Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich Review

The original Freedom Force succeeded against all odds when it was released three years ago. For years prior, the possibility of a superhero-themed computer role-playing game was nothing more than a popular pipe dream. But Freedom Force made good on the promising concept. It delivered great tactical combat to rival most any other RPG available of the time, and it captured the style and spirit of classic silver-age comic books remarkably well. A surprisingly endearing cast of characters and an altogether excellent story rounded out a memorable, satisfying game. And now, at long last, Freedom Force has a follow-up in the amazingly titled Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich. The new game is a direct continuation of its predecessor and really isn't much different in terms of the presentation or the nuts and bolts of the action. So it serves as a testament to the quality of the original that the new Freedom Force, despite being so similar to a three-year-old game, is just about as fresh and as fun as the first. A great story and a wonderful cast of characters are once again the highlights of this game, which anyone with an appreciation for comic books would probably love.

Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich is a great encore to one of the most memorable games of 2002.

Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich features a good-sized story-driven campaign consisting of a linear series of missions, and this single-player experience is definitely the highlight. It opens with a brief animated summary of what happened in the original storyline, which serves as a good reminder for returning fans and a suitable primer for new Freedom Force players (who'd ideally be better off playing through the first game before going into this one). The whole campaign is structured like a comic book series, complete with authentic-looking comic book covers for each "issue" of the story. The game never breaks tone, which is an important accomplishment. From the opening cutscene to the final roll of the credits, you'll be immersed in the game's playfully mind-boggling storyline, which features the cast of the original Freedom Force in addition to some likable new heroes and villains. On top of that, the large cast of characters to choose from, the open-ended combat system, and multiple difficulty settings give the campaign solid replay value. It's not very difficult to fight through at the default setting, though this is partly because of how well Freedom Force pulls off the superhero thing. These characters are and should be powerful and difficult to knock out.

Besides the campaign, there's a single-player skirmish mode in which you can take on waves of different foes in a variety of different environments. There's also a four-player multiplayer mode (playable both on a LAN and online), featuring several different game types, each allowing you to pit your small squads of superheroes against those of opposing players. It's possible to play relatively balanced matches to test your skills, or you can have at it in a complete free-for-all. Either way, the skirmish and multiplayer portions of Freedom Force help add some lasting value, though the context given by the story in the game's campaign makes the action there inherently more appealing. Still, the possibility to fielding your own superhero creations against live opponents can be pretty appealing as well.

One of the most touted features of the original Freedom Force was the ability to create your own superheroes (and their various superpowers), and of course this is present in the new game. But since there are so many great premade heroes already available to choose from, there's no need to pad their ranks with your own creations unless you're compelled to for some reason. The possibility of bringing your own custom-made superheroes into the campaign is a theoretically exciting idea here much like it was in the original. However, you'd be hard pressed to come up with characters better than what developer Irrational Games has already provided for you.

Freedom Force fans can look forward to seeing all their old favorite characters plus some interesting new ones.

The incredible thing about Freedom Force is that this cast of characters is so good that it in some ways rivals the classics to which the game pays homage. Though the game superficially resembles a parody of old comic books, it exhibits the same fun-loving, anything-goes spirit and sincere, serious storytelling that was the hallmark of the classics. Freedom Force vs. The Third Reich's new story and characters tie in nicely with what's already been established, and the new golden age-style characters (more human than superhuman) make for a nice, subtle contrast both in terms of story and gameplay. Ultimately, the new campaign provides an experience that's similar to the first, above and beyond superficial resemblances. Fans will once again probably wish that the game could have spent even more time elaborating on some of the relationships between the different characters or going into a lot more detail about the many characters that make only brief appearances in the story.