The articlegameplay, story, development, reception
Gameplay
Freedom Fighters! is a horizontally scrolling shooter set in outer space. Players control a space ship and earn points by destroying alien space ships, including the pulsar warships, which resemble asterisks, and drone mines which spawn from the warships. Destoying a ship using the space ships laser cannon also releases shrapnel which can also kill the player.
Players also earn points by rescuing shipmates who have been trapped by the enemy aliens in purple prison crystals. These crystals float about the play area and can be collected to earn 20 points.
Reception
Alan R. Bechtold of The Logical Gamer wrote that the game was better looking and more complex and challenging compared to UFO!. On the two player control scheme, he thought it took a lot of getting used to but was really rewarding when mastered. Bechtold's co-reviewer Mike Wilson thought the unique control scheme could have been done away with entirely but thought it was an "excellent choice" and would provide players with "a lot of fun".
Arcade Express thought it wasn't quite as thrilling as UFO! but that it was still a good addition to the Odyssey²'s library. JoyStik magazine considered it an "exciting Defender variant" and thought its "blistering action more than makes up for its barely average graphic presentation." They also called the controller action "superb."
