A new game can be started through the New Game panel of the Main Menu. Here you can choose between Campaign and Freeroam. The Campaign follows the story of Adrian Faulkner, while choosing Freeroam allows you to customize your character and pick a starting ship. Freeroam also completely deactivates main storyline missions.
After finishing the Campaign you automatically resume progress in Freeroam mode.
Starpoint Gemini 2 takes place in the Gemini system, several years after the horrible and unexpected turn of events at the end of the second Gemini war. Imperial forces used the reopened Starpoint and swarmed into Gemini once again. Gemini factions, shocked by a sudden deadly strike of their nemesis, tried to save what they could and retreated to sectors farther away from the Starpoint. The first Imperial waves led by the gargantuan Leviathan laid waste to most of the veteran Gemini League units and killed many of the elite commanders. The League was barely saved and reorganized by Captain Dmitry Kuzhev, second in command to the great General Paul Demetrius who was tragically lost in the battle of Starpoint. But, the strength and influence of the organization suffered greatly. Factions all over Gemini faced panic and disorder. Then the unthinkable happened: the Empire offered a truce and brought their military operations to a minimum. That move was impossible to explain, but all of Gemini gladly accepted the possibility to rest and reorganize. Imperial forces continued limited incursions near the borders of their new domain, but the only all-out war they didn't suspend was aimed at the Colonial Directorate, an organization that the Empire itself founded years before any secession movement appeared in Gemini. In the eyes of the Empire, the Directorate was to blame for the loss of the Gemini system in the first place and traitors have no place in the Imperial order. Meantime, the largest factions managed to survive even this turmoil. Baeldor Republic, now led by Carlos Figueroa, secured most of their borders and fought sporadic skirmishes with Nexus, a scientific conglomerate led by Dr. Thomas Scott. The new, reorganized Nexus was worlds apart from the old one that worked together with the League to liberate the system. It became isolated and increasingly aggressive under the rule of Dr. Scott.
The Korkyran Triumvirate also remained firm within smaller borders, but Grand Arbiter Christopher Derrick was forced to fight an open rebellion instigated by the Thaurian Alliance, led by Walter Lehmann; a former Korkyran Judicator.
Another large faction known from the previous war, the Nyxian Consortium, decided to take a more pragmatic stance. They made a deal with the Empire and worked as their ally.
The Gemini League is now known as the Gemini Protectorate and is commanded by Dmitry Kuzhev, a veteran of both Gemini wars. Kuzhev fought the Empire his entire life and came very close to claiming final victory on several occasions. Now, with Paul Demetrius out of the picture, Kuzhev took the helm of the Protectorate and drove it in the direction he deemed righteous – at the forefront of all resistance against the Empire. The Protectorate has transformed into a highly militarized system with good connections to smaller armed factions and weapons manufacturers. Kuzhev intends to be prepared to deal a serious blow to the Empire when the time is right.
Following the initial Imperial surge and capture of significant territories in Gemini, several new factions emerged from previously devastated sectors – The Trinity Free States, Porphyria, the Iolian Pact and Mycaena, but their influence remains limited for the time being.
You are Adrian Faulkner, a 22-year old son of the legendary Gemini League hero, Gabriel Faulkner, known best for his endeavours in the last Gemini war; a war which ended when the Empire reopened Starpoint and pushed its way back into Gemini. When the war ended, Gabriel separated himself from the League and decided to seek out his lost comrades and find a different way to finally end this ever-changing fight. His investigations revealed a shocking chain of events that influence Gemini to this very day.
Adventure and Combat:
Quick Action
Context Menu
Hold +to use Skill
Hold +to use Equipment
Fire Heavy Weapons
Fire Light Weapons
Decrease Speed
Increase Speed
Ship Pitch and Yaw
Press to Align to Plane
Rotate Camera
Press to change Camera Mode
Ship Roll and Camera Zoom
Hold +for Energy Transfer
Game Menu
Interface:
Accept / Open
Apply / Toggle
Toggle
Cancel / Go Back
Change Tab
Change Secondary Tab
Choose Menu Option
Game Menu
Heads-Up Display (HUD) has several important parts which fade in when used or when needed and disappear later.
The only HUD element that will constantly stay on your screen is the Radar in the bottom left corner. The Radar will display positions of your allies (green), neutrals(blue),
enemies (red) and your mercenaries (purple). On the bottom of the screen, you can see your speed bar when you
power up/down your engines. In the bottom right corner, your skills and equipment icons will appear when you press the appropriate button.
