Q: What is the Freehare all about?
A: Alot of people seem to think that freeware games are by definition low-quality games. Our purpose is to show these people that there are plenty of top-quality freeware games out there. We want to give them, lovers of games and people who want to see what playing videogames is like a chance to enjoy themselves by displaying the brightest games that are freely available.
Q: What does the Freehare base the quality of a game on?
A: We rate a game based on several things:
Graphics
Some people may call this shallow, but the graphics are the sales ticket of a game, so it's necessary that they're good. Nobody will check a game out, think: "Hey, it looks like crap. I'll give it a try then." We don't expect shiny, polished 3D graphics with plenty of special effects.
We don't mind if a game is drawn with only 4 colours, or if it looks like a game from 1990. What we do mind, is if the graphics show a distinct lack of effort. If the graphics look like something slapped together in two minutes to have that over with, we'll mind that, and will reconcider adding the game. If putting some effort in the representation of the game world is too much to ask for, the rest of the game will probably have the same issues.
Gameplay
A game without good gameplay is like a car without a steering wheel. You simply can't play a game without it. Ideally, you should be able to place your granny in front of the game and she can instinctively play the game. We realize this isn't the case for some games, but if the gameplay is so clunky that you lose several crucial seconds just to pass some commands, it tends to get tedious. It also is a giant let-down if the controls are like some of the mid-'90s flight sims, where you needed two keyboards, a steering wheel, three mouses and five joysticks, so to speak.
Along with the controls, we concider it also a negative point (albeit a minor one) if the game uses Z, W, Q and A, and these buttons aren't redefinable. It will go without noticing on most keyboards, but French and Belgian keyboards use a different layout (Azerty instead of Qwerty) and German and some East-European countries use the Qwertz-layout. It's a major pain in the hand to use the buttons that way, plus it's confusing when you're told to press the Z key and you actually should press W. One country's standard isn't all countries' standards, and when making games, it's a good thing to keep in mind. Still, it's only a minor issue. We gladly let this slip if the rest of the game is fine.
Story
A story is necessary in certain games, like RPGs and adventure games, and we will concider it with them. It doesn't mean the game can't have an anti-story (hard to explain, and don't ask. It's one of those things you'll instantly recognize when you see it), and it doesn't mean that we concider story for each and every game. A Tetris-clone would just be weird with a story, and it'd bring the game down a bit, as you play such a game for the dropping blocks, not for intricate character development and deep storylines. When a game does require story, we mainly give extra points for originality and creativity, but we don't think badly of it if the game's one big cliché. Such games are fun to play once in a while too.
Music
Rating of music is simple: If it hurts the ears or is highly aggravating, it drags the game down. If it's pleasant and matches the scene or action, it lifts the game up. Nobody wants to listen to the screechings of a crow's beak on a blackboard for half an hour straight while playing a game, nor to random notes sticked together, making it sound the same way an anthill full with panicking ants looks.
Whole of the game
A game is more than the sum of its parts. You can have great-looking animations and breathtaking backgrounds, but if the animations are 3D rendered and the backgrounds are in cartoon style, the two together simply won't work. The entire game has to feel like an actual world (again, except for games like Tetris, but the example from the animations and backgrounds still stands for even such games). If the game's world works as a whole, it will drag the player into it. Atmospheric scenes, plenty of interaction with the surroundings and a bustling life all give this a great boost. Style-breaks, lifeless worlds and plain, cold scenes drag it down, though.
Fun
Last, but definitely not least: A game should be fun! It can have amazing graphics the developers spent several years on. It can have such an intuitive gameplay even your cat can control the game. It can have a story that would make Shakespear and Dostoyevsky turn green from envy. It can have music the London Symphonic Orchestra made just for the game. It can have a world that drags you into it and makes you forget time, suddenly finding out several weeks have passed. A game can have all that, but... if it simply isn't fun, then who would play it? Fun is the single most important and over-ruling feature of a game, and if it lacks that, we just won't add it.
Q: I want to submit a game. How do I go about it?
