Freedom Fighters

Freedom Fighters (PC/FullIso/ENG)
Game Platforme(s) : PC | Language : English | Release Date : Oct 1, 2003
Publisher : EA Games | Developer : Io Interactive | Genre : Modern Tactical Shooter
Size : 647 Mb

Itmust take a lot of work to make a squad-based action game. On top ofhaving to deliver all the core aspects that any shooter shouldhave--things like responsive gameplay and great graphics and sound--agame designer working with squad-style gameplay also has to worry a lotabout artificial intelligence. All it takes is a smattering of instanceswhere a players AI squadmates get stuck on a wall or take aninefficient path around a few obstacles to really shatter the illusionof working with a team and turn the game into a drone-babysittingsimulation. Freedom Fighters, the new game from the developers of lastyears great Hitman 2: Silent Assassin, deftly avoids the many pitfallsof AI squad tactics, and this, combined with great control, missiondesign, and presentation, makes for a truly fantastic game. FreedomFighters takes place in an alternate reality that never saw thedissolution of the Soviet Union. Instead, the Red threat has continuedto grow since the end of World War II, taking hold in countries as closeto home as Cuba and Mexico. The game opens with the plumbing team ofChris and Troy Stone paying a visit to the clogged sink of IsabellaAngelina, who also happens to be a vocal member of a watchdogorganization devoted to informing the American public about the evils ofthe Soviet Union. The duo enters her apartment to find that it has beenhastily evacuated, and soon after, Soviet troops bust in to try to findher, only to capture Troy instead. The Soviet invasion of the US hasbegun.

After that brief setup, youre thrust into the role ofChris Stone, and you hook up with Isabellas resistance movement almostimmediately. Operating from the sewers beneath New York City, themovement aims to overthrow the invaders and drive the communists out ofthe country. Youll start as a lowly member of the team, but you grow inpopularity and influence as the game goes on, and Chris will slowlytransform from an average 32-year-old plumber into a battle-hardenedleader.

The game isnt terribly long-winded in its storytelling.Most of the games plot is advanced by a series of humorous Soviet-runnewscasts, which cover your actions as terrorist activities. Yourmissions are laid out in the rebel base, and the briefings are great atexplaining the strategic significance of, say, reclaiming a high schoolbuilding for the red, white, and blue. Though the story is told well andworks great in the context of the game, its pretty short on substance.Aside from a foreshadowed plot twist that you can see coming from amile away, not a whole lot happens in the game. It must also be saidthat the game doesnt provide much closure at the end, simultaneouslysetting up for a sequel while not really leaving you with a tremendousfeeling of accomplishment. A more climactic final mission would havegone a long way. These things hardly affect the incredible quality ofthe games action, though.

At the outset, Freedom Fighters playslike a rock-solid third-person shooter, with smooth and responsivecontrols. You can shoot from the hip or raise your weapon for precisionfiring, which causes the camera to zoom in slightly for a coolover-the-shoulder view. You have an inventory of items and the abilityto carry a pistol and one primary weapon, such as a shotgun, an assaultrifle, a sniper rifle, a machine gun, a rocket launcher, or a submachinegun. Youll also be able to carry grenades, Molotov cocktails, highexplosives, binoculars, and health packs that restore your health whenused, though they can also be used to heal wounded civilians or otherfreedom fighters.