While there will be combat, it will not be flight simmy — and it won't be the be all and end all of the game.

Looking at NorthStar personal combat as being akin to Fallout is not a bad abstraction at this point. In the end there will be some differences but the general philosophy and structure will probably be pretty similar.

Perspective will be 3'rd person Japanese Tactical RPG / X–Com view.

Tactical RPG in this case means real time casual movement and exploration, turn–based combat. Characters will act on their own individual initiative ratings — be they your guys or the enemy.

In ground combat you can choose to let the fight AI control your team members, or allies may be joined to your side that have a sympathetic agenda but will remain under their own control. AI controlled combatants will fight according to their personality and will often make decisions based on what is best for them as opposed to what is most helpful or even harmful to you.

Space combat will be real time though. Think of a slightly more 2D forced version of Sword of the Stars where the pacing and and situations lend themselves more to maneuver and planning than a bazillion cool weapons flying through the air at once like in Sword of the Stars. In situations where something damages a ship system component, repairs or replacement will also have to be done in real–time. Somewhat akin to Han Solo working on that hyperdrive...

This is not a game about endlessly buying the biggest hugest ship until you are, once again, combat simming your way through the game. Are there not already enough games like this?

Most useful weapons aboard ship? Sawed off shotguns with buckshot and a good ol' cutlass. You may think that stabbing a guy is about flair, but in a situations were things are tight, you can be jumped from any angle at times and damaging anything by accident could mean slow or fast death — a good combat blade weapon isn't flair — it's sanity. And sure, vibro knives or stun sticks are good ideas but still the same concept — keep it tight, keep it personal and keep it to your intended target.

Characters will be able to be rendered inactive without killing them.

If your ship is destroyed while the main character is not on board then, provided you have sufficient funds, you may be able to purchase another. Note that the price of even an old trading ship like the Northstar is such that they are usually only owned by Corporations and Governments.

You are surveying a planet off in the deep Scatter. No previous beacons, no Mapping Service registered flightplan in the data base, no other ships in system. As far as you can tell you are pulling a Columbus. Atmo is very close to standard, within parameters to walk around outside with a thick coat on. Nothing terrible popping up from orbit, you decide to use the Northstar itself for the low survey.

You quickly fly zone to zone mapping the small details and, since your agenda right now is fuel for the fusion drives, you pick out a landing zone at the mouth of a river with low hills and enough open space to set down easily. You land, cut to RPG view and you wander out of the ship carefully.

The spot beside the river is very nice and, after dispatching something resembling the love child of a bear and a rhino, you decide its safe enough to haul out a cracking station.

It takes a day or so to generate enough deuterium for your tanks and in that time you decide you will leave the little cracking station, build a secure "Omni–Hut"(tm) over it and a large storage tank. You then pull out a Landing beacon and "Omni–terminal"(tm) out of storage and....

VOILA!! Port AvSquadron is born! The galaxies newest Class F starport and you are its proud owner. The omni–terminal will log the arrival of any ship and auto charge them for any landing and fuel fees. Of course, since you are not hiring any personnel to work way out here, it is a fully automated starport and hence pretty much works on the honor system. (Something actually well founded in the scatter since abusing or destroying what few facilities are out here harms EVERYONE and is very frowned on by other far traders, colonists and even pirates.)

Over the course of the game you would upgrade it perhaps with warehouses, a fully staffed trade base, try and attract other merchants charging them rent, etc etc...

You guys are too young to be into Star Trek. I remember watching the original TV series, 1967- 1969.