Other news stories may be even more subtle and will change depending on how your actions affect the universe. A news story regarding a bar brawl between two rival Teladi gangs may indicate some kind of civil strife among the Teladi that a smart operator can fan into a full-blown civil war while they sell weapons to both sides. If a player is looking to corner the market on fresh water, why not use a fleet to destroy all the water vessels entering that part of space and watch water prices climb through the roof? Nothing beats the hero's welcome and the flattering news stories given when you suddenly swoop in with fully loaded water vessels with an offer to "help" -- for a reasonable profit.

The game's commitment to player freedom is also obvious from the opening menu. When the game begins, the player has the option to play as the game's default character, Julian Brenner. Julian is the son of Kyle Brenner, the hapless astronaut who was the hero of the first game (X: Beyond the Frontier). Things have calmed down a bit since the Khaak invasion in X2. Everyone in the universe has basically had the snot beaten out of them in that war and has forged an uneasy truce to give everyone a chance to rebuild -- including the Khaak invaders, who are otherwise as unpleasant as ever. Julian's best friend is still dead, his dad's in a coma, and he's been tasked with discovering the reasons behind the Khaak invasion.


While there are story-driven events that drive the plot forward, Julian's adventure is also relatively non-linear in that the player can approach it in any way or with any attitude they want. They can fly away from the story, never to return; they may take some time off to build up a trading empire; spend a little time as a Boron mercenary; or perhaps, forge better relations between all the races of the universe. The storyline is supposed to react dynamically to the choices the player makes -- offering more resistance to the Khaaks, for example, if the player takes the time to build weapons factories and make money by re-supplying different race's star fleets. Unfortunately, the build we were given was a very early beta and most of that functionality isn't in yet.

Should that not be enough, the game even offers you a number of customized starting conditions that will turn off the game's storyline and approach your conquest of the universe from a variety of perspectives. Players can begin the game as Hari Gul, a humble Argon merchant with a big cargo vessel and a more peaceful galaxy conducive to building a mercantile empire. On the other hand, players can also begin the game as Skam Beck, a branded Argon criminal with everyone in the universe out for your head. It'll be up to the player whether this is the beginning of a long climb to redemption or the start of the career of the worst citizen of the universe. The game also offers options to play as (among others), a Teladi trader looking to make a fortune, a Split warrior seeking glory, and even as an invading Khaak looking to subjugate everything (a version that has a difficulty level of "Are you kidding?").