the real fun begins when the story-mode ends
The storymode is long and interesting while you upgrade your ride at every corner . . . after some epic battles, the story ends leaving you FREELANCING! . . this is where the real exploration begins . . you can start exploring the remaining 70% of the galaxies and their secret stash . . . by the time you have one of the top 3 ships of the game, you will keep looking for equipments that make your ship stronger . . there's no denying of the fun at exploring in this game . . the freedom and value is just gr8!
later I started multiiplayer with my cousins which was dramatic . . smooth servers with several players/clans and missions . . you can fight the locals or other online players/clans . . once again you level up slowly and get stronger as you explore deeper . . . . it just one cool game to get addicted to . . . microsoft should release Freelancer 2 based on the same engine IMO