REVIEW: ‘Freedom Wars Remastered’ Is A Flawed But Brilliant Dystopian RPG (PC)

To say that Freedom Wars is a unique game would be an understatement. The action RPG blends several interesting themes and gameplay elements to produce a unique experience. Initially developed by SCE Japan Studio, it launched in 2014 for the PS Vita. Over ten years later, Bandai Namco remastered it and ported it to several platforms, such as Freedom Wars Remastered. While incredibly engaging, this remaster has several issues that hinder the overall experience.

Freedom Wars Remastered is set in a brutal dystopian world where resources are scarce, communities are in tatters, and the last shred of humanity competes for the dwindling resources in underground prison complexes called Panopticons. Just by being born and existing in this dystopian hellscape, you are deemed a Sinner due to the impact on resources your existence caused.

As a Sinner, you’re born into a sentence of a million years of incarceration and need to seek your freedom by volunteering for hazardous combat operations and competing with other Panopticons for what remains of the planet’s dwindling resources. At the start of the game, your character has amnesia and is promptly demoted to the lowest level a Sinner can be, stripped of all their liberties. They then meet a mysterious character called Aries, who tasks them with helping bring forth “The Great Transformation” of the world without providing any further details.

Freedom Wars Remastered’s dystopian setting is perhaps its best feature.

Not just because of the themes it explores but also because of how extremely well-executed the concept is. Right from the start of the game, players are made well aware that they are prisoners in this world and are treated less than dirt. Laying down to sleep increases your sentence; running for more than five seconds increases your sentence; interacting with ordinary citizens, other prisoners, and especially the opposite sex increases your sentence.

In Freedom Wars Remastered, you aren’t allowed common liberties like changing your outfit, exploring the Panopticon, and many more unless you complete dangerous missions and earn the right to all these freedoms little by little. Your Accessory, an android-like assistant and overseer, watches your every move in the game, and any rule breach will be penalized.

But while these rules are annoying and, at times, comical, it’s hard not to be impressed with how detailed and well-executed their enforcement is, contributing to the game’s uniqueness. The narrative explores themes of social control, individual freedom, and sacrifice, creating a world that feels oppressive yet fascinating. The setting is both grim and thought-provoking, enhanced by the characters, who are also a highlight of the game. Many show unique personality traits and motivations, some of which go against your expectations, making for a shockingly engaging narrative experience.

Gameplay-wise, Freedom Wars Remastered offers fast-paced third-person combat with melee weapons, ranged weapons, and the Thorns System. Players can access a range of rifles, explosive projectiles, grenades, and melee weapons like swords, hammers, and polearms. Then there are Thorns, grappling-hook-like tools that allow players to zip around the battlefield, scale towering enemies, and manipulate the environment. This mechanic adds verticality and a strategic layer to battles, making them more dynamic and engaging than traditional action RPGs. Combat is satisfying and engaging thanks to players’ sheer number of gameplay options.

In Freedom Wars Remastered, players face a variety of enemies, including colossal mechs called Abductors, who are designed to capture civilians.

Many missions will see you face against these mechs to rescue civilians or face other Sinners in competitive combat. Each mission challenges players to strategize, prioritize targets, and adapt to changing conditions. Freedom Wars Remastered also features great and robust customization options. Players can craft and upgrade weapons, modify load-outs, and customize their characters and AI companions. They can also earn enough points to purchase new outfits, that is, once they earn the right to do so. All these options allow you to tailor your experience however you’d like.

While the visuals are less impressive than recent games, Freedom Wars Remastered looks suitable for its age, especially with the remaster’s visual overhaul and upscaled resolution. Thanks to its detailed backgrounds, the art direction does a good job of cementing an apocalyptic aesthetic. Character designs are sharp and stylish, reflecting the futuristic and militaristic tone of the game, and models for Abductors are pretty intricate. Performance-wise, Freedom Wars Remastered runs well on PC, especially with the newly added 60 frames per second addition and updated control scheme.

Unfortunately, despite this, the game still has many disappointing gameplay drawbacks that are especially disheartening for a remaster. The audio mixing is abysmal, no matter how much you tweak it. The BGM and dialogue audio are always conflicting, making following dialogue scenes difficult. It’s so bad sometimes that you’re better off muting the music entirely.

Additionally, any dialogue in Freedom Wars Remastered that isn’t from main characters, such as Accessories, Officers, and the game’s Mascot character, is done through this awful-sounding automated text-to-speech voice that pronounces some words right but other words incredibly wrong. It’s so bad that you’d think this was done intentionally, as either the developers decided to keep the awful audio for novelty’s sake or laziness. Furthermore, the game’s mission structure can become repetitive over time, as many objectives boil down to variations of “rescue civilians” or “defeat Abductors.”

Finally, the remaster is missing many easily included elements in many modern JRPGs. These include a log function to revisit missed dialogue, a button to progress dialogue automatically, save slots, which are really important for JRPGs, and perhaps the worst exclusion, a good lock-on button. Players need to push and hold the dedicated lock-on button to lock on, but this only works for specific parts of an enemy and not the entire enemy. All these little issues, when added up, sometimes make gameplay inconvenient.

Despite its issues, Freedom Wars Remastered is a bold and ambitious title that offers a compelling blend of action, strategy, and unique storytelling. Its interesting concept and intricate combat system set it apart from other games in the genre. As such, RPG fans of dystopian settings will appreciate Freedom Wars Remastered, but they should expect some gameplay elements to be annoying.

Freedom Wars Remastered will launch worldwide on January 10 for PC, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch.