Earth & Beyond

Moby ID: 7477
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Description official descriptions

Earth & Beyond is the first online role-playing galaxy. This galaxy is filled with monsters and strange new worlds, but it is also home to thousands of other players from around the world. Players create unique characters and starships and can affect the galaxy, but the game persists even after individual players log off. Alien encounters, fierce combat, cutthroat commerce, new discoveries, perilous quests, strategic alliances, diplomatic backstabbing, and epic wars await you and the friends you'll adventure with. Earth & Beyond lets you build your character and career in three distinct ways: exploration, trade, and combat. The game is designed around these three activities, and each race, profession, skill, starship, and item affects how well you do these core activities.

Explorers have access to hidden locales, the best sensors, the most accurate maps, the fastest ships, and stealth capabilities. Tradesmen make and sell goods, run trade routes, go on trade missions, have the biggest cargo holds, and do whatever it takes to make a profit. Warriors thrive on combat, destroying enemies, going on dangerous missions, and protecting their friends during perilous missions.

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Credits (Windows version)

158 People (157 developers, 1 thanks) · View all

Reviews

Critics

Average score: 79% (based on 17 ratings)

Players

Average score: 3.0 out of 5 (based on 10 ratings with 1 reviews)

You can play this game. Forever.

The Good
In the recent months, I found myself drifting from regular console games over to the PC. Though I am no connosieur in computer games, I know a good simulation/rpg when I see one. So, I erase the line between Playstation 2 and Windows to write this review.

The first thing, I have to admit, that drew me to this game was the fact that I only paid $9.95 retail for it. Never did I acquire a game, created in 2003, at such a price. I felt I was getting a steal. Then, I learned of the $12.95 monthly fee. That, of which, I will leave up to those who try the game to rate. In more ways than one, the game is worth the $12.95.

Megan, the computer assistant, is there with you throughout the entire first stages of the game. If it wasn't for her, a lot of newbies, as new players are called in all games, would be lost. There is a lot to learn in this game, but it's easy. You can choose exactly how you want your character to look and what his/her personality will be. Not only that, but you also get a choice of having up to five different characters at one time! I found this very beneficial in experiencing all the different factions that Earth & Beyond had to offer. At one point, I had a heroine type character that was always fighting the good fight and everybody liked (I will explain later) and then, at the other extreme, I had an evil no-goodnick that I couldn't even stand. There is a wide range of possibilities available to the players.

Now, another feature to Earth & Beyond is it's chatting capabilities. I literally had friends from all over the world: Asia, Germany, Sweden, Canada, and the good ol' USA. They also help you to learn how to play the game and when you are looking for that hard to find 'Star Steel', experienced players will direct you right to it. They help with the leveling you need to do to advance in the game as well. There is also a new additon to the game which I particularly enjoy, instead of docking at a space station, missions that need to be completed get sent to your messaging system while you are still in the ship. You can decline or accept, whatever you feel like doing.

With the new updates and changes that are added to the game every so often, Earth & Beyond has a very bright future.

The Bad
At the other end of the spectrum is the bad. I will go over the controls, space stations and the ship first.

Controls: 8 out of 10. When you are in your ship or in a space station and you use the 'a' key and arrows to move around, you're okay. But try to use the mouse in the latter situation and you'll be pulling your hair out. A word of advice, when you are in your ship use the mouse or the 'a' key. When you are in the space station stick to the 'a' key and arrows.

Space Stations and ship: 6 out of 10. The reason I give these a 6 is not because of the above stated but because these are the only places that you really have access to and it becomes a bit redundant after a very short while. To improve on this, I believe the next patch should include a way to walk on planets and discover and complete missions in that matter. Or be able to space walk to do the same. Right now your fly your ship, walk in the stations, go back to the ship, fly around, go back the the stations, fly, walk, fly, walk, fly, walk. AAARRRGHHHHH!!!!

The fact that you can fly through asteroids, and things that you normally couldn't, tick me off as well. It may sound bad, but if a pilot can't control his ship then he should crash into the object, not fly through it. Or maybe there's an emergency and you have to crash land on a planet. In space you would have to space walk to the nearest station, or whatever, to get the necessary items to repair your ship (which you'd have to do yourself or get help with) and on the planet you could check if the air was breathable and then explore to see if there are other npcs, players, or monsters around.

In short, with regards to all of the above, the game tends to be a bit predictable.

The Bottom Line
Bottom line: if you can see past the constant flying and trips to the space stations, if you can see past being able to fly through asteroids and trees and such, if can see past the small improvements here and there, then you can see past to the extremely enjoyable game Earth and Beyond is. When you add all the elements together, all of which you will never find on a console rpg, you have some serious fun ahead of you.

From chatting to creation and station to station Earth and Beyond is a game that must be played.

Windows · by Haiku (9) · 2003

Discussion

Subject By Date
Flight mechanics? SharkD (425) Jul 27, 2009

Trivia

Shutdown

On 17 March 2004 (St Patrick's day), players of Earth & Beyond arose to a "Sunset" message announcing that the game would be terminated on 22 September (a total live run of two years).

This marks the second failed Massive Multiplayer game for Electronic Arts after Motor City Online.

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Contributors to this Entry

Game added by vism.

Additional contributors: ClydeFrog, Apogee IV, Patrick Bregger.

Game added October 18, 2002. Last modified February 6, 2024.