Do you want to relive your good old memories? Play Freedom: Rebels in the Darkness again, it’s a perfect DOS game launched in 1988 and a must-play for all video game lovers.
The DOS version of this game is the implementation of another long-standing dream of the staff of our website. And doubly pleased that this time our hands were not just another "thing in itself", a valuable on the strength of its rarity, a truly entertaining and unusual for its time, the game had once even caused a heated debate in the specialized press.
Let's give it a thought: what historical periods we often have to encounter in the world of electronic entertainment? First place will surely share the Second world war (with a strong focus on the Pacific and the Normandy landings) and the Vietnam war, always show only one side. Next will be Civil war, First world war, the Napoleonic wars, "pompous" ancient civilizations - Egypt, Rome, China, and... almost everything. Yes, there are games about the Korean war, ancient Greece, French revolution, and even about India, but not so much. The reason is ridiculously simple: the masses, all is not so known and not so interesting - to be sold, therefore, it will be worse; and there is certainly space for propaganda there and not at all. And suddenly - and not years in the current "universal tolerance", and in the end of 1980-x years old - her first and only (among the old) game on not just obscure, and would seem simply inconceivable for a computer games theme. A topic that surely will make fans of historical prose recall the wonderful novel by A. Vinogradov, "the Black Consul" through which runs the giant (with all its ambiguity) image of port-AU-Prince. Especially enjoy, however, is not: Freedom - the game is not about the Haitian revolution that occurred at the turn of XVIII and XIX centuries, and the historical characters you will not find here. But it is still almost the same world, albeit on a nearby island and a few decades before. In short, we have to play for the rebellious black slaves who decided to regain his freedom, and the protagonist of the player - the future leader of the rebellion - can be any gender. Now contrast these facts: 80-e years of the last century, the game for black, and even the real feminist Paphos, raised to a superlative degree! Who knows - maybe that is why this work of art had been lost for so many years?..
But accession to accession, but meanwhile it's time to talk about the game itself. So, the eighteenth century, Martinique sugar plantation Grand Parnassus, owned by a cruel and greedy nobleman, who is surrounded by loyal henchmen and heartless - this is important - a whole pack of dogs. On the same plantations in inhumane working conditions of black slaves, whose ancestors a century (the spread of plantations in Martinique is included into the middle of the XVII century) ago were taken from West Africa, and it seems that their life from birth to death will contain only the endless crushing of the cane stalks, squeezing the sweet juice, as well as beatings and humiliation by supervisors. But once the heart of one of the dispossessed ignited to fight. Fight not for "a better future for mankind" - only their own and their immediate colleagues. No one is going to make a revolution in the world or even on the island, the goal is only plantation. More precisely, escape from it. And for this purpose all means are good. Another thing is that to achieve this would be Oh so easy...
Before the start of the game you must choose one of three difficulty levels ("defiant", "rebellious", "fanatical"), as well as one of the four protagonists: Mukandala, Seshu (man), solitude, Delia (female). Although it is possible to beat the game as any character, the choice is not formal or strictly "aesthetic": each of the characters has three characteristics - "physique" (physical strength, in other words), "charisma" and "dexterity," and also several skills, which include the lasagna, the ability to perform arson and hack door locks. Please note that all three skills are available only at the highest difficulty level, and only at the highest is also possible to edit the preset values in percent (with the increase of any index other two decrease and Vice versa).
The genre of the game clearly define is very difficult. Perhaps it is the successful combination of tactical strategy, much simplified RPG, and fighting game from third and first person. The main game screen is a map of the plantation in the long term view: with its help you can see by reading the corresponding description, where is a particular building where there are certain friends and enemies. In the upper part of the screen is four buttons with which you can switch to other game modes, as well as to return to the global map. The most important of the modes: movement mode. It are move your character around the map (the same that described in previous mode, with the top view). More difficult to make out her character; however, in this case, the main task is to avoid dogs don't get any easier. At the first encounter with a particular dog you just shown her the picture, with the second - you will hear her barking, attracting the attention of a guard, while the third will be a collision or with the guard (the game switches to battle mode with a side view), or dog (the game switches to battle mode in first person). Defeat the guards are usually not so difficult, although the number of available combat moves very little, the protagonist and his enemy has a certain amount of energy. Win a dog in the fight one on one is almost impossible, so the matter to such better not to bring.
Despite the many dangers faced by wandering around the plantation, the main task - not the battles and the search for slaves and their conscription into their squad. Dialogues, I have to say, silent and very strange: apparently, slaves are more likely to agree to join you, the higher your charisma. In the case of finding next to any structure there is an opportunity to climb on it (by the way, you can escape from the dog), to crack the lock or burn it. If the building within which or near which you are, is the enemy, you will either have to fight him (described above arcade mode with a view from the side), or to try to escape from it. Defeating the enemy, you can either finish it, or to capture, and then, if there is a desire to punish (the game is brutal, Yes).
The remaining two modes is stats and treatment. Statistics show your accomplishments: the number of killed, captured and executed enemies, the percentage subscribing to you slaves, burned buildings and cane plantations, as well as living dogs. Treatment (literally "advice" - "the Council") is available only after your party to join the shaman or medicine man (in this game they are different characters); this option can heal any wound inflicted by a guard or a dog (if your character is badly hurt in a fight, he may die soon after the renewal of the mode of wandering through the plantation). However, at the last level of complexity this option is available immediately.
At the bottom of the screen you can also see a few symbols. About pictures of tambourine shows your power level (and in three versions: the character is unarmed and fights with his bare hands; armed with a machete; armed with a pistol); next to the hibiscus flower - the total score on points that the higher the more people joined; the number of butterfly is equivalent to the conditional level of "Safenote" detachment and reduced in proportion, they produced the noise; finally, about icons with a bird's nest you can see the current level of confidence in the leader who joined the liberation of the slaves (of course, what is nonzero, this number will be only after the appearance thereof).
You can win two ways: either to set fire to a certain (substantial) percentage of buildings on the plantation, while typing in a squad of a certain number of slaves and killing all the dogs, or to get into the house of a planter and kill him; the second path is much harder.
Graphic design DOS version of Freedom is poorer than on other platforms, and call the local EGA-palette clear it is objectively difficult (this is supported CGA mode, if that); even more frustrating is that it seems that the developers did not model different characters for battle mode with people, so regardless of the choice of the hero fighting game we always have to play for the guy in the shirt. However, certain beauty eyes here still stands, even though all the action takes place at night. And then - unless someone plays old games for graphics?..
To impose the same verdict this time differently should not - better download and see for yourself that we finally original in every sense of the thing: and story, and games. Its presence is a historic event, and we can only wish the interested reader of these lines is the right good luck in the liberation of a small handful of humanity from the shackles of the hateful slavery.
P. S. the Author of the game is Muriel tram, and in-game texts - Patrick Chamoise. They are both martinucci and the descendants of slaves.
Wish to enjoy your afternoon playing some classic videogames? Play Freedom: Rebels in the Darkness online for free here.
Source: Archive.org
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