A: When you want to submit a game, you can contact us either through the contact form on the site, or on the forum. We will gladly explain how to submit it, and will welcome the addition. The game is checked for the quality criteria before it's added, though, to make sure the site keeps up to its standards.
Q: Why is game x or game y not on the site?
A: This can have several reasons. One can be because we just haven't heard of the game. Another one can be because the game's awaiting to be reviewed. A third reason can be because the game doesn't live up to the quality criteria. It also can be because the game hasn't had a full release yet, either only a demo/beta or no release at all. The last possible reason is because the game isn't freeware.
Q: What is the "Final release" part for on the game pages?
A: The "Final release" means if the game has been released and isn't developed after that. Some games have a full release once, and that's it. That's mainly the case with adventure games and arcade games. Strategy games and some types of RPGs are more likely to be expanded after their first full release, with new releases following. Such games have "Final release" set to "No".
Q: Are Flash-games accepted?
A: We accept all and every kind of game, as long as it meets our quality standards, is freeware and is a full release. The game should be downloadable, though. There already are plenty of good sites that focus on putting Flash-games up for playing. We focus on games you don't need a browser for, so for Flash-games, an extra criteria comes in: you have to be able to download it from its official homepage.
Q: I have a game for platform X. It's not a Windows-game. Will you still put it up?
A: What matters to us, is the quality of the game, not the platform, so as long as the game's good, we'll put it up. If it requires extra tools, like an emulator or the likes, those have to be freeware too, though. We can't expect people to download a free game, only to have to pay for the tools needed to run it. That would mean that the game isn't free anymore. If a game is purely for Unix or for Mac, we don't have a problem with it. That's part of what the "Requirements" information is for.
Q: There is this freeware game I want to submit, but you need to install a toolbar that comes with the installation. Is this acceptable?
A: If a game comes with extra programs you need to install in order to use it, but which aren't needed for the game itself, programs like toolbars or the likes, we see it as a price for being allowed to play the game. If the game has a price, then it's not free, and thus not freeware. We don't feature games that aren't freeware.
A: Alot of people seem to think that freeware games are by definition low-quality games. Our purpose is to show these people that there are plenty of top-quality freeware games out there. We want to give them, lovers of games and people who want to see what playing videogames is like a chance to enjoy themselves by displaying the brightest games that are freely available.
Q: What does the Freehare base the quality of a game on?
A: We rate a game based on several things:
- Graphics
- Gameplay
- Story (if it's needed)
- Music
- Whole of the game
- Fun
Graphics
Some people may call this shallow, but the graphics are the sales ticket of a game, so it's necessary that they're good. Nobody will check a game out, think: "Hey, it looks like crap. I'll give it a try then." We don't expect shiny, polished 3D graphics with plenty of special effects.
We don't mind if a game is drawn with only 4 colours, or if it looks like a game from 1990. What we do mind, is if the graphics show a distinct lack of effort. If the graphics look like something slapped together in two minutes to have that over with, we'll mind that, and will reconcider adding the game. If putting some effort in the representation of the game world is too much to ask for, the rest of the game will probably have the same issues.
Gameplay
A game without good gameplay is like a car without a steering wheel. You simply can't play a game without it. Ideally, you should be able to place your granny in front of the game and she can instinctively play the game. We realize this isn't the case for some games, but if the gameplay is so clunky that you lose several crucial seconds just to pass some commands, it tends to get tedious. It also is a giant let-down if the controls are like some of the mid-'90s flight sims, where you needed two keyboards, a steering wheel, three mouses and five joysticks, so to speak.
Along with the controls, we concider it also a negative point (albeit a minor one) if the game uses Z, W, Q and A, and these buttons aren't redefinable. It will go without noticing on most keyboards, but French and Belgian keyboards use a different layout (Azerty instead of Qwerty) and German and some East-European countries use the Qwertz-layout. It's a major pain in the hand to use the buttons that way, plus it's confusing when you're told to press the Z key and you actually should press W. One country's standard isn't all countries' standards, and when making games, it's a good thing to keep in mind. Still, it's only a minor issue. We gladly let this slip if the rest of the game is fine.
