"Hire an individual freelancer instead of an agency" - as a freelancer, this warms my heart :-) For a project of this size and nature, a one-man orchestra would

"Hire an individual freelancer instead of an agency" - as a freelancer, this warms my heart :-) For a project of this size and nature, a one-man orchestra would definitely be a betterr choice. However, to be fair, I must note that similar problems may happen with a freelancer (myself included). Self-management is hard, and I tend to underestimate, which leads to delays and/or working late. Clear and frequent commucation is not as hard, but requires a good habit. You may or may not get it from either agency or freelanced. “How long is a piece of string?” their lead designer asked. -- sounds like a red flag to me!