F.E.A.R.

"Furry Elephants Ate Rhinos"

My friend told me about this interesting game called F.E.A.R. that he had got for his PC. Since I had recently obtained a 360 for Christmas and I knew that most PC games get ported to the Microsoft consoles (or the other way around) I was ecstatic with the possibility that this game that my friend had described to me could make its way to the 360. When I finally got my hand on the title, I have to say that I wasn't all that impressed.

If you couldn't tell by the name of the game, this title focuses mainly on bringing fear to the players. Every first-person shooter has its gimmick and I guess the developers believed the players would be able to be scared out of their minds. When I went through the first level and saw some of the weird stuff that was going on, I wasn't really scared but I was impressed with the imagination of the developers. Honestly, some really weird things transpire in this game. I even have to admit that I actually jumped at one point during the course of the game. This is only the second video game to ever make me jump out of my seat.

However, you can't just let the creepiness overshadow the way the game plays. I don't know how well it plays on the PC, but on the Xbox 360, F.E.A.R.'s controls aren't something to be proud about. The button used to open doors is also the button used to reload your weapon. This can become a real pain in the ass, especially since the controls to open doors (this also is used to mess with other objects) are unresponsive and I had to mash on the X button multiple times to get a freaking door opened. This problem gets in the way when you're trying to get away from an enemy due to low health and you can't manage to open a door!

Weapon variety in F.E.A.R. is lackluster at best. There isn't really anything special about the weapons. Also, the system used to switch your weapons is very irritating. Tapping RB will switch to your next weapon, but there's no button to go backwards in the process. If you are a frequent gamer, you'll probably find yourself tapping LB even after you've realized that it doesn't work. Another irritation arises with the melee combat. If you press B twice (the amount of hits it takes to break a vent grate open) your character puts the weapon away. One weapon that I did find exceptionally useful was the grenades. It was hilarious watching enemies get blown to bits in a shower of blood. It looked so fake that it was a guilty pleasure. Also, when an enemy dies they often fly across the room like a freaking doll, which is also hilarious.

Getting around the levels in F.E.A.R. isn't an easy task as the levels are mapped-out horribly. There are often forks in a building you're in that will lead you to a way earlier part of the level that you really didn't need to be in again. This is a big inconvenience and can really get on your nerves. Some people argue that this makes the game's environments seem more realistic, but if I wanted realism I wouldn't be playing video games.

You star as a hero with basically no personality and who ends up getting out of every situation while everybody else around him (with the same training) gets picked off easily. Sounds original, right? Well, the story isn't really that bad. It's basically about an organization created by the government trying to stop a cannibal. The story is pretty sick and it's pretty twisted. Fans of horror games or even movies will probably like the story, but it's not that spectacular.

Graphics have become one of the most important staples in video games. F.E.A.R. doesn't disappointment in this department, but it's not as prettied up as other 360 titles. I'm sure you can look past this minor inconvenience because it honestly doesn't look all that bad. It just doesn't look all that good, either.

The music is creepy and often times will be an aide in playing tricks on the player. I loved the creepy soundtrack and all the sound effects matched flawlessly.

F.E.A.R. really isn't that long of a game, but if you're looking for something to play due to boredom, then go rent this FPS for your 360. However, if you don't want to play through an average shooter, then you probably shouldn't waste your time with First Encounter Assault Recon.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 01/02/07