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Evochron Mercenary
The life of an independent mercenary is rarely without excitement. Your spacecraft awaits and your adventure begins in the Sapphire star system.
What players say
Steam review score and the most-helpful voices, which may include critical ones. Score via Steam as of 2026-09-26 · quoted reviews as of 2026-05-13.
What reviewers agree on
61 of the 104 reviews raise this.
“"I saw a distant planet with rings like saturn, as i flew closer i could see the rings were made of tiny particles of water as i drifted through them in my starship" - 8.5/10 EM is a sandbox space pilot simulator. It…”
“If you're a fan of space-flight sims, this one is pretty interesting. It's mostly a sandbox that gives you an option to follow a storyline of missions that will lead you in the general direction of a reward. The…”
“This is the first time I've ever bothered to write a review on Steam. Long story short - EM has really struck a chord with me and I'd happily reccommend to others hungry for some immersive, expansive, open-universe…”
21 of the 104 reviews raise this.
“"I saw a distant planet with rings like saturn, as i flew closer i could see the rings were made of tiny particles of water as i drifted through them in my starship" - 8.5/10 EM is a sandbox space pilot simulator. It…”
“Ive noticed that the people who have not recommended this game have played very little time on it.I myself have spent more time at the beginning watching videos than playing but.....I love this game,i love the…”
“This is an often overlooked gem of a space sim. Known for a very steep learning curve, especially with the flight model within a newtonian physics engine. Amazing but challenging. Works well with mouse + keyboard,…”
13 of the 104 reviews raise this.
“This is the first time I've ever bothered to write a review on Steam. Long story short - EM has really struck a chord with me and I'd happily reccommend to others hungry for some immersive, expansive, open-universe…”
“An excellent space combat simulator that has all the bells and whistles of most AAA titles; except it's made by one person. Don't blow this off as some clone or half-assed attempt; this will give everyone who enjoys…”
“One of the best space fighter simulations out there, Evochron Mercenary gives you the freedom you should expect from space. Even though it's not perfect feature-wise, those who loved Elite, Wing Commander or Freelancer…”
10 of the 104 reviews raise this.
“If you're a fan of space-flight sims, this one is pretty interesting. It's mostly a sandbox that gives you an option to follow a storyline of missions that will lead you in the general direction of a reward. The…”
“Amazing, the only thing more amazing is the optimization and performance. Runs great on my old XP machine, and doesn't need a ton of Ram or Hard Drive space. It is also supremely cool to be able to go from space to…”
“Well, do You remember what Ozu said in Freelancer? "Ozu: Sometimes the simplest solutions are the best." And its true. EM just proved it by itself. Game offers some variety of well-know ideas since first Elite, and…”
10 of the 104 reviews raise this.
“How is it possible I didn't saw this game be released back in 2012 ? This gem.... Forget about empty premium AAA over-priced hype ELITE:DANGEROUS. EVOCHRON MERCENARY is a game made by one man, alone, and he puts so much…”
“I bought this game years ago and was overwhelmed by its depth. So it sat in my library until I forgot about it. Recently I got Elite Dangerous and had alot of fun for aobut a day, then started to feel like every planet,…”
“2/22/2015 If you like the concept of Elite: Dangerous but at 1/3 the cost, this is your game. Alternatively, if you've never played a space sim before, this is a good jumping off point. Pros: Works well with or without…”
22 of the 104 reviews raise this · 8 of them still recommend the game.
“While this game is quite fun, and you literally can do almost anything you want to, it has it's shortcomings. The biggest being the limitations of upgrades. There are only a few ships you can possibly obtain, and they…”
“This game is worth getting for the incredible space-flight simulation. But like the ground-breaking "flight sims" of the 1990's anything past that in this game earns a resounding "eh". Cleaning solar pannels is a pain…”
“I was happy to buy the game when it was out, however there are several things which I didn't like.. read on... Why I do not like it: I've been playing it recently and I must say it is really limited in a number of…”
20 of the 104 reviews raise this · 17 of them still recommend the game.
“I bought this game, because I wanted to customize my ship and then have a "sandbox" environment to kick around in. After half an hour of playing, I realized I'd bitten off way more than I'd ever wanted to chew, so I put…”
“This is an often overlooked gem of a space sim. Known for a very steep learning curve, especially with the flight model within a newtonian physics engine. Amazing but challenging. Works well with mouse + keyboard,…”
“Amazing game. Sorta ilke EVE online but a lot more focus on flying than economy. Economy is still a big part of the game and finding trade routes and exploring new planets for profit is a ton of fun. Exploring is…”
13 of the 104 reviews raise this · 6 of them still recommend the game.
