The video critically reviews Freelancer, praising its impressive cinematic sequences and visual style but criticizing its shallow gameplay, formulaic story, and poor execution. It highlights the game’s troubled development under Chris Roberts, viewing it as a nostalgic but ultimately flawed precursor to Star Citizen, with its community and interest gradually fading.
The video begins with a humorous critique of the nostalgia surrounding the 2003 game Freelancer, comparing it to dangling shiny keys in front of an infant to evoke excitement. The reviewer, having recently played through the game without any prior attachment, questions whether it truly deserves the praise it receives from longtime fans or if it’s simply riding on low standards and nostalgia. The game’s story starts with a cinematic of a space station explosion and introduces the protagonist, Mr. Trent, who is left to navigate a universe of trading, combat, and cutscenes after losing everything in the disaster.
The reviewer highlights Freelancer’s notable in-engine cutscenes, which feature detailed animations and clever camera work, making these moments stand out even today. However, gameplay is described as extremely generic and arcade-like, with simple controls that feel inconsistent, especially when trying to perform complex maneuvers. The art style is colorful and bright, contrasting with the serious tone of the story, and the UI is nostalgic but somewhat cluttered and often feels unnecessary. The soundtrack, while attempting to set a tone, mostly misses the mark, with only a few tracks standing out as memorable or fitting the universe.
Story-wise, Freelancer is criticized for being overly formulaic, repetitive, and poorly written. The gameplay mainly involves shooting the same enemies repeatedly, with minimal variation or depth, and the story itself is a convoluted mess filled with clichés, stereotypes, and predictable twists. The narrative involves a series of missions that mostly follow a cycle of cutscenes and combat, with only a brief deviation into a racing mini-game that was quickly dropped. The story’s progression is uneven, with the first two acts stretched out and the final act rushed, leaving a disjointed experience.
The video then delves into the troubled development history of Freelancer, revealing that Chris Roberts assembled a large team and secured significant funding from Microsoft, but the project was plagued by mismanagement, overbudgeting, and scope creep. Roberts’ ambitious plans, including a high-cost cinematic and multiple game projects, led to financial issues and his eventual removal from Digital Anvil. The game’s troubled production was further complicated by Roberts’ involvement in the Wing Commander movie, which also overran its budget and failed commercially, contributing to Microsoft’s dissatisfaction and the game’s rushed state at release.
In conclusion, Freelancer is portrayed as a game that is only appreciated by a niche of older gamers, largely because of its presentation and nostalgic value rather than its gameplay or story quality. The reviewer emphasizes that the game’s core mechanics are shallow, and its narrative is bland and formulaic, with the only redeeming qualities being the cinematic sequences and visual presentation. Ultimately, Freelancer is seen as a reflection of Chris Roberts’ ambitious but poorly managed approach, serving as a precursor to the problematic development of Star Citizen. The future of the game’s community and multiplayer scene is uncertain, but it continues to fade as interest wanes.