Revisiting Freedom Fighters (Blast from the Past)

Freedom Fighters is a classic third person shooter originally released in 2003 on the PS2, Xbox, and Gamecube. It was recently released on the PC and what a blast from the past. The sense of nostalgia is incredibly strong.

The game’s unique mechanic was the ability to recruit and command npc allies to fight alongside you in a pseudo real time strategy like way. Playing Freedom Fighters now feels incredibly dated compared to current games but back in its day it was considered a neat and immersive mechanic. There wasn’t anything quite like it.

The game’s story is also a throwback to the left overs of the cold war era where almost every villain in games and movies were Russian. The premise of the story is that Russia has invaded the United States of America and it’s up to a lone wrench wielding plumber to take back freedom.

The game is drenched in patriotism where every heroic action is met with a sound byte of a guy screaming “Yeah!” and every level is ended by taking down the Soviet flag and hoisting the good ole stars and stripes. The only thing missing is a bald eagle and jets flying in the back ground.

Overall, Freedom Fighters is a fantastic study of how video game design has evolved and how developers back in the early 2000s managed to get around the limitations of the hardware. The game feels incredibly dated and those without a sense of nostalgia may find it hard to play, but the game certainly does have a special place in the hearts of gamers who played the original. Maybe it’s time for a remake? Your move IO Interactive!