The cold war, what if it had never ended? What if Russia launched an invasion against New York City? This is the premise of Io Interactive's new 3rd-person action game, Freedom Fighters.

First off, the game looks great. Any game set in New York better look and feel like New York; any game set in a New York getting blown to hell by Russians better feel just like that, and Freedom Fighters does. The various effects of gunfire and weapon explosions create an atmosphere of suspense and pressure. The interface is also nicely done. It's complete, functional, informative, but unobtrusive.

The sound is also very nice. The voice acting, while a bit comical and melodramatic at times, doesn't suck, and none of the Russian accents sound fake or forced, and on top of that, the weapon sounds are appropriate. You'll feel a sense of dread when you're walking down a quiet street and suddenly hear Russian voices screaming and gun fire erupting. The music ranges from so-so to inspired vocal renditions of Russian songs. Of course, when you start cleaning house, some more American style music appropriately begins to creep up.

At its core, Freedom Fighters is just like any number of 3rd-person army action games, something of a cross between Metal Gear Solid and Tomb Raider. You'll walk around the streets and subways of New York with various army grade weapons, blowing up some people and saving others.

One of the biggest differences between Freedom Fighters and many other games is that most of the time, you aren't going solo. You command a squadron of men during missions. You can issue them various commands such as attack, fall back, and stand your ground. Most of this is on the fly; there's no intricate pre-battle planning like in the Rainbow Six games.

Freedom Fighters is mission based. From your ultra-cool base in the beautiful New York sewers, you'll select missions of various difficulties as you attempt to retake the city back from the Reds. It's semi-linear, with missions unlocking new missions, nothing really brand spankin' new.

On the whole, Freedom Fighters isn't too hard. A hardcore player could probably get through it in about three or four days. The difficulty curve is a little uneven. For example, on the second mission I played, there were some cops at an intersection dealing with snipers. If you walked in just the wrong place, something very easy to do, you died instantly. No warning shots 'almost' hitting you. No minor damage before the kill blow. Just 'bam,' you're dead. They're few and far between, but there are a few moments like this that kinda make you clench your teeth in frustration.

Pretty much the same old stuff in the mechanics department; the controls are typical enough to just pick up and go. Left analog moves the character, the C-analog moves the camera, D-pad issues commands, etc. There are some minor issues with camera (c-left should move the camera left damnit, not right), but nothing too severe. You can also press the L button to zoom into first person mode for shooting enemies, which is always handy. Freedom Fighters sports the loveliest save locations ever seen, in the form of manholes.

As far as 3rd-person action games go, Freedom Fighters is a winner all the way, although a little crass. I mean, we don't see the Russians making games about killing Americans.