX, SGruber.

Game added November 2, 1999. Last modified March 26, 2024.