"A good game made great by finding it at a bargain price"

Freedom Force was a game for which I had high hopes when it was released a while back. I thought a long time about buying it at the time, but most of the reviews were (while uniformly favorable) stated that the single-player campaign was too short, too easy with cheesy characters and ultimately only a parody of the 60's comic book genre; while the multi-player was only deathmatch mode, suffered from buggy connections, non-pausable gameplay and the inevitable cheese of immature powergamers who took all of the fun out of fair competition...all this is true. However, the good news is that the game is priced at less than $20.00 at most outlets (I got mine new in the original box w/ manual for $10.00 at a local software retailer) and in light of this, I thought it a pretty good idea to re-review the game based on it's current price and the modding community's efforts to turn this into a kind of Champions-lite for the PC.

Graphics (8/10): Not bad for a game released a year or so ago and holds it's own against the current crop of squad-based, isometric, tactical combat games (like Fallout Tactics). The 3-D graphics are nice with entertaining cartoonish colors and effects while the camera allows you to look at the game world from different altitudes and angles.

Gameplay and Replayability (9/10): The game really shines here. If you like the idea of squad-based combat then this game is good. If you like tongue-in-cheek superhero vs. supervillain combat, then this game is GREAT! The ability to customize your heroes and even improve on your current squad via 'Prestige, Character and Experience Points' is a (pardon the pun) super way to hold your interest as you move from mission to mission within the SP campaign.

The SDK or editor is available and you can make your own missions/campaigns or at the very least try some of the exceptionally good mods that are out now which allow you to play totally different campaigns with new sets of superheroes (I'm playing through one now using Marvel comic's Avengers in an entirely new setting...I believe this mod currently has 5 chapters completed).

You can always make some new heroes (completely customized) and run them through the Danger Room, using your own or downloaded skins, meshes, and FX powers against any enemies (or heroes) on any map you like. A good way to have a quick battle even if it's only to test the new team out.

Sound and Music (8/10): Music is catchy and not cloying. Sounds are what you would expect (and some of the power sound effects are very well done). Ambient sounds are appropriate.

My only gripe about the sound is that you can only adjust the 2D and the music sound volume ingame. Sometimes when the characters speak (usually in cutscenes or the like) the only way to adjust the volume of their conversations is to manually adjust the sound on your speakers or desktop; but this is only a minor quibble.

Community Support (10/10): WOW! The incredibly talented and industrious Freedom Force community is still very active producing some exceptional content for this relatively older title. The game would be good without the support from the community, but all the new mods, meshes, skins, etc. from various online fansites and artists make this easily one of the top games on my recommended list. The amount of new (and sometimes totally different) content will quite likely keep this game on your hard drive for many months.

Value and Overall (9/10): A very good game when it hit the shelves at $50.00, it is now a great game with additional value for less than half the original listed price. BUY IT!

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 04/16/03, Updated 04/16/03