Summary
Game Type – Asymmetric Resource Management
Number of Players – 2 - 5
Mechanics – Resource Management, Action Selection, Exploration, Tile Laying, Programming, Many More
Difficulty to learn – Medium
Set Up Time – Medium
Release – 2022
MSRP - $59.99
Publisher – WizKids Games
Recommended for fans of – Merchant’s Cove, Space Cadets, Root
Overview: Let me say up front, this game is an odd one. Free Radicals is a very ambitious game that attempts to meld 10 mechanically different mini games into one cohesive beast. It’s also the perfect example of a game where the designer had an idea and then shoe horned a theme that doesn’t quite work onto it just to have some sort of window dressing. This is a very unique game that’s kept creeping into my brain for weeks now, so lets talk about it.
Gameplay: In Free Radicals each player is working to obtain the most victory points over 12 rounds of play. There is a central board where players can use resources to awaken action spaces that other players can then visit to take the action, netting the players who awakened the space resources and, indirectly, victory points. Players will also be taking actions to increase their spot on the knowledge track to again gain victory points. Outside of this everyone is playing a completely different game.
At the start of the game each player chooses one of ten unique factions, each faction having their own rules sheet and operating very differently then all the others. For example, the Hoteliers are playing a tile laying game with Tetris style pieces, the Underground is a pseudo-deckbuilder, and the Farmers are working with a bizarre cross between Agricola and Dominos. There is very little player interaction outside of awakening and using action spot on the main board. Everyone just gets to tool around with their own little mini game till the end of turn twelve.
Rulebook: The rules aren’t bad here but for a medium weight game, it’s harder then it should be to learn. Part of the problem is that the rule book has the main overview of the game and all the shared actions, but the rules for each players faction is on a two page player aid. You’re best bet here is for everyone to just take ten minutes or so to read there rule after being taught the main gist of the game. This can lead to some issue if your group normally just has one person teaching or you have some players aren’t good at learning through reading rules. However, out side of adding an index, I’m not sure what they could have done to streamline the rules, it’s just the nature of this particular beast.
Components: Overall the components here are nice. All the cards and cardboard bits are sturdy and seem like they’ll hold up on a good number of repeat plays. They also make sure to give you baggies to hold each faction parts. I really wish the player faction aids came on some sort of light cardstock though. You’ll need to reference these constantly and they’re just printed on glossy paper that defiantly will not stand the test of time.
Theme: This is where I have the biggest problem with the game. The theme is a hodgepodge of ideas that don’t really resonate. In the world this game takes place, aliens came to earth and brought advanced tech that was so disruptive, people called them free radicals. Now various factions are trying to decipherer the information coming from the alien spheres to learn their secrets. They do this though uhhhhhhh building hotels and putting on stage plays I guess?
Yeah, the theme does not really make sense here. It really feels like the designer was just struggling for some way to unite these different mechanics and just threw something at the wall. Also, Free Radicals is an awful name, that drips “Hello fellow kids” vibes.
Final Thoughts: So with all that said, would I recommend Free Radicals? Ummm maybe? Also yes, but possibly no. I liked this game and it keeps creeping back into my head. I want to try out more of the factions and see how they play. I’m impressed by the ambitiousness here. At the same time, none of the factions I’ve played have me very excited to go back to them, the rules overhead can be a little much for some people, and the theme is comes off as pretty bland.
This is definitely a case where if you read the review and it sounds interesting to you, you’ll most certainly enjoy it, but if you are on the fence at all, try and grab it on sale or play a friend’s copy. There’s a lot of content here and the nature of the game gives you at least ten games of replay value. At the end of the day though, all you really need to get more out of it is to love playing at least one of the factions. Either way, Free Radicals is worth checking out.