This looks alright...from the trailers.
Parkan II looks to me like a Battlecruiser game for the casual gamer. I was a bit annoyed, however, when reading a couple of previews (GameSpy and Worth Playing) that they did not mention Battlecruiser at all.
What's worse, is that the Worth Playing preview called it 'revolutionary' when they talked about FPS areas in Parkan II, a space sim game, when Battlecruiser has had this for yonks!
To be really honest with you, I think I'll buy this over Universal Combat (assuming the reviews are good). I downloaded the Battlecruiser Millenium freeware, and I really struggled to get into it. It requires dedication and time, and I don't have that time with coursework and GCSEs (I also needed to print out the manual, but I can't do that considering I have a crappy mid-90s Canon). This Parkan II looks a lot more user-friendly etc. etc. Don't get me wrong though; from what I've read from the manuals and appendixs of the Battlecruiser series, its an absolutely GREAT series.
But Battlecruiser Next Gen or whatever you call it I definetly will get. I'm hoping that it'll have a book manual and tutorial mission. Either one of them will convince me to get it. Beats Parkan even though its just alpha from the screenshots.
By the way, I have played a demo of Parkan a few years back on a demo DVD from PC Gameplay.