Well, it’s Independence Day, and what better way to celebrate it than reliving some of Video Game’s best moments of victory over evil, tyrannical and dictatorial forces. So join hands and voices in a digital freedom cry, spanning across consoles and PCs!
1. Freedom Fighters
Release Date: October 1, 2003
Freedom Fighters takes place in an alternate reality that never saw the dissolution of the Soviet Union. Instead, the Red threat has continued to grow since the end of World War II, taking hold in countries as close to home as Cuba and Mexico. The game opens with the plumbing team of Chris and Troy Stone paying a visit to the clogged sink of Isabella Angelina, who also happens to be a vocal member of a watchdog organization devoted to informing the American public about the evils of the Soviet Union. The duo enters her apartment to find that it has been hastily evacuated, and soon after, Soviet troops bust in to try to find her, only to capture Troy instead. The Soviet invasion of the US has begun.
After that brief setup, you’re thrust into the role of Chris Stone, and you hook up with Isabella’s resistance movement almost immediately. Operating from the sewers beneath New York City, the movement aims to overthrow the invaders and drive the communists out of the country. You’ll start as a lowly member of the team, but you grow in popularity and influence as the game goes on, and Chris will slowly transform from an average 32-year-old plumber into a battle-hardened leader.
While the game could have been lengthier, Freedom Fighters is still just an outstanding blend of pure action and tactical squad combat. The squad control works incredibly well, making it easy even if you haven’t had much experience with squad-based games in the past. Anyone looking for thrilling action with refined control and a great premise need look no further than Freedom Fighters.
2. Assassin’s Creed Unity
Release Date: November 11, 2014
For those wondering what Assassin’s Creed Unity is doing on this list, well, the fight over tyrannical forces doesn’t get any better than the struggle of the French Revolution.
Assassin’s Creed Unity is at once comfortingly familiar, yet drastically different. For all its recognizable tropes, and for all its throwbacks to Assassin’s Creeds of old, Unity is surprisingly progressive. The sprawling narratives and endless procession of historical figures that have come to define the series have given way to a sharply focused, personal tale that eschews moments of joviality for something altogether much darker in tone.
Unity shies away from having a vast collection of ancillary characters, focusing instead upon its lead Arno and his love interest Elise. With fewer of those secondary characters around, many of which tended to play a more lighthearted role, the story is much darker in tone than anything else in the series. It evolves from love story, to revenge tale, to murder mystery, and then circles right back to love story again, all at a heartier pace than one might expect from an Assassin’s Creed game.
Unity’s portrayal of a Paris scarred by the civil unrest of the French revolution is one of its greatest triumphs. The attention to detail that’s gone into the city is nothing short of astonishing. As the story progresses, the city crumbles before your eyes, the streets becoming awash with citizens burning effigies and waving flags in protest, while loyalists and revolutionaries battle over the future of their homeland.
The benefit of Unity’s exclusivity to the latest generation of consoles isn’t immediately obvious, particularly if you’re focused on face-value aesthetics, which look only slightly more impressive here than they did in Black Flag. It’s only when you explore Paris’ many districts do you realise that the sheer scale of the city is incredible, not only in terms of its explorable limits, but in the huge number of citizens wandering its streets. A mission where you’re tasked with performing an assassination amongst a crowd of thousands shows how Unity is as close as the series has ever come to creating a tangible, convincing city.
3. Call of Duty: World At War
Release Date: November 1, 2008
War, as Fallout 3 so famously puts it, never changes. While the weapons and tactics may differ, it’s still about chaos and fear and the overwhelming of the senses as adrenaline surges through your veins. World War themed games have always had a sense of scale, embedded with the sense of achievement of triumphing over suppressive forces.
Call of Duty: World at War is a lot like its predecessor, Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare. In most respects, this is a good thing. The guns are tightly tuned, the tone is gritty and mature, and the action is exciting and fast-paced. It boasts the same addictive multiplayer system as Modern Warfare, and even expands the multiplayer possibilities by allowing four players to play through the campaign cooperatively.
