Description
The story is that Farpoint station is expected to be attacked by a Shivan assault force.

Storyline:
While the storyline, both in mission and in breifing, is unoriginal, it's fine, and you don't need a great plot to have a good mission. Farpoint is under attack, and we've moved in a large force to try to "convince" the Shivans not to attack. The breifing sums this up nicely, without any unnecassary fanfare.

Balance:
Excellent. There's a good challange, but not so much as to make things impossible. The options for loadout are pretty limited - why are there only Ulysses and Hercules fighters onboard? And what happened to all the weapons? Still, the guns provided will get the job done admirably.

Design:
Pretty good. The Shivan waves come with good timing, and there's an interesting even early in the mission that greatly alters the battlefield. There's not a lot to say about the design of Farpoint. It's not an example of design genius, but there's nothing bad in it.

Gameplay:
This is simply a well-done defense misson. If you're looking for anything else, don't bother - this is just combat to keep the Shivans away from an Arcadia installation. But if you want to play a good defensive mission - and who doesn't? - this is a great place to start. Farpoint features a belivable, if not amazing story, and some wonderful gameplay. There's not a lot to say about the gameplay. It's just a blast.

Other Thoughts:
Nothing new here, but it's all well done. There are no improvements to be made, because there's not a lot to mess up. A good mission overall.