Press and hold and choose a Skill with
to activate it. Press and hold and choose an Equipment with
to use it.
Gemini star system is divided into territorial regions. Every region is governed by at least one faction,
but some are contested by several. Encounters in a region depend on the contesting factions. Every region has a preset AI leveling.
This means one of the region parameters shows what level span AI ships will have. If a region has the level span set to 10-25,
AI ships that spawn inside it will be of any experience level between 10 and 25 with only a few bonus levels for veterans. AI ships level
up with the player to some degree. This limitation is set to make sure every region is specific in difficulty (among other aspects).
In those regions you will find many planets and even more stations you can anchor on, access your Garage, upgrade your ship, hire mercenaries and officers,
buy commodities to trade or sell the ore you've mined. You can also reset your skills and perks there, buy licenses and check Holonet News.
These options are explained in more detail in the Station Interface tutorial. Every time you undock from a planet or station, your game is automatically saved.
You can also try to smuggle on planets, but if you are discovered you will have to pay a fine. Some planets will be hostile towards you at the beginning of the game,
like planet Nyx, for example. If you want to be able to land and do business with them, you will have to raise your reputation by doing missions in
their region and killing their enemies.
Planets in Gemini universe are as follows:
Baeldor
Carthagena
Corrion
Hogosha
Iolia
Korkyra
Nyx
Pyros
Sora
Trinity
We won't list stations here because there are simply too many of them, but you will find dozens of stations scattered all around the universe.
Station and planet menus are very similar. Some stations don't have Shipyards or don't sell licenses so those options will be greyed out.
When you open the Bounty Board, it will list all active and available bounties, along with the target's portrait, level,
description and reward. Bounty targets make very hard opponents; they cannot be hacked or boarded.
Not to mention their deadly weapon arsenal. Beware when engaging them and don't say we didn't warn you, captain.
But to be able to kill them, you have to find them first. Look for clues in Gemini Holonet News, find their last known
location and start tracking them. If you don't find them immediately, you will find the pattern in their course and
eventually catch them. If you're playing on Easy difficulty, there is no need for that because they will all be pinpointed
on the Starchart.
Fun fact: Many of those criminals are actually Starpoint Gemini 2 community members and players.
They wrote their own stories for their characters and their photographs were implemented as portraits.
As a trader, not only do you need a spaceship with a big cargo hold, but you also need to track price fluctuations to find good
trading routes. As you visit more and more stations and planets, this menu will become increasingly helpful. It will
track the best import and export prices which you can then filter and try to make as much profit as you can on your trade runs.
The Starchart is your central point for getting invaluable information on various regions and points of interest in
Gemini. This is also the only place where you can accept missions. It is essential in finding your way around
Gemini as well as advancing your character and the story.
You can access the Starchart via Game Menu ().
To start a mission (main, side or freelance) select it on the map. This opens up a brief description of the mission and the
recommended level. Recommended level is more of a guideline than an actual prerequisite to take the mission. Some
enemies will be a higher level then you, but if your ship and equipment are sufficiently upgraded, you will have no problems with
them. Choose your missions at your own pace. There's no need to rush; they’re not going anywhere. Take your time to
take on freelance assignments or do some trading, mining or exploring before going on your next storyline mission.
You can also use different overlays on the Starchart check your reputation in various regions, see which sectors are controlled by which faction and more.
The Captain info panel offers a range of information on you, your finances, bonuses and reputation. Each tab has its
own tutorial panel that provides greater detail:
Personal
The Personal tab shows basic information on you as the captain. The right half of the panel lists all active bonuses.
Finances
The Finances tab gives you an overview of your monthly finances. Income is shown on the left, listed by several
categories. Expenses are shown on the right, also listed by categories and the monthly balance is situated in the middle.
Reputation
The Reputation tab shows your standing with each Gemini faction. Use the buttons on the top of the panel to filter
out unnecessary information. Faction names change color depending on their alignment towards you.
Licenses are expensive but once purchased they will make your life much easier in the long run. They can offer you
many things; discounts in regions, free T-Gate use, monthly income, additional payment for killing enemies in a
specific region and more.
Whenever you anchor on a station or planet, you will most likely want the Drydock panel. You can buy equipment, enhancements,
upgrade your spaceship, buy weapons and fighters. This will be the main area where you will go after landing. Also, when
you land, don't forget to rearm your heavy weapons and repair your ship (if needed). Same goes for recruiting new
troopers and hiring officers and mercenaries.
Every captain likes his quiet time when docked to get a cup of coffee and read the news, while his ship is getting outfitted and
repaired. On the News panel you will see different info on price fluctuations in sectors, general news about Gemini, last
known locations of criminals with bounties on them and more.
Your glorious collection. As you progress in the game, you will not sell all captured ships, you will store some of them
for later use or collection purposes. This feature was highly requested by the PC community, so we implemented it. All
spaceships in Starpoint Gemini 2 can be stored in the Garage. Some of those can't be purchased but will have to be
captured so if you are a collector, this will be quite a challenge. Don't forget there are 75 different spaceships in the
game.
The context menu (press and then choose the appropriate
action) facilitates quick and easy controls of the many functions the game has to offer, by filtering and making only
necessary and useful information and options available to you. Different options are available depending on what
kind of object is targeted, if any.
Toggle Power to Engines mode. The ship's weapons are disabled during the charge-up period or during this form of travel.
Toggle Fire-At-Will - Command your gunners to fire at all nearby enemies (firing manually with Fire-At-Will turned on temporarily overrides the gunners' orders).
Target Heavy Weapons - Command your gunners to prioritize the enemy's Heavy Weapons.
Target Systems - Command your gunners to prioritize the enemy's main Ship Systems.
Boarding – Send your troopers to capture the targeted enemy ship. Pressing it again will make your troopers retreat. Your gunners and allies will avoid targeting the ship that's currently getting boarded, unless explicitly ordered to by Marking the ship.
Mark Target – Command your ship's gunners and mercenaries and fighters to engage the marked ship.
Deploy Fighters – Fighters will attack the closest target unless you use Mark Target option. Each Fighter Wing has individual fuel consumption rate and capacity.
Grapple – Grapple the ship that is currently targeted. The target needs to be within range of the Grappler System.
Can be used to tow captured ships or keep enemies in range.
Repair / Scan – If you have a damaged structure targeted, Repair option will be available, if you target a ship or anomaly, Scan option will be available.
Cloak – If your ship has a cloak system installed, this will toggle it. Cloak will remain active until power is drained and will need some time to recharge.
First of all, since you're flying in 3D space, it can sometimes be confusing to find targets around you.
If you ever feel disoriented, pressing will align your ship to the standard plane.
There are several ways to travel through Gemini universe:
a) PTE (Power to Engines) mode - Faster then standard speed (double-tapbutton)
b) T-Gates - Fast and secure way of travel but also more expensive. They are scattered all across Gemini and all linked together.
c) Wormholes - Free but volatile, usually will take you to desired location, but sometimes you can end up on the other side of the universe. Use at your own risk.
d) Riftways - Green space "highways" that will boost your speed while you're in them.
e) T-Drives - Equipment you can buy on stations and planets that work as a small distance hyperspace jump. T-Drive can be a lifesaver in a fight you're losing, but it's not cheap.
There are two camera modes in the game. Pressingwill toggle Chase Camera On.
a) Turret View - This is default view. Camera is fixed above your ship and will always move together with the ship.
b) Chase Camera - This mode works similar to Turret view, but it will lock on target and return to normal when the target is destroyed or leaves the area. If there are multiple enemies in your vicinity,
you can cycle between them by pointingin their direction. Pressingwill toggle Chase Camera off.
Energy Transfer (press and hold)- You can distribute power between engines, shields and weapons at any time, so if you need that extra speed, increasing energy in engines will
add up to all other speed bonuses you might have (officers, enhancements). Same goes for weapons and shields, depending on the situation you find yourself in.
In Starpoint Gemini 2 you're commanding a capital ship.
That means that to be successful, you need to micromanage your ship systems, power, positioning in battle, your resources (mercenaries and fighters)
and be aware of the enemies surrounding you, their weapons and tactics.
Starpoint Gemini 2 is easy to learn, but hard to master. Know your limits, retreat when surrounded, attack when you have an advantage and you might become a hero one day.
Every ship in Starpoint Gemini is equipped with light and heavy weapon mounting points. All ship manufacturers sell ships with pre-installed weapons, but you can upgrade them as you progress through the game.
If you find manual targeting too hard, you can always let your crew handle it by enabling Fire-At-Will option via Context menu (press).
As you progress throughout the game and level up, you will gain access to better and bigger ships. Some of them have hangars in which you can store fighters.
During combat, you can deploy those fighter wings and command them to attack a specific target.
To do that, target the enemy and then choose Mark Target option via Context menu (press).
Fighters will return to the ship hangar for refuelling when they run low on fuel.
