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Proven wrong!
According to many gamers the greatest problem in gaming is that there is a conflict between graphics and gameplay. Many believe that a company that spends all their resources and energy on creating a gorgeous looking game doesn't spend any energy on gameplay. On the opposite end, there are those companies that pursue gameplay, but aren't worried about graphics. We want good gameplay, and we want graphics, and we are convinced there is no middleground; we want the best of both.
This was the wrong can of worms to open.
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Love the sphere of death!
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This isn't a ridiculous assumption, some of the really great games are ugly, and some of the finest eye candy is downright unplayable. But to truly believe that an ugly game has to have good gameplay and that a pretty game has to have terrible gameplay is a fallacy.
Once again, first impressions..
The game's screenshots here aren't that impressive, nor are the shots on the box. You will look at the game and wonder who in the hell would play such a thing. All of the ships look alike, and it really doesn't look all that impressive, especially compared to the current crop of space sims and RTS games.
Close in on the staple; multibeam frigate.
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The dreaded Dreadnought
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The ships are blocky and ugly, up close. It's almost as if Bizarro escaped from an issue of Superman and went on an aeronautical designing rampage. The ships follow a square design formula, which the only reason I can think of for doing is to help keep polygon counts low. It works. The game never lags, despite the fact that you can literally have 600 fighters on screen at once, all blowing each other up and being consumed in tremendous explosions.
The really great graphics aren't things that you will see in the still frames, but more of how things come together. The explosions are resonating catastrophes, even tiny recon ships explode in glorious detail. As a ship veers, you can see fins come out. (Yes, we know there is no air in space, but it's still a nice touch.)
Frigate emerging from a carrier
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Leveling multibeam doom
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Moreover, the entirety of the look just sings personality, ships will shoot out fire if they are damaged, their hulls will darken, and while in the midst of a Nebula you can see energy crackling in the background. Despite what it appears, the graphics of the game just all come together, and in this perspective are breathtaking. There were a number of wise decisions made which kept playability up, but still managed to put your video card to very good use. The graphics are amazing, but not absolutely devastating.
What's it sound like? 
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