“While this game is quite fun, and you literally can do almost anything you want to, it has it's shortcomings. The biggest being the limitations of upgrades. There are only a few ships you can possibly obtain, and they…”
“I was happy to buy the game when it was out, however there are several things which I didn't like.. read on... Why I do not like it: I've been playing it recently and I must say it is really limited in a number of…”
“This game is impressive if the rumors about one person programming it are true. However, there are many, many problems that make this game completely unplayable for anyone except the most die-hard, pig-headed, obsessive…”
11 of the 104 reviews raise this · 6 of them still recommend the game.
“I bought this game, because I wanted to customize my ship and then have a "sandbox" environment to kick around in. After half an hour of playing, I realized I'd bitten off way more than I'd ever wanted to chew, so I put…”
“This game is impressive if the rumors about one person programming it are true. However, there are many, many problems that make this game completely unplayable for anyone except the most die-hard, pig-headed, obsessive…”
“A fairly good game with some nice ideas. It's a bit like Freelancer, but a little more "real" and more involved. The multiplayer is where the majority of the fun is at, but you will find it lacks depth. Once you have…”
11 of the 104 reviews raise this · 2 of them still recommend the game.
“This game is impressive if the rumors about one person programming it are true. However, there are many, many problems that make this game completely unplayable for anyone except the most die-hard, pig-headed, obsessive…”
“I really love what this game is about but I have to admit that it is hostile to the player and requires multiple google searches to understand the basic things of this game. For example, I still don't know how to save…”
“Freelancer meets Eve and this is their offspring. Offspring has grown to be unforgiving and often slapping you in the face. After the initial awe of sandbox you will realise a very crude ui, atmospheric flight that…”
Counted across 104 English reviews, sampled to match this game's 76.6% positive rating · as of 2026-05-13
“Ok i bought this game during the summer sale and so far I like it! The Good! Open world.. You can do what you want to do if you have some imagination! A large mapped out universe with safe systems.. Not so safe systems.. And just down right Angry systems! Even more systems that…”
— a player, Steam review · 318 hrs played“Really fun. Great graphics (especially with the mods, which are worth looking into) and sound. Singleplayer and Multiplayer (basically the Singleplayer world but with other players on servers). No real loading screens except for like, 20 seconds when you first start playing. The…”
— a player, Steam review · 31 hrs played“I would have preferred a better reviewing system that would allow me to moderate my point, but this will have to do. If I had to give an honest opinion of whether or not you should get the game, I would say that it depends of what you're looking for, as well as how patient you…”
— a player, Steam review · 49 hrs playedPlayer activity
Monthly average concurrent players. Live data self-collected from the Steam API · history through 2023-04 via SteamCharts.
Price tracking
US-region pricing (USD), sampled twice daily by our own tracker since 2026-08-12. Steam prices vary by region — always confirm your local price on Steam.
Regional prices at last sample, in local currency — Steam sets each region's price independently.
Cheapest → most expensive, converted to USD at ECB reference rates (2026-09-25). Relative comparison only.
Latest official news
Developer announcements via the Steam news API — links go to the original posts. More across all games on the news hub.
Evochron Mercenary 2.928 Update...
Version 2.928 is now live and includes the following improvements: - Code changes implemented to improve overall memory efficiency for shader based objects. - Reputation levels could drop to default v
Evochron Mercenary 2.928 Update...
Version 2.928 is now live and includes the following improvements: - Code changes implemented to improve overall memory efficiency for shader based objects. - Reputation levels could drop to default v
Evochron Mercenary 2.918 Update...
Version 2.918 is now live and includes the following improvements: - New 'Zero Throttle' key and button remappable control option added to configuration menu. - A very rare scenario with targeting cou
Evochron Mercenary 2.918 Update...
Version 2.918 is now live and includes the following improvements: - New 'Zero Throttle' key and button remappable control option added to configuration menu. - A very rare scenario with targeting cou
Evochron Mercenary 2.908 Update...
Version 2.908 is now live and includes the following improvements: - Loading data performance for item descriptions in inventory console improved. - Passenger transport range based pay limit increased
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Screenshots
Official Steam store screenshots — click any shot to enlarge.
Facts & details
From the Steam store record, snapshot 2026-05-13.
| Genres | Action, Indie, Simulation |
| Player tags | Space · Simulation · Indie · Sci-fi · Space Sim · Action · Open World · Sandbox · Multiplayer · Flight · Trading · TrackIR (SteamSpy community voting) |
| Features | Single-player · Multi-player · Co-op · Steam Trading Cards · Family Sharing |
| Languages | English * * |
| Official site | http://www.starwraith.com/evochronmercenary/index.htm |
Minimum system requirements (PC)
OS *: Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8.1 Processor: 2.0 GHz AMD/Intel Memory: 1.5 GB RAM Hard Disk Space: 750 MB Video Card: 128 MB DirectX Compatible DirectX®: 9.0c