F.E.A.R. Files

""A solid bundle for any F.E.A.R. fan""

Everyone probably knows by now that Monolith, the creators of the original F.E.A.R., have lost the rights to the first game and Vivendi continued the story by adding two new expansions: "Extraction point" & "Perseus mandate" both developed by Timegate. F.E.A.R. files includes the two expansions along with 8 new instant action maps and new multiplayer content. Here's my thoughts about both titles:

Graphics - 7/10

Almost everything in Extraction point looks like it was recycled directly from the first F.E.A.R., no improvements here, but the environments are more open and a bit more interesting. Perseus mandate looks a little worse in my opinion, many gunfights take place in rather big rooms with enemies firing at you from every position and more destructible elements in the scenario, those are nice additions to the gameplay but the engine can barely keep up with such huge environments, as a result some textures are less detailed than usual. The graphics are by no means bad, but sometimes it looks a bit simple. Anyway the game still does enough to capture the right atmosphere of creepiness and desolation. Effects like sparks, dust and fire still look nice in both games despite the engine's age, death animations and phisics are great even for today's standards

Sound - 9/10

One of the strongest compartments, totally loved the music and creepy sound effects. Extraction point isn't so different from the first F.E.A.R. but I was quite surprised by the music in Perseus mandate, extremely spooky when needed and suddenly kicking hard when guns start talking. Screams and other scary effects just feel right, all done in the best F.E.A.R. tradition

Gameplay - 9/10

The superb AI, the excellent phisics, the blinding particle effects, that's why gunfights are so visceral and satisfying, everything returns here along with some new elements:
first you get some new weapons, all of them are actually rather cool and useful, the minigun and grenade launcher in particular will reduce your enemies to a pulp, literally. You also get the laser carbine wich lets you cut body parts with surgical precision, a rifle with an infra red scope, some sort of electric shocker and the new automatic turrets. The AI tends to use more cover this time and some enemies are more armored than before, also in Perseus mandate you'll face some baddies with your same powers, they'll give you one hell of a time on higher difficulty levels and they'll often attack you from above or below your position making everything more difficult, in general Perseus is more action packed than the other two titles. A good addiction comes in the form of 8 new instant action maps, those maps sometimes feature totally new environments not available in the campaign and will have you put in big arena-style fights with all types of enemies thrown at you at a rather frantic pace. You get some statistics at the end and as usual you can compare your performance with other players through xbox live, this mode can really get pretty damn addictive, definately one of my favorite features. Multiplayer also allows you to use all the new weapons in online matches but as of now it's difficult to find other players, too much halo3 and cod4 I guess...

Story - 7/10

Extraction point basically has no story, a lot happens in front of your eyes, it's something worth seeing but almost everything makes no sense and in the end you'll be left wondering about a thousand things. Perseus gives some interesting story bits about Fettel and the Perseus project, there's also more interaction with the other characters, again there's a lot left in the shadows but at least everything is a little more fleshed out this time

Scare Factor - 8/10

Both games aren't as creepy as the first one. Extraction point is scarier but that's basically because everything is thrown directly at your face, it's not so subtle and chilling as the first game, you get a lot of hallucinations and good scare scenes with Alma anyway. Perseus got its fair share of scares too but you aren't going to see Alma or Fettel too often here except for the final part and this detracts a little from the overall experience. The disturbing atmosphere from the original is almost gone, still some great freaky moments will have you on the edge of your seat. A special mention to some of the best death scenes ever witnessed in a game, this package isn't for kids

Overall - 8/10

Both games are pretty good in my opinion, I prefer extraction point cause it feels more like the first one and has better environments but Perseus also got some interesting gameplay and story aspects and is also a bit longer, overall it should take around 12 hours for an average player to complete both expansions. It's easy to recommend F.E.A.R. files to any fan of the original, the gunfights always feel fresh, I'm sure you'll be replaying your favorite intervals and instant action maps several times while waiting for the full fledged sequel "Project Origin"

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 12/03/07

Game Release: F.E.A.R. Files (EU, 11/16/07)