Freerolls start resembling money tournaments once around a third to half the field have exited in my experience. A huge amount of players will exit in earlier stages of a freeroll compared to a standard Online tournament, so the Mid-stage strategy actually occurs at earlier blind levels than you might be used to. Adjust your play. There will still be lots of people playing any cards and playing super aggressive. Big stacks will make outrageous calls. However medium and small stacks who have survived the beginning are usually going to play a more traditional style of poker.
Time is an investment, like money. If someone has played in a freeroll for several hours, they’re not as likely to push their chips in the hopes of getting lucky. They don’t want their investment to be for nothing.
There are two types of players. Players who want to win, and players who want to cash. Players who want to win don’t care if they just cash for a couple of dollars. They only play the freeroll for the top prizes. So their play can still be unpredictable. The players who want to cash will become super tight, so be wary if you see them raising or re-raising. Begin to analyse the table more, for differing player styles. Perhaps take notes. You should be able to differentiate your response in situations as you begin to categorise players as play normalises.
Now is the time to be a little more aggressive yourself. Not as many people will be chasing hands with overcards that don't hit or lower pairs. However don't try bluffing your way to victory yet. In my experience betting strong hands (especially post flop should you be fortunate enough to connect) for value is the way to success in many freerolls. Unless you have a big chip lead to everyone else you shouldn't be trying to bluff frequently. Firstly there is no need and secondly the unpredictable nature of your opponents will often see you receive "lighter" calls than you would expect in your usual tournaments.
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