Freedom!

Freedom!

Screenshot of start screen
Developer(s) MECC
Publisher(s) MECC
Platform(s) Apple II
Release date(s) 1993
Genre(s) Edutainment

Freedom! was an educational computer game developed by MECC. The player assumed the role of a runaway slave in the Antebellum Period of American history who was trying to reach the North through the Underground Railroad. The game met a mixed reception; some educators found it valuable while others found it racially offensive.

In 1993, a group of offended parents sued a school which had provided the game to students and MECC, the developer. The game was pulled off the market as a result.

Gameplay

Players choose one of two characters. The male character was typically illiterate; written signs and notes appeared onscreen as indecipherable symbols. The male character receives a pass from his slavemaster in order to escape to the North. The female character is sometimes able to read and write, and is able to forge a pass in order to run, in addition to asking for a pass. Players attempt to avoid slavecatchers, who may or may not perceive their character's pass as legitimate.

References