F.E.A.R.

"fear."

F.E.A.R, which stands for First Encounter Assault Recon, is a first-person shoot ‘em up with a difference; not only do you get the usual “running around and shooting the crap out of everything in sight” angle that you'd expect from any decent FPS style game, you also get a new angle.

It's something that hasn't been found in many games but I'm sure will be found in a good deal more in the future: the element of fear. One fairly recent game that also exploited the element of fear to a high degree was Doom 3, but F.E.A.R exceeds the standard set in this game by far. 3.




F.E.A.R, which stands for First Encounter Assault Recon, is a first-person shoot ‘em up with a difference; not only do you get the usual “running around and shooting the crap out of everything in sight” angle that you'd expect from any decent FPS style game, you also get a new angle.

It's something that hasn't been found in many games but I'm sure will be found in a good deal more in the future: the element of fear. One fairly recent game that also exploited the element of fear to a high degree was Doom 3, but F.E.A.R exceeds the standard set in this game by far.



The acronym from which the game takes its name lives up to what you would expect from something with that as its title. With sudden unusual sounds, objects that crash to the ground as if disturbed by some unseen force in the corridors ahead of you, doors that slam in your face or spring open as you approach them, and a mysterious dark-haired girl coming at you unexpectedly like something out of The Ring, this game does have what it takes to get you flinching every time the refrigerator motor kicks in or your cat brushes past your legs, especially if played alone at night.

The game holds an 18 certificate so you know that at the very least there's going to be some decent gore and killing scenes. The certificate is also enforced because of the content of the spoken language in the game; when you get noticed by the bad guys, they tend to utter one of a couple of choice four letter expletives.The storyline of the game is pretty original; you have just transferred into a special ops unit set up in secret by the US government to investigate and if necessary neutralize paranormal threats to national security. The latest threat involves an army of cloned replica soldiers that are commanded by the power of telepathy. One of their previous commanders seems to have been released from a secure facility and has taken the soldiers out to play. Clearly something is wrong with this person; the introduction shows security camera footage of him eating the intestines from a blood-soaked corpse, and generally behaving very badly.





The storyline of the game is pretty original; you have just transferred into a special ops unit set up in secret by the US government to investigate and if necessary neutralize paranormal threats to national security. The latest threat involves an army of cloned replica soldiers that are commanded by the power of telepathy. One of their previous commanders seems to have been released from a secure facility and has taken the soldiers out to play. Clearly something is wrong with this person; the introduction shows security camera footage of him eating the intestines from a blood-soaked corpse, and generally behaving very badly.



The agency wants this one handled quickly and quietly if possible and surmises that if they remove Paxton, the replica forces, no longer under telepathic control, will stand down and dissipate. This is where you come in. All you know about your character at the start of the game is that your reflexes are beyond that of a normal person. You learn more about both yourself and your main target as the game progresses, until with a twist at the end of game, all is explained.

The three main characters are you obviously, the main target throughout the game Paxton Fettel, and a sinister female that appears either as a spooky little girl that kills all that she touches or, later on in the game, some kind of gruesome old hag that also seems to kill everything she touches. The game cut scenes, which play more like flashbacks, reveal more about who you are and where you're from, and during these interludes you retain control of the character, walking through the blood-soaked corridors of what is clearly some kind of hospital.

There are only a few different types of enemy throughout the course of the game, but the super smooth AI more than makes up for the lack of variety; enemies will quickly disperse and find cover if it is available upon detecting your presence. Failing that they will pull shelves down to act as shields or leap through broken windows in an attempt to flank you, and while they talk like they fear you, even one on its own will attack you at the earliest opportunity; don't let them get too close though as a couple of kicks from one of them and you're dead. Overall, the enemies are intelligent and will work as a team, use a range of weaponry in different situations and generally try to stay alive as long as possible.

The game is full of nice touches; sometimes, when you kill an enemy, they'll just crumple to the ground. Other times heads will pop with a gout of crimson, and if they happen to be standing up high they leap into the air like bit-part actors in an episode of the A-Team.

Also, the lighting is incredibly fluid and dynamic; the game is built on dimly lit corridors, flickering shadows and some work with the flashlight. Another nice touch is that when a stray bullet heads towards the ceiling and catches a hanging light, it jangles around and throws the beam of light all around the walls.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 10/15/07

Game Release: F.E.A.R. (US, 10/31/06)