Descent: Freespace - Silent Threat

The recipe for a mission pack is a simple one: Take a successful game - in this case the best space combat sim of recent years - and add more of the same ingredients that made it what it is. Consequently, Silent Threat adds a 12-mission campaign, a number of third-party single missions, three new ships and four new weapons. For many that might not sound quite enough, but considering the original game had a flawless interface, superlative AI and stunning graphical effects, it comes as no surprise that few of these elements have been changed. In other words, because little was broken, hardly anything was fixed.

Unsurprisingly the storyline in Silent Threat picks up from where FreeSpace: The Great War left off. With the Vasudans vanquished, the Shivans are back to their mischievous ways. The battle group that destroyed the Lucifer have been lost, and mankind is under threat once more. Your mission, should you choose to part with 20 quid, is to slip behind enemy lines and have a good nose around. And indulge in a bit of killing.

One small gripe we had with The Great War was that the missions were too easy, and the entire game could be completed in a weekend. Thankfully Silent Threat is a little more taxing, and may keep you going for a day or two more. Although you won't find any cut-scenes in between the missions, the story is as tightly woven as before, with the high point being the introduction of a new Capital ship.

While it's obvious that developers Volition are holding back all their best ideas for FreeSpace 2, Silent Threat has more than enough to satiate fans of the first game. For sure, it's about as original as a Celine Dion record, but it's polished to a shine. As with most mission packs, it's quite simple, really: if you loved FreeSpace, you'll love this. As they say, it it ain't broke...