Fighters are separated into 3 categories: Standard fighters, Bombers and Interceptors.
Standard fighters are good all-around, while Bombers specialize in attacking capital ships (they can't target other fighters), and Interceptors specialize in attacking other fighters.
When you achieve a certain level and rank, you will be able to hire up to two mercenaries to fight at your side. They have a monthly fee and they will stay loyal to you as long as you can pay for that loyalty.
They can also be commanded to attack a specific target by using the Mark Target option in Context menu (press).
Engaging in combat against many ships at once in Starpoint Gemini 2 can prove to be a very difficult task (and you will find yourself in those situations). Finding the perfect ship loadout,
choosing the right skills and perks that will benefit your crew and ship, utilizing fighters and mercenaries will make the difference between life and death.
Experiment with different combinations of skills, enhancements, officers and equipment to gain the advantage over enemies.
For more information, like ship, officer and enhancement lists please visit the Starpoint Gemini 2 Wiki pages.
When you enter combat (either by getting attacked or by attacking someone), the Tactical Overlay display will automatically appear around your ship.
Tactical display will show:
1. Shields - you have 4 shields on your ship. As you take hits to a specific part of the ship, those shields will deplete.
They will recharge automatically but it takes time so it's essential that you learn how to maneuver your ship accordingly to spread the damage onto other shields.
2. Heavy Weapons amount - As you spend your missiles or torpedoes, Tactical Overlay will help you keep track how many missiles or torpedoes you have left on each turret.
3. Heavy weapons recharge time - All missiles and torpedoes do high amounts of damage, but also need time to recharge before you can fire them again.
4. Battery Energy - Shooting with Light weapons drains your Energy so you can't go all ballistic in harder fights.
They also automatically recharge but you don't want to stay exposed in the middle of the fight, waiting for your weapons and shields to recharge.
Tactical Overlay display will disappear automatically upon leaving combat.
One of the best ways to earn money at the start of the game is by capturing enemy ships, towing them to the nearest station or planet and selling them for a hefty price.
You can do that by depleting the enemy shields, then getting their hull to about 50% or less (not required but highly advisable since it greatly increases the chance of success) and then start the boarding process.
Success of the boarding process depends on several factors. First of all, you should hire an officer that increases trooper strength.
Then install an enhancement on your Transporter system (in Drydock) which increases Transporter capacity. Third option is to fire a Viral Torpedo at the enemy which will infect and kill some of their troopers.
Viral Torpedoes are expensive, but not always needed. Now you're ready to board the enemy and take their ship.
When you brought the enemy down to 50% hull, grapple them to prevent them from running away by using your Grappler via Context menu (press).
Now via the same menu, choose the Boarding option and a small screen on the right will appear. There you will see your the status of your boarding operation.
Think of it as clearing the enemy ship deck by deck and progressing to the bridge. Once you capture the ship, it will turn from red to green and you will be able to tow it back to the nearest station or planet.
Additionally, you can Loot the ship and Demolish it by choosing the appropriate options in the Context menu.
After you gain some perk points by leveling, you will be able to further boost your trooper strength by choosing the Field Commander perk.
There are three classes in Starpoint Gemini 2 (Gunner, Commander and Engineer), each with its own unique skillset (4 skills each). You will gain one skill point every level which you can use to improve any available skill.
Skills can be reset at stations and planets for a fee.
Be careful when you choose your class at the start of the game. Classes can't be changed once chosen.
Gunner is a straight-shooter. He augments his light and heavy weaponry to maximize damage on enemies.
His skills are pure DPS boost skills (Plasma Booster, Beam Manipulation, Railgunner and Heavy Hitter). Naturally, if you equipped your ship with railguns, you will try to maximize the Railgunner skill.
The Commander balances between augmenting his own ship and his entire fleet. He is most powerful when accompanied by friendly ships (mercenaries) and fighter wings.
His expertise are Tactics (Increases power of your fleet), Retaliate (Enemy hits can cause retaliatory effect on the shooter),
Defender (Augment your ship and your fleet with extra defence) and Piloting (Better movement and accuracy).
The Engineer can create dangerous anomalies and hack into enemy ships' mainframes to inflict damage or other negative effects. To utilize everything at his disposal, he can also augment his Power output.
He can Hack (Disable enemy systems), open Rift (Powerful anomaly that weakens and damages your enemies), Energize (boost your ship's Power output and distribution to augment your shields and disable your enemies' weapons)
and Enforce (Increase your ship's Energy grid or deal additional damage).
