Freedom Fighters

"Two plumbers fight against an evil invading force. Now where have I heard that before?"

Freedom Fighters
XBOX
7/10

''Two plumbers fight against an evil invading force. Now where have I heard that before?''

Freedom Fighters reassures us that, in video games, any problem can be solved with the proper application of a rocket launcher. Russians invading your home turf? Rocket launcher. Tanks driving up and down your block, causing you to lose precious hours of sleep? Rocket launcher. Kids giving you some sass mouth and not paying attention at school? Rocket launcher, baby. Yes, in video games anything can be dealt with by making it go all ''explodey''. Freedom Fighters does not intend to fix this. It doesn't even intend to build on it. Freedom Fighters just drops you into the middle of a war zone and lets you shoot, explode or otherwise dispense of every hostile entity that appears on your screen. Today's villain? Those pesky Russians.

The setting is New York City. Everyone in town is either napping, or staring into an empty corner. They have to be. How else could a Soviet invasion sneak up on an entire city? Seriously! One moment Christopher Stone, the protagonist, your average NYC plumber, is headed with his brother to a routine job and the next an entire invasion force is on top of the city. If you blink, you'll miss it. Chris and his bro are driving across a bridge in their van at one second and the next each and every square block is covered with soldiers, barricades and makeshift bases. Perhaps the Russians were sneaking in soldiers in secret;

Citizen: ''What are you doing?''

Soldier: ''Vat are you meanink, good sir? Ve are just buildink new Starbucks.''

Citizen: ''That looks like a bunker to me. What with the guns and all.''

Soldier: ''....Eet ees a Starbucks. Now go back to your hot dogs and your Adam Sandler romantic comedies, American.''

In any case, it's happened. The Russians have invaded Chris' home turf, and, as far as he knows, killed off his friends and family. He never really looks into this, he just assumes. When Russian soldiers drop in on the apartment Chris and his brother are supposed to be doing their job at Chris, being the bold and dashing hero he is, hides in a closet. His brother is kidnaped, and Chris is on his own for the time being. Luckily, he doesn't hesitate to bust some heads and knocks out a soldier harassing other apartment residents. One of the men he rescues grabs a gun and tells him to follow. Being a trusting fellow, Chris does not hesitate to follow the stranger and proceeds to immolate some Russian soldiers when told to. Nobody said the story was going to be stellar. It does have it's high points, however. Between levels you're greeted with a Soviet news anchor saying that the Russians have ''far too long stood idly by and seen the plight on the American people'' and that they're here to ''rid us of this poor government'' and so on. It all sounds vaguely familiar. About three quarters through the game Chris gives a fairly impassioned speech after he and his comrades take over a TV Studio.

You probably didn't pick up Freedom Fighters for the story though, did you? You came to fight the good fight and see some stuff get blown to bits. In that department Freedom Fighters manages to deliver. While each stage features the same generic soldiers (a couple different types appear, but only rarely) and main goal (raise our flag on a building) there are secondary objectives that make your life easier and give a bit more freedom to an otherwise linear and generic 3rd person shooter. You're usually handed about three or so locations, with one main goal to achieve (rescue prisoners, destroy something, etc) but by visiting other locations you can make it easier to accomplish your main objective. See that helipad? Blow it up with some C4 and you won't see attack choppers in the rest of the level. How about that bridge? Blow it up and the flow of soldiers will greatly decrease. There are also usually one or two ways to reach your objectives, which further enhances the game play. Why go through the front door when you could climb around a little and find a back way in? There's nothing better than leading your troops into a back entrance and telling them to charge on a group of unsuspecting soldiers.

Leading your buddies around is part of the fun of Freedom Fighters. While you don't get the control over them that you'd get in a more strategic game like Rainbow Six, it's a good beginning. You really only have three orders to give; defend, follow, and attack. You can assign individual soldiers with the tap of a button or tell them all to go at it by holding the button down. It's just too bad you couldn't keep the same fighters with you through the stages, letting them gain experience or learn to use new weapons. Nope, only Chris can be the ubersoldier. If something needs to be taken out from long distance you have to do it. If something needs to go explode it's up to you to tote that rocket launcher around until it's all explodified. Your soldiers do have a bonus in that they're nearly immortal, however. As long as you have a medikit handy one of your pals can take a shotgun blast to the face and still be fine. Just wander over to him, tap ''A'' and he'll hop back to his feet and say ''That feels better!''. Through the game you'll earn ''charisma'' by completing objectives and healing the wounded. Get so much of the stuff and you can recruit more commando's to fight with you, up to twelve at once.

The combination of less restrictive action and the ability to lead a squad of troops make Freedom Fighters worth the $20 price tag, but it's just too bad that the adventure is over all too quickly. Even the multi player mode isn't much good, as it feels pretty generic and tacked on. On the whole the game is fun, but could have been expanded further to make it truly great. If those nasty Russians invade again (Chris hints at a sequel in the ending) and a Freedom Fighters 2 comes to pass then I hope it'll be something truly inspired.

Rounding out the package here are mediocre graphics and excellent music. The soundtrack delivers some really atmospheric music that fits the mood of the game well, while the actual sound effects themselves aren't so bad either. Chris' voice actor defiantly shows promise. As far as the graphics go this is a multi-platform affair and it really shows. The city is portrayed well (now filled with Soviet propaganda and installations), but the character models could really use some work. It's a sad thing to have half a dozen Freedom Fighters following behind you and four of them look exactly the same. Still, graphics don't make the game and game play is where Freedom Fighters shines. For what it's worth, this is a fun game and deserves at least a rental. If you really get into it you might want to purchase it. Tired of exploring the vastness of Morrowind? Sick of ''Mission Failed'' coming up when you play the ball-busting Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow? Then pick up Freedom Fighters, sit back, and blow some stuff up.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 04/17/04, Updated 04/18/04