F.E.A.R.

"F.E.A.R. is a great new FPS, but falls short in a few key areas to be truly a classic."

I'm going to start this review by saying that F.E.A.R. is a great game. It's very good, in fact. However, it falls short in some areas that deprive this great game of an impressive score of 9, and these shortcomings really hurt when you consider what could have been a true masterpiece.

Story: 7/10

We start the game viewing a very good and mysterious movie showing what happened just before the F.E.A.R. team arrived on scene. We discover that a general named Paxton Fettel has telepathically taken command of a group of super military clones in a strange underground facility. We then jump to F.E.A.R. HQ, where you and 3 other F.E.A.R. officers stand around discussing what has to be done. Take out Fettel, and the super soldiers will simply shut down. Sounds simple enough.

Too bad F.E.A.R. doesn't know about the mysterious Alma and the horrors that went on it that same underground facility. That's about all the info we are given before we are taken from HQ to a deserted building where Fettel's tracking signal has been located. We exit the car and wander around this derelict place, admiring the cool graphics and sounds of the game. Pretty soon, however, things start to get a bit spooky once we enter what looks to be a run down hospital of some sort, filled with strange visions and dead people...

The story from then on is fairly good, but some of the time it feels like a cliche of other horror movies from both Asia and America. However, the very end of the game is VERY good, and whatever gripes you have had with the story are temporarily destroyed by the plot conclusion. But still, even when it ends, there are a lot of things unanswered and left in the dark, which may prompt a sequel in the near future...

Graphics 9/10

The graphics in F.E.A.R. are simply superb. Everything looks nice, it feels nice and it all reacts nice with each other. Mind you, I run F.E.A.R. on a pretty moderate machine, so I haven't had the pleasure of seeing the game in its full potential, but no matter. The characters look very good, and environments are usually better, with the ability to blow chunks out of the wall and watch the bubbles rise when you toss a grenade into some water. It feels very well done, and the graphics was one of the things that almost gave this game a 9.

There's also the impressive animation that occurs when you approach a ladder. Your character puts away his gun and grabs onto the bar and pulls himself up or slides down. It's a nice effect, but it is limited to ladders only. Whatever you do, be it twist a valve, open a door or tap into a computer, it is done automatically with no input from the character. And when you need to open a door and you find a big switch with arrows marking "ACTIVATE" in big, bold letters on a fluro blu screen. it kind of makes you wonder if the guys in this mysterious military bunker were so smart after all...

Sound: 8/10

Sound in horror movies is essential, because it sets the mood and helps frighten the viewer. The sound effects in F.E.A.R. are very good, as they do everything chilling, strange noises should do. Your intercom cackles in the dark as you approach a mysterious door, and you hear a child's voice scream as you are ripped from the hallway and dumped in a familiar compound filled with... but I don't want to give too much away. Music is okay, but still helps to set the mood at most places. Gun noises are very average, with the usual bang-bang for assault guns and mighty explosions for the beefier weapons you'll pick up later on, but there's nothing really special to comment on, except the chilling cackling always in your ear, and the sudden barrage of violins as a corpse jumps out in front of you.

Gameplay 8/10

I bought F.E.A.R. expecting it t be a truly terrifying game. I mean, with a name like F.E.A.R., what can you expect otherwise? However, I was slightly disappointed that the game featured far too little horror moments and too many gun battles with countless numbers of super soldiers. There are the odd moments that make my skin crawl and shock me, but this isn't "I jumped out of my skin" type scariness. All too often I would be making my way through a building, tensely waiting for something scary to happen, when I hear a radio message on my intercom saying, "Check in. Nothing to report." Groan.

It's not that the battles with the super soldiers are dull, far from it, but after a while, it gets pretty stale. You basically fight the same enemies in similar environments over and over again, with the rare gem of a heavy robot droid that fires missiles at you, or mounted turrets that truly ruin your day. However, this is a small gripe compared to the fantastic battles that are in the game.

Think you're a champion FPS player? Thrash all your mates online in Quake and Doom? Boot up F.E.A.R. on extreme difficulty and be prepared to be belted by Artificial Intelligence. It's not that the A.I. is good, it's bloody fantastic. Enemies take cover, dodge, peek, talk to each other ("Where is he?" "I don't know!" "Oh, f**k!") sneak round you, prepare ambushes, team up, pincer you in a corner, punch you when you get too close - if it wasn't for your special slo-mo ability, you would get punished very early on in the game by a bunch of clones. If you want a game that outranks every other FPS in terms of combat, and want to test your impressive Counter Strike skills on something tough, buy F.E.A.R. You won't regret it.

But even though the battles are intense and rewarding, it still gets pretty dull around the place. Here's a basic rundown on most of the game: search around an area. Fight 3-6 super soldiers. Collect their ammo and find health. Wander around a bit more. Tap on computers to find out more about the story. Jump a little as a demonic vision or ghost appears for a few moments. Run into super soldiers. Repeat. It works if you like shooting people, but for the people like me who want a truly scary time playing this game, it just doesn't cut it.

Replayability 7/10

Once you finish F.E.A.R. on moderate or maybe hard, there's little to go back for. Playing F.E.A.R. on a higher difficulty is certainly a better experience, but everything is really just about the same. You may come across a health pack or reflex booster you missed, or find out some more info about the story on a phone or computer, but there is really nothing that can truly bring you back. Multiplayer is good fun and can fill up your time, but it would have been pretty cool if Monolith had included some single player maps to toy with against a bunch of super soldiers. Once you finish F.E.A.R. (relatively quickly too - the single player campaign can be finished in about 8-12 hours) you will probably not play it again for a while.

Fun Factor 8/10

While being a serious game at heart, F.E.A.R. is both enjoyable and occasionally very entertaining as you progress through it. Take for instance, the very cool Penetrator, a gun that shoots enormous nails into your enemy. This gun is perfect for having a laugh at 3 in the morning in a pitch black room after you've encountered a very scary apparition. The best thing about this gun is how it bolts the enemy to anything behind them. I was battling a group of supers one time, and I had killed all but one ("Where do I go?" I heard him scream, laughing evilly to myself). He turned and began to climb a ladder in the hopes of gaining a height advantage over me. A good plan, but I was too good for that. I whipped out my Penetrator and nailed him a few times, laughing as he screamed his way to death. I ran over to pick up his stray ammo, and was surprised to see that he was hanging in mid-air. Great, I thought, a glitch. But as I climbed the ladder, I found that I had not encountered a glitch at all. The bolts from the Penetrator had gone straight through his forehead and into the wall, suspending him by his head in the most uncomfortable position a couple of metres above ground. It may not have been much, but it was nice to see the physics system kick in to give me a nice "Screenshot of the Month" picture.

Overall, F.E.A.R. is a fun game, as long as you put enough into it. Sure it may not be very light hearted (in fact, it is rather disturbing and sadistic in places) but it is still very enjoyable, thanks mainly to the comic relief character, Norton Mapes, a fat guy who you find cowering behind a cactus in a very big (and long) office block.

Overall 8/10

Should you fork out your hard-earned cash for F.E.A.R.? If you like intense combat, a good storyline, superb graphics and great atmosphere, then go for it. However, if you're looking for something a bit different, scary and original, you're not gonna find it here. F.E.A.R. may be a new horror FPS on the market, but overall, it's pretty standard. It's really only the amazing A.I. and scary sequences that truly separates this from other FPS titles out today.

Have fun!

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/20/06