Much of the game takes place in two-dimensional space, with the player flying a ship from a third-person overhead perspective. The player has the option of engaging in both combat and trade. Players are able to fly through hundreds of star systems, which are connected to each other by hyperlinks. Ships travel between star systems along the hyperlinks by engaging their hyperdrive, a form of faster-than-light travel. In Nova, wormholes or hypergates may also be utilized for instantaneous travel. Most systems contain stellar objects such as planets and space stations. Players can land on these objects, where they may be given the option to trade, gain missions, and purchase new spaceships or add-on outfits for their current spaceship. The plot is advanced through missions available from facilities on planets as well as NPCs flying through space. Players can choose which missions to follow and which governments to form a good relationship with or to be entirely neutral. They can choose to be a trader or a mercenary or an asteroid miner among a number of things or a combination of several.