Like every game in the series before Modern Warfare, this Call of Duty takes place during World War II. World at War does an admirable job of spicing things up, but between the well-worn source material and déjà vu game mechanics, there is a pervasive familiarity to the game. Still, though World at War lacks the freshness that made Modern Warfare such a hit, it nevertheless provides a hearty, filling meal–one that shooter fans are sure to savor.
By staying largely true to the formula that made the Call of Duty series so successful, Call of Duty: World at War has ensured a proven level of technical quality, particularly in the multiplayer arena. On the other hand, one of Modern Warfare’s strengths was its fresh approach, and by embracing a familiar setting and familiar mechanics, World at War achieves greatness but falls short of excellence. This is only a bad thing if you are expecting this game to top its benchmark predecessor. If, however, you are hoping for an exciting campaign, fun cooperative play, and engaging multiplayer action, then you’ll find a lot to be happy about in World at War.
4. Halo: Reach
Release Date: September 14, 2010
Before the discovery and destruction of an ancient alien ringworld, before a teeming parasitic enemy threatened Earth, before a soldier called John-117 made a new name for himself, humanity fought to defend the planet Reach. And though Halo: Reach is a prequel to all the Halo games that have come before, it represents the evolutionary pinnacle of the series.
From the expertly tuned combat to the expansive level design and from the innovative online integration to the robust creation tools, all the pillars of Halo’s success are in top form here, tied together seamlessly by an elegant and intuitive menu system. While the core mechanics remain very familiar, invigorating new elements and extensive customization options make it so there are more ways to enjoy yourself than ever. Halo: Reach is one of the most fully featured games on consoles.
Yes, we all know from the onset how things go for the folks on the planet Reach, but if this game does not show a true and brave fight for freedom, then I don’t know what does.
Halo campaigns have traditionally had epic aspirations, and Halo: Reach is no different. Whether you play solo or cooperatively with up to four players, you play as the newest member of Noble team. Your first mission is to investigate a distress signal in a rural mountainous area, and it’s no surprise when the source of the distress turns out to be the Covenant.
Halo: Reach is not only brimming with excellent content, but it’s also bursting with possibilities. The exciting campaign, addictive Firefight mode, and dynamic competitive multiplayer make it one of the best shooters around. The extensive customization options, powerful Theater tools, and staggering Forge capabilities make it one of the most malleable and socially engaging games on consoles. And the slick menu system brings it all together with remarkable simplicity. Though its deep roots may not win over those who haven’t enjoyed previous games in the series, Halo: Reach is a towering achievement that delivers an enormous amount of engaging content that players will no doubt be enjoying even today.
5. Farcry 4
Release Date: November 17, 2014
Like the Nepalese-esque environments it depicts, Far Cry 4 is all about highs and lows, suffocating you with poor storytelling before setting you free into the wilderness to create thrills of your own. And those thrills can be almost overwhelming, providing the kind of headrush that was Far Cry 3’s calling card. It is you and a giant map dotted with activities, each one fun enough that you want to rush towards the waypoint to see what’s in store there.
The Himalayan country of Kyrat is a place of myth, faith, secrets, lies, and beauty, and it’s one of the best-realized locations I’ve ever explored in a video game. Kyrat is a colossal, dense, visually diverse place that feels lived in, torn up, and ancient. Far Cry 4 capitalizes on every available strength to make it an amazing open world for first-person action and adventure.
Liberating it from the oppressive government was always front and center. A buddy (or stranger) can join you on your adventure, and the two of you become a kind of madcap duo, wreaking even more havoc on Kyrat’s struggling economy by ruining and pillaging everything in sight. It’s fun to get around in Far Cry 4’s dinky gyrocopters, but the real joy is grappling to it and swinging to and fro as your comrade rises into the air.
Play this game with an online buddy, and enjoy one the finest games with unparalleled freedom to blow stuff up while, furthering the common cause!
Did you enjoy this list? Tell us if we missed any games. And for more news and reviews, keep checking back Gaming Central.
