As a somewhat "unofficial" beta tester, I have had the opportunity to observe as Freehold grew. It is a unique mod, to say the least. Featuring 3 gametypes, an enticing assortment of weaponry, and a unique purchasing system, Freehold definitely stands out among the crowd. Through the tedious work of RegularX, it has overcome numerous bugs, netcode problems, and plain old bad ideas. And even though there are still some minor bugs that need to be ironed out, Freehold is shaping up to be one of the top mods.
Instead of finding items lying around the arena, Freehold has incorporated a unique purchasing system, which means you have to purchase everything, including health. This is done either through keybinds (which are the easiest way), or through your TransCom UpLink. Now this, I have never seen in any other mod. Normally, purchasing is integrated into the HUD (i.e. the voice menu or likewise). But the TransCom UpLink is actually a selectable "weapon". While it does nothing in terms of attacking, selecting it allows you to cycle through the various menu to purchase weapons, items, or ammo. You can also set your Navi mode (only in Espionage) with the TransCom as well (more on Navis in a bit). Hit fire to change the selection or change the menu, and hit altfire to make a selection or open a menu. Money (Credits) can be earned by fragging, destroying a Sangwyr Transmat unit in Containment, or capturing the enemy's prototype weapon in Espionage. Check out the Freehold site for a complete list of the weapons and items that can be bought using this system. In addition, in the Freehold menu, you can customize a package of stuff that you can buy with the push of a button. Say you want a Whistler rifle, ammo, 10 regenX, and a slipsuit. You can configure that package, set the "buy package" key, and get loaded up with one button. I really like this feature. It saves a ton of time, especially in Containment. However, I think it would be even cooler if you could have more than one package.
The armor in Freehold is free. You can select your armor level using a keybind. With each increasing level (there are 4, None, Light, Medium, and Heavy), your defense goes up, but your speed decreases, making you more vulnerable. Again, a nice way of balancing the fact that the armor costs nothing. You could either be an armorless, lightning-fast flag grabber, or a heavy-armored, Farulin-tottin' defense machine, whatever suits your fancy.
The included gametypes are where Freehold really shows its stuff. Refusing to have a plain old ordinary deathmatch mode, Freehold sports a gametype called Bounty War. Essentially Deathmatch, but with a twist. Your "Bounty" goes up with your frags. More credits are awarded for fragging someone with a higher bounty. More credits = bigger guns, so watch out. In order to win, however, you must reach the credit limit, or have the highest balance when the round ends. So "make sure to use your money wisely and carefully, buying a lot of stuff better pay off" (Freehold Manual).
No mod is complete without CTF. But in the case of Freehold, its not CTF, but Espionage. Same basic principle as CTF, only the flag is a secret prototype weapon. One of the neatest things about Espionage is that you can actually use the prototype when you steal it. While quite powerful, the ammo is limited, so make sure the shots will hit. Another neat feature of Espionage is the Weapon-cam. Provided your Security system is operational, you can hit a button to observe your prototype. This is useful for finding out where the weapon-carrier is. Also, only in Espionage do you have access to the special Navi modes.
The last gametype featured in Freehold is Containment. I haven't seen a whole lot of this sort of gameplay. It goes like this: you play on a DOM map, but instead of control points, there are TransMat units. These devices teleport vicious creatures called Sangwyr (Sangs for short) into the arena. The Sangs are souped-up Skaarj, capable of jumping higher, running faster, and launching akimbo U1 razor disks, not to mention the claws. Definitely not your Run-of-the-Mill baddie. Your objective is to find and destroy the TransMat units, eliminate all the Sangs, and survive to do it again. You are allowed only one respawn per round. No real teams, aside from you (and all other players/bots) vs. the Sangwyr. Containment is very fast-paced and should provide a test of skill for even the most experienced players. But for the players with lesser experience, Fear not! The Sangwyr difficulty is configurable.
One of the parts of Freehold that makes it stand out is the Navis. These things are basically high-tech PDAs with attitude. Only in Espionage, they can be switched to 3 different modes to help you or your teammates. The abilities of the Navi range from auto-healing/ammo regen (ammo regens for all weapons except the Farulin PRL and the Thermonuke), Credit stealing, a sentry turret, and a proxygrenade-releasing retaliation mode (check the Freehold manual for a more in-depth list of the Navi abilities). Your Navi's abilities increase as your tech rating increases. The tech rating increases automatically, but you can make it jump by capturing the enemy's prototype. For the most part, the Navis are a terrific perk that makes Freehold even more enjoyable to play. They do need a little tweakage, however. For instance, when an enemy gets wasted by your Holobot's attacks, you get nothing. Unless I'm mistaken, it counts as a suicide for that player, instead of a kill for you, which isn't all bad. At least it gets rid of the enemy.
Overall, Freehold is an exceptional mod, and well worth the download. And as this is only a preview edition, there is plenty of room for improvement. I found Freehold to be most enjoyable, even in its "preview edition" state. The bot support is very good, might need some tweaks here and there, but nothing major. Balance was given special attention, and Freehold seems to have gotten it pretty much perfect. And although there is nothing spectacularly new about the weapons, there is still a quite formidable arsenal at your disposal that should keep you entertained for a lo-o-ong time. There are also a few side mutators coming out for Freehold. One, included in this release, allows you to play with the Freehold weapons in UT. Again, nothing huge, but a nice perk none the less. Not sure about the others. All in all, I highly recommend you give freehold a try. It is a great mod, and should keep you entertained for a long while. Its innovative ideas and rapid gameplay make Freehold one of the elite. And its even a workable size for the 56Krs out there.
-Dade
- A message from AnarKi: "Since this review was written the new version came out and so the game is no longer preview it is a full game, the download links and title have been modified to reflect that. The review and score however remains the same."
