Originally posted by Marty
well actually there is one space sim in development.
Several, actually.
Upcoming single-player space sims include:
* Freelancer
* Elite 4
* Battlecruiser (whatever the next one is called)
* Babylon 5: I've Found Her (freeware)
* Starshatter
Space sim / tactical / strategy games include:
* Starfleet Command 3
* Imperium Galactica 3
* Hegemonia: Legions of Iron
Massively multiplayer space-sims / RPGs include:
* Earth and Beyond
* EVE: The Second Genesis
* Ace of Angels
* Jumpgate Episode 2
* Eschaton Online
But, to the original poster's point:
...there certainly isn't a ground swell of intiative to make new Space Sims... let alone WC. I was wondering-- I guess one could say from an anthropological-getting-sick-and-tired-of-first-person-shooters perspective-- was there any specific catalyst for this change in the ethos of the game-playing public? What do you think?
I think space sims just hit a "dry spell." The best / most popular / most enjoyable sims of the past few years were, in no particular order: WC Prophecy, Freespace 1 and 2, Tachyon, and XWing Alliance. Most of them fell into the broad category of "just like the last game only better." The only real stand-out in terms of trying something new was I-War, and it was extremely difficult and not terribly well marketed.
In any case, the market collapsed. Each game sold worse than the one before, and the major studios and publishers learned not to pour enormous production budgets into a stagnant genre.
I think that gamers are, to some extent, waiting for a space sim that is really fun without being really derivative to come along. Digital Anvil thinks that game is going to be Freelancer, and with Microsoft behind them, they could be right. But I kind of doubt it.