Perks are gained every 5 levels and they give bigger bonuses like extra XP gain, stronger troopers, higher missile damage and so on. Perks are the same for all classes.
Perks can be reset at stations and planets for a fee.
Merchant - Improves commodity trade prices
Hawkeye - Increases sensor radius and improves cloak detection
Field Commander - Increases Trooper strength
Scoundrel - Reduces enemy critical hit chance and anomalous effects
Miner - Increases mining yield from asteroids
Scavenger - Increases scavenging yield from derelicts
Collector - Increases collecting yield from nebulas
Space wolf - Increases radiation and EMP resistance
Student - Increases experience gain
Torrent surfer - Increases T-Drive jump radius
Light vessels - Increases Evasion for Gunship and Corvette size vessels
Mid-size vessels - Increases Battery power for Frigate, Destroyer and Cruiser size vessels
Large vessels - Increases Maneuverability for Battleship, Dreadnought and Carrier size vessels
Transport vessels - Increases Speed for Freighter and Freightliner size vessels
Railguns - Increases Damage and Accuracy for Railguns
Beams - Increases Damage and Accuracy for Beam accelerators
Plasma cannons - Increases Damage and Accuracy for Plasma cannons
Missiles - Increases Damage and Accuracy for Missiles
Shockwaves - Increases Damage and Accuracy for Shockwave generators
Torpedoes - Increases Damage and Accuracy for Fusion torpedoes
Every 5 levels you will also increase in Rank, which gives you access to bigger and better ships. Ranks provide additional bonuses on their own, along with a Perk point.
Apprentice - You can command Gunship size vessels.
Mate - You can command Corvette size vessels.
Petty officer - You can command Frigate and Freighter size vessels.
Chief petty officer - You can hire an additional mercenary into your fleet with ship size up to Frigate.
Master petty officer - You can command Destroyer size vessels.
Ensign - You can command Cruiser and Freightliner size vessels.
Lieutenant - You can command Battleship class vessels.
Ltn. Commander - You can command Dreadnought size vessels.
Commander - You can command Carrier size vessels.
Captain - You can command mercenaries with ship size up to Cruiser.
Commodore - Perk
Rear admiral - Fleet Damage increased by 10%.
Vice admiral - You can hire an additional mercenary.
Admiral Fleet - Soak increased by 10%.
Fleet admiral - You can command mercenaries with ship size up to Dreadnought.
The Reputation tab (in Captain Info panel) shows your standing with each Gemini faction. The factions are split into 3 different categories: Territorial, Companies, and Outlaw.
Your standing with the factions is based on an overall reputation that is gained or lost from doing missions and combating different factions.
Some factions like the Trinity Free States will become neutral or allied to you if you have a positive reputation, Triad will become neutral or allies with you if you have a negative reputation
while others like the Thaurian Alliance will never become neutral or allied with you.
There are over 40 different blueprints you can collect while travelling the Gemini universe. Blueprints usually have 5-10 pieces you need to collect and they are random drops from enemies all over the galaxy.
When you get all the pieces from a blueprint, you can go to any station or planet and assemble the item - it should become available for purchase in the Drydock panel. There are blueprints of unique shields, weapons (light and heavy), ship systems like Transporters, Grapplers, Cloaks and other.
For more info and a complete list of Blueprints, please visit the Starpoint Gemini 2 Wiki pages.
When anchored at a station or planet you can find enhancements under the Drydock tab.
Enhancements usually give one or more bonuses to your ship's systems, for example Light weapon damage, Battery energy, Rate of fire and so on.
All ship systems, including weapons, can be enhanced.
For more info and a complete list of enhancements, please visit Starpoint Gemini 2 Wiki pages.
You can hire up to three Officers to fill key positions on your ship (Tactical, Navigation, Engineering).
Officers can give different bonuses to your ship and crew.
They require a regular salary so keep in mind that they WILL LEAVE your service if they're not paid in time.
For a complete list of officers, their locations and bonuses they provide, please visit the Starpoint Gemini 2 Wiki pages.
Spaceships are the most prominent feature of the game. In Gemini everything revolves around spaceships one way or another; you will live and die aboard these vessels.
In Starpoint Gemini 2 there are 75 spaceships available in various sizes and capabilities, and all of them are possible to own and command.
The player may equip more than 200 different weapons and use dozens of different equipment to gain an advantage in combat.
There are 10 different ship classes. Each has their own set of characteristics. Smaller ships, like Gunships, are fast and agile. Bigger ships are slower, but possess more firepower.