[milo]

Originally posted by Devilsbane:
Please allow me to inform. Real space is not 3D in fact most of our own solar system is w/i a 2D plane. I think it is called the 'Elliptical Plane'.

Well, "space" is three dimensional, but the interesting concentrations of mass are distributed in or near the plane of the ecliptic. On the other hand, real planets would not be distributed the way they are in SE:SF either.

However, all of that is beside the point.

This is a game, not an orbital mechanics class. Many people have trouble navigating true 3D environments on a computer. This is one of the reasons why Descent never caught on - people got space sick trying to figure out where they were in those mines. I think the decision to go 2D instead of 3D for movement was a good one for the kind of game this is meant to be.