SubSpace is an online 2D space action game in the tradition of such games Asteroids, Gravitar, Star Control, and indeed the first-ever computer game, Computer Space. It was first made available to the public as an open beta test in late 1996, and for the next two years saw immense popularity, being a free download and not a shabby looking game for its time. The game was released to retail in late 1997 as an untimed release--that is, you pay once for the disc and never shell out another dollar. However, since the game is no longer available and the company which made it is long dead, the game is now entirely run and promoted by the players, and will cost you nothing if you have the sense to pirate the full version, which is openly maintained at the major SubSpace websites.
With "prime time" player populations still peaking as high as 600, with arena sizes often of an astounding 100+ low bandwidth players at once, SubSpace can fairly be called the oldest and biggest internet action game, and is one of the few games that dialup users can play without a considerable disadvantage. There are no LPBs in SubSpace, and in fact many users contest that lagged (high ping) players enjoy a considerable advantage.
The teamplay aspect of SubSpace, even in a free-for-all game at a random server on any given day, rivals the experience of clan matches in Tribes and TeamFortress. Owing to a communications system more advanced and more convenient than has been attempted elsewhere, it is very possible to enjoy intense, coordinated maneuvers on a team made of people who have never played together before.
Part of what makes this possible is the often slow pacing of the game. Make no mistake; battles in SubSpace can be absolutely hair raising, but they occur at almost cinematic intervals thanks to resource gathering necessary to upgrade your ship to full status. This is done almost in the background, with no equip screen or resource management to worry about. Because this element promotes an investment in one's ship, dying in battle, even in a free-for-all game, has more dire consequences than in a traditional action shooter. The result is careful consideration on the part of combatants, and pauses in campaigns and even in open battle which are used to fire off quick requests to teammates.
A beautifully designed interface allows for the use of 16 different weapons and powerups, plus quick team management--and even quick editing of the heads up display if you decide you need that extra screen space in the heat of battle--without any use of the mouse. And while the seasoned veteran will use 27 different keyboard controls, often by reflex, the base game is extremely simple: Thrust, rotate, guns, bombs. This all makes for a game that is incredibly complex in the long run, but as easy to start playing as any arcade game.
SubSpace differs from other games of similar complexity in its purity as an action game. Literally every special and powerup is used in combat and associated with multiple tactical maneuvers. A shockwave "repel" device doubles as a defensive maneuver for sending bombs and shrapnel away from your ailing ship, but can also be used to fling enemy ships into the jaws of your teammates, or even into proximity mines. Be careful that your opponent doesn't have a chance to repel those mines into your teammates! One drops a "portal" as an out-point for later warping--perfect for surprising a pursuer by appearing suddenly behind him...unless he happens to be jamming your warping systems. If he opts for this, he uses up some of his own energy and makes himself more vulnerable to attack. Similar energy management is associated with the use of stealth and stealth-detection powerups, and this becomes very important because your energy is your life. Use up all your energy on specials, weapons fire, or taking enemy fire, and the next enemy hit will kill you. Energy is regained gradually over time, if you can get safe--but ah, your enemy is recharging his energy as well. Maybe you should risk moving in for the kill while still low on energy?
The best element of SubSpace is ship attaching--an unrealistic but wonderful teamplay device not used in any other game. With considerable drain on your own energy, you can warp directly to another teammate, risking your skin to supply a much needed repel as he runs carrying flags with an entire enemy team in pursuit. Or imagine running with these flags, low on energy and with your attackers quickly closing in, sending out a call for help (using SubSpace's elaborate and amazingly specific system of macros), and within seconds your entire team warps in to kick ass for you and escort your ship safely to a flag base.
As a necessary component to the all-action nature of SubSpace, there are no automated defensive systems. In capture the flag games, bases stand or fall not on the practice of setting up autoturrets and physical obstacles, but on the strength of a team's skill in dogfighting and guile in tunnel maneuvers. With the exception of static proximity mines and scarce, short-duration obstacles, everything that happens in SubSpace happens because of a conscious decision made by a player at that very moment.
SubSpace additionally benefits from a clever and advanced communications system which allows players to talk with friends and squadmates between different servers without leaving the action to join a separate IRC client. Instead, all of this is embedded in the game and done at the command line which lingers at the bottom of your screen. With support for enormous maps--250,000 times the size of your ship, taking 50 seconds to cross in a fully charged ship with no obstacles or interruptions--one can spend hours in an arena without necessarily seeing all of the terrain. Indeed it is not uncommon for players to center on a favorite area of a given level, and spend an afternoon fighting there.
One can also fly off to the unpopulated outskirts, to grudge match with friends or arch enemies in private, under mutually agreed upon special dueling rules. If the other players won't leave you alone, you can start your own arena. Some servers even allow you to choose the map you will use in a private arena, and in fact the SubSpace community's bandwidth is sufficient that players making their own maps and game settings can often easily get them at least temporarily hosted. Map changes are frequent on many of the more popular servers, allowing for constant variety without the players suffering huge downloads--most maps are only between 100K and 150K, and they are always downloaded from the server when you first connect (never again), so one doesn't need to go fishing around FTP sites with map archives--although we do keep several such archives handy if you'd like to put up your own server.
