Fishlabs on expanding the Galaxy on Fire 2 universe with better graphics and gameplay

Fishlabs's Galaxy on Fire 2 was one of the best reviewed games on mobile during 2009, so there's already plenty of attention focused on its remake for iPad, iPhone, iPod touch, and smartphones.

So as part of its ongoing development diary, Fishlabs has been talking about how the new version differs from the original Java version.

As you'd expect, it was fairly limited, most notably in terms of file size - a mere 1MB, in fact.

This had significant implications in terms of how you operated in the space world. Everything was mission-based, whereas now you'll be able fly around the universe as you want.

"Now, I can just leave the station and decide for myself if I want to complete missions or just fly around and mine ore, hunt pirates, use maps to discover new systems or stations in the growing GoF universe," explains lead programmer Hans-Christian Kühl.

The graphic quality of the game has also been massively improved.

Previously, the spaceships and space stations were built out of modular blocks, whereas now unique models and textures are being used, which is particularly important in terms of distinguishing between the four different factions.

This is an expansion from the original two, and means the reputation system is richer.

"There is no simple division into friend or foe. In GoF 2, every faction is innately neutral toward the player. Only once you cross the threshold of a certain number of points, will the entire faction be hostile to you and its members will shoot on sight. In extreme cases, there are diplomats where you can buy your way out, if your reputation has reached a critically low level," Kühl says.

Finally, the game is being expanded in terms of the amount of text used to describe every item and solar system. Fishlabs will be working with professional authors to fill in the backstory.

"This gives us the opportunity of providing a lot more information and backgrounds," explains Kühl.

"In future, the characteristics of the different races, systems, planets, and characters will be better developed, so that the whole universe will have more depth and vitality."

You can read the full diary at the Fishlabs's blog.