Man-Bot. My favorite video-game character ever.If you have any interest in comics, check it out.It's funny, I was asked on Bomb Should Have a Face the other week what my favorite game was. I of course copped out and said my favorite game was the Infinity Engine in general and not any specific game. I realize now that I forgot that I do in fact have a favorite game... Freedom Force. Made by the dudes at Irrational Games, Freedom Force is a comic nerds dream. Essentially, realizing they couldn't get a license to Marvel or DC characters the chaps over there instead built the best satire/homage game they could. With characters like Man-Bot and Ant-Man (assume the easy homages) Freedom Force tells the pseudo-story of a wanna be avengers crew circa the golden age of comics. It hosts some of the best on purpose hammy dialogue in video games and enough origin stories to fill a giant-sized annual.

Anyways, that's just the story. The game itself is a squad-based strategy RPG featuring pause-and-go combat similar to the Infinity RPGs but with a way simplified leveling system. Although the game allowed you to create your own hero, I had a lot more fun with the built-in characters that came with their own unique dialogue and abilities. To this day I think Man-Bot is my favorite character ever in video games.

One of the best parts of Freedom Force was the over the top score that liberally stole from 80s cartoons while immediately making fun of the genre. Running through the icy tundra of "Nuclear Winter" with it's Rocky IV style bravado is one of my favorite moments in gaming.

Duders, check it out.