It gets deeper still, with an impressive number of squad leagues, a zone simulating hockey (complete with its own leagues), alternative servers with settings radically different from traditional SubSpace games, and special scenario events and elimination tournaments, most of which can be casually joined as they are starting. The SubSpace community has shrunk a hundredfold since the game's retail release, but we make up for it in activity and dedication, and there is always something interesting happening somewhere.
SubSpace players maintain a great number of fan and news pages, squads to join, informational resources, map archives, leagues, and junk piles. If you wish to become involved, have a jaunt through in the Links section on the Website Info page.
Oldest Trick in the Book
An early warning, here. If someone tells you to type ?go followed by something else, don't do it. This is a trick pulled on newbies which sends them to a empty arena. If this happens to you, type ?go 0 to return.
That's a zero, not a capital o.
Your Teammates
Your teammates have yellow name tags and appear yellow on radar. Don't shoot at them. Everyone else will appear as blue, red, or purple. If you can't see name tags, hit ESC to bring up the options menu, F3 to turn them on, and ESC to go back to the game. You may need to do this twice.
The Green Asteroids
The green dots on radar, which look like green asteroids onscreen, are good things to pick up. They will increase your ship's abilities at random, and do not need to be equipped. Get as many of these as possible; you'll need about 40 of them before your ship can hold its own in a fight. Don't be alarmed if you hear the "greening" sound effect without picking up a green. This represents your teammates sharing their greens with you. Nice of them, no?
Why You Can't Warp
To warp, your ship must have full energy. Powerups drain energy. Check the right hand side of your screen to see if something is lit up. For now, don't worry about what's lit up, just shut it off before someone sends your skull flying through the window of your cockpit. The keys used for these items are HOME, END, SHIFT+HOME, and SHIFT+END.
Why You Can't Control the Ship At All
If you have no control whatsoever over your ship, make sure it is actually your own ship you are looking at. There are bad powerups in the game which can shut down your ship for as long as 30 seconds, but if you see a ship flying around and fighting without your help, this is another player and you are stuck in spectator mode. Hit the F11 key to rejoin the game. If this consistently fails to work, you are either too badly lagged to play or you have entered a closed match.
"Player Attached"
This means that a teammate has warped to your ship and is riding around on you as a gun turret. This is rude to do to a stranger without asking. Hit F7 to dump him off.
How to Attach
You don't need to know this yet. If you can't stand not knowing, the F7 key also is the attach key. Use F2 to get a player list, PGUP and PGDN to select a player, and then hit F7 to hop on and F7 again to detach and fly on your own. You can only attach to teammates, and only after you have picked up a certain number of greens.
Joining a freq
If you are asked to join a frequency, or "freq", enter the equals sign followed immediately by the number given to you. Note that unless you are in a safe zone this will reset your ship! Also, this may be a trick to put you on an empty frequency. If this happens, hit F11 to go into spectator mode, then F11 again to come out. The server should join you automatically to a frequency with some players on it.
The Bad Guys
As in real life, players in online games are rude. Hiding behind a computer, passive aggressive types can be very obnoxious and often downright mean. Don't take it too personally; some of them are role playing, others are just assholes. Enjoy your new enemies, respond gracefully, and try as best as you can to blow them up.
The Good Guys
Having said that, most of us who still play SubSpace are very glad to see a new player getting involved and are likely to be very helpful if asked. The game allows for private arenas for training or closed matches and duels. (This is what the ?go command is for.) If you are downright confused or would like an experienced player to show you the ropes or take you through some maneuvers, just type "someone please help me" and hit enter. Another player is likely to respond, though things can get fairly busy in the game and it's not unimaginable that you'd be ignored. You could also try just asking your teammates.
Chill
You're going to be killed at least 30 times before you make a single satisfying kill, or even an accidental. You may be killed 100 times before that happens. It takes about three weeks to really learn SubSpace. For now, don't be self-conscious. Enjoy flying around, enjoy the scenery, turn up the speakers and revel in the carnage. Losing is half the fun.
Never Ever Cheat
There are pages out there with various cheat programs, and there are bugs to exploit. Fortunately, those of us who run this game are very, very well organized. If you use a cheat program, we will know exactly what program it is, we will find out where you are connecting from, and we will ban you from over two dozen of the most popular and best run servers, permanently. We're here to have fun, but for those of us who take care of the zones it is often a lot of work. By mutual agreement we are not permitted to show any mercy to cheaters, and because of this there are literally hundreds of players who will probably never play on an active server again. Don't become one of them. Always do the right thing and no trouble will come to you.
Thanks for reading.
einexile the meek
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