Freelancer was pretty cool but the (pretty short IIRC) single player story felt like a prelude and when it finished there was nothing meaningful left to do.
I always suspected that the game was developed with a multiplayer first approach and the single player mode seemed like an addon. Which was a pity I would have liked to explored this universe more.
Freelancer shared a lot of the same hype cycle as Star Citizen has had (and used a lot of very similar rhetoric from Chris Roberts). I know I didn't buy into Star Citizen's hype because I certainly remembered Freelancer. Ambitions versus practical reality versus available budgets.
I always suspected that the game was developed with a multiplayer first approach and the single player mode seemed like an addon. Which was a pity I would have liked to explored this universe more.