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| Face your FEARS. |
F.E.A.R. is a first-person shooter with horror elements developed by Monolith Productions-- of Shadow of Mordor and No One Lives Forever fame-- and was relased for PC back in 2005 and followed ports for the Xbox 360 and PS3. Horror and First-person shooters may seem like a weird combination at first, but after playing F.E.A.R. it's a fantastic combination. You follow the supernatural adventures of a F.E.A.R. operative as he must unravel the mytery of the paranormal events caused by the enigmatic little girl, Alma. The game's full of cool, slo-mo action sequences and some creepy horror segments, which made it a memorable hit back in the day. It was also praised for its then ludicrously high system requirements, so that's something. But all in all, it's a crazy action-filled ride that'll keep you wanting more.
STORY- You follow F.E.A.R. (First Encounter Assault Recon) operative "Point Man" as he, alongside other teammates, must apprehend Paxton Fettel, who posses a threat to national security by controlling a plethora of genetic super-soldiers via telepathy. Not too long after and you'll come across a disturbed little girl, Alma, with deadly paranormal powers. As the story progresses, you'll uncover many corporate scandals and discover the disturbing truths behind Fettel, Alma, and yourself. The plot was filled with many over-the-top moments and shocking revelations, all of which kept me engaged. The characters such as Fettel and Alma were memorable, but the rest of the F.E.A.R. squad could've benefited from some exposition. Overall, the story left a lot of questions open, which leads to some interesting theories.
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| FEAR the wrath of Alma. |
GAMEPLAY- A straightforward affair, F.E.A.R. has you navigating areas and shooting enemies in first-person view. You'll be treated to a host of weapons including your standard handguns and assault rifles to more sci-fi ones such as a laser that literally turns your enemies to lifeless skeletons. A main highlight of the game is the slow-motion feature, in which time passes slowly, giving a small time-frame shoot up enemies. Get used to it, since you'll be abusing it a lot against the hordes of enemy squads. Speaking of the enemies, their A.I. is not one to be taken lightly. You can just treat the game light any other shooter and go guns blazing, the enemies will quickly gang up on you and instantly finish you. That being said, you can't just stand still in one place, since often times they'll try and flank you from behind too. The best strategy is to be constantly on the over, going from cover to cover. When you cornered and out of health and armor, melee kills are your final best option since they can instantly kill the enemy. There are various laptops scattered throughout the game's 11 levels (named "Intervals") which serves as the game's only collectables and shed crucial insights to the game's plot. F.E.A.R. originally featured a dedicated online and local multiplayer back in the day which featured modes such Deathmatch and Capture the Flag but unfortunately the servers has been ceased in 2012.
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| Fight hard and fight smart. |
PRESENTATION- There's no doubt that F.E.A.R. has aged considerably since its debut. In regards to that, character models do hold up and look decent (except for close-ups of some characters' faces shows how clay-like some of facial models are). The backgrounds and lightings are top-notch and it shows across the game's levels, it's also good to know that they've aged well too. F.E.A.R. runs well on modern computer rigs, despite its then-demanding specs. I ran the game at max settings with a 1080p resolution and buttery smooth framerate of 130fps, which made the overall gameplay experience stable and engaging. Voicework is great with solid performances, I liked the sarcastic tone of Betters and the menacing yet calm vibes of Fettel. The soundtrack is consistently eerie throughout the journey, getting creepier each chapter. Composer Nathan Grigg nails the intense atmosphere of the game.
OVERALL- The narrative left things loose towards the end and the levels could've benefit from variety since after a while, they start to look the same. Nevertheless, F.E.A.R. is an engaging and involving adventure from start to finish. It's as good as other first-person shooters such as Half-Life 2 and BioShock. A well-written plot, solid shooting, intelligent A.I. and physics, and spot-on presentation helps it rival other first-person shooters of the same caliber of the aforementioned games. It's just a shame that time has forgotten this once popular series, though it can't be helped since the third installment diverged from its series roots in favor of all-out action, but sadly that's slowly becoming the norm as of late.
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Alma's ominous presence gives off
some unsettling vibes.
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OVERALL- The narrative left things loose towards the end and the levels could've benefit from variety since after a while, they start to look the same. Nevertheless, F.E.A.R. is an engaging and involving adventure from start to finish. It's as good as other first-person shooters such as Half-Life 2 and BioShock. A well-written plot, solid shooting, intelligent A.I. and physics, and spot-on presentation helps it rival other first-person shooters of the same caliber of the aforementioned games. It's just a shame that time has forgotten this once popular series, though it can't be helped since the third installment diverged from its series roots in favor of all-out action, but sadly that's slowly becoming the norm as of late.
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