FreeTime completes the Sims 2 series, ending it on a high note.
But moving on, FreeTime is the seventh and (apparently) final expansion pack we'll see before The Sims 3 comes out, and (ignoring next month's inevitable stuff pack), it is something of a swansong for The Sims 2 series. In that respect, it fills in a lot of gaps in the game and in many ways it 'completes' the series.
I was very impressed with the selection of new objects available in this expansion. Generally in an expansion there are a couple of 'big' objects and then a ton a tables, chairs and lamps to fill it out. FreeTime is different in that there is a distinct lack of new tables and chairs, and an abundance of everything else. You get a new TV, better appliances, more gym equipment, sports equipment, a new instrument, and new crafting objects (pottery wheel/broken car/sewing machine). Sims also get new music (including possibly the best version of The Sims 2 theme yet), new TV stations and new computer games (I think my Sims were a bit sick of Sim City 4...).
This is all very good, but, like Open For Business and Seasons the real benefits of this pack lie in the actual gameplay. It's a lot of fun developing your Sims' interests and very rewarding to be invited into membership of a hobby-based club. The new lifetime aspiration meter is also a welcome addition, as is the introduction of the secondary aspiration. Personally, I was put off having pleasure and romantic Sims because their wants were quite troublesome, but these work well as a secondary aspiration.
As with most expansions, there is synergy between FreeTime and the other packs. You can sell your pottery and crafted items in a business, for example. There's also a bunch of new clothes in the pack, including the first decent gym outfits we've seen so far.
So that's FreeTime in a nutshell, it's definitely worth buying, but if you've only got the base game, you'll probably get more out of Nightlife or Seasons first-off. I'd give it 8/10, mainly because although there's lots of content, there isn't a lot of cohesion to the overall gameplay, at times it seems like it's a collection of all the stuff they didn't fit into the other packs. This isn't such a bad thing, and long-term Sims players will definitely get plenty of value out of the game.