Story
A story is necessary in certain games, like RPGs and adventure games, and we will concider it with them. It doesn't mean the game can't have an anti-story (hard to explain, and don't ask. It's one of those things you'll instantly recognize when you see it), and it doesn't mean that we concider story for each and every game. A Tetris-clone would just be weird with a story, and it'd bring the game down a bit, as you play such a game for the dropping blocks, not for intricate character development and deep storylines. When a game does require story, we mainly give extra points for originality and creativity, but we don't think badly of it if the game's one big cliché. Such games are fun to play once in a while too.
Music
Rating of music is simple: If it hurts the ears or is highly aggravating, it drags the game down. If it's pleasant and matches the scene or action, it lifts the game up. Nobody wants to listen to the screechings of a crow's beak on a blackboard for half an hour straight while playing a game, nor to random notes sticked together, making it sound the same way an anthill full with panicking ants looks.
Whole of the game
A game is more than the sum of its parts. You can have great-looking animations and breathtaking backgrounds, but if the animations are 3D rendered and the backgrounds are in cartoon style, the two together simply won't work. The entire game has to feel like an actual world (again, except for games like Tetris, but the example from the animations and backgrounds still stands for even such games). If the game's world works as a whole, it will drag the player into it. Atmospheric scenes, plenty of interaction with the surroundings and a bustling life all give this a great boost. Style-breaks, lifeless worlds and plain, cold scenes drag it down, though.
Fun
Last, but definitely not least: A game should be fun! It can have amazing graphics the developers spent several years on. It can have such an intuitive gameplay even your cat can control the game. It can have a story that would make Shakespear and Dostoyevsky turn green from envy. It can have music the London Symphonic Orchestra made just for the game. It can have a world that drags you into it and makes you forget time, suddenly finding out several weeks have passed. A game can have all that, but... if it simply isn't fun, then who would play it? Fun is the single most important and over-ruling feature of a game, and if it lacks that, we just won't add it.
Q: I want to submit a game. How do I go about it?
A: When you want to submit a game, you can contact us either through the contact form on the site, or on the forum. We will gladly explain how to submit it, and will welcome the addition. The game is checked for the quality criteria before it's added, though, to make sure the site keeps up to its standards.
Q: Why is game x or game y not on the site?
A: This can have several reasons. One can be because we just haven't heard of the game. Another one can be because the game's awaiting to be reviewed. A third reason can be because the game doesn't live up to the quality criteria. It also can be because the game hasn't had a full release yet, either only a demo/beta or no release at all. The last possible reason is because the game isn't freeware.
Q: What is the "Final release" part for on the game pages?
A: The "Final release" means if the game has been released and isn't developed after that. Some games have a full release once, and that's it. That's mainly the case with adventure games and arcade games. Strategy games and some types of RPGs are more likely to be expanded after their first full release, with new releases following. Such games have "Final release" set to "No".
Q: Are Flash-games accepted?
A: We accept all and every kind of game, as long as it meets our quality standards, is freeware and is a full release. The game should be downloadable, though. There already are plenty of good sites that focus on putting Flash-games up for playing. We focus on games you don't need a browser for, so for Flash-games, an extra criteria comes in: you have to be able to download it from its official homepage.
Q: I have a game for platform X. It's not a Windows-game. Will you still put it up?
A: What matters to us, is the quality of the game, not the platform, so as long as the game's good, we'll put it up. If it requires extra tools, like an emulator or the likes, those have to be freeware too, though. We can't expect people to download a free game, only to have to pay for the tools needed to run it. That would mean that the game isn't free anymore. If a game is purely for Unix or for Mac, we don't have a problem with it. That's part of what the "Requirements" information is for.
Q: There is this freeware game I want to submit, but you need to install a toolbar that comes with the installation. Is this acceptable?
A: If a game comes with extra programs you need to install in order to use it, but which aren't needed for the game itself, programs like toolbars or the likes, we see it as a price for being allowed to play the game. If the game has a price, then it's not free, and thus not freeware. We don't feature games that aren't freeware.
