RETRO GAME REVIEW OF THE WEEK: F.E.A.R.

You play as Point Man – First Encounter Assault Recon’s newest member. You are hunting a mad man, a cannibal, an insane mysterious man named Paxton Fettel.

Strange things begin to happen around you… paranormal things. But that is the least of your worries. Paxton controls an elite prototype army of clones. As you hunt him down, you uncover hidden clues and many questions that will hunt you until you find the truth. 

One of the coolest aspects of F.E.A.R. is the way it tells its story. You hear the story unfold through phone messages and radio news broadcasts. You get the background info on Armacham Technology Corporation and even get hints of project origin. The relationship between Harlen Wade, Alice Wade, Paxton Fettel, Alma, and Point Man unfold hint by hint that continues even into the next installments of the F.E.A.R. series.

Gameplay

I’ve been playing shooter games since I first picked up Halo in 2001. I had never heard of F.E.A.R. until I searched for part one of F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin. So, yeah I got to play the “upgraded” version first. The funny thing is I liked F.E.A.R. much better. Though the graphics are not as up to par with F.E.A.R. 2, F.E.A.R. has replay value and tons of hidden messages.

The most helpful gameplay element in F.E.A.R. is slow-mo or “reflex time”. Slow mo is perfect when you are battling too many enemies at once. It’s also hilarious hearing clone soldiers yell “Holy Shit!” and “He’s too fast!” in slow-mo.

One thing I don’t like however is that you have to press the activate button to climb ladders and open doors. This can be frustrating when you have pressed the activate button dozens of times and Point Man still refuses to climb. It makes you yearn for upgrades where all you have to do is push up the thumb stick to climb ladders (like in F.E.A.R. 2).

Fun-ness Level

F.E.A.R. is one of those games where if I haven’t played it for a while I get cravings. Unlike RPGs (which I love), F.E.A.R. is one of those shooters that is a mindless killing fun ride. There’s no need to use your brain in this game, and for once, that sort of thing is okay. F.E.A.R. is a pure aim-shoot-kill game, but sometimes (on advanced mode) shooting and killing can be a challenge. Actually, not dying over and over again can be a challenge. The best option in a F.E.A.R. situation when there are too many clones is to stand behind a wall, throw a grenade, go into slow-mo, watch the clones duck for cover, and shoot them to high hell. Now, that’s what I call fun, and that’s also what causes F.E.A.R. cravings.

Music

F.E.A.R.’s soundtrack is primarily composed of orchestrated tracks that create a dark and intense atmosphere. The best tunes in the game come first during Interval Two: First Encounter when you’re flying by helicopter to the water processing plant. The second is during any time right before you fight Fettel’s clone soldiers. It’s the bump bump… bump bump… bump bump… that gets your heart racing and your trigger finger itchy.

The dark and battle-like music combined with blood splattered dream sequences also give F.E.A.R. an intense horror atmosphere. F.E.A.R. was a lot more frightening than F.E.A.R. 2. Picture this: you, as Point Man, are walking down a narrow corridor. All of a sudden the lights begin to shake, flicker, and immediately shut off. Everything is blank. Then the lights flash on again, but you’re not in the same corridor. This corridor is filled with blood that reaches your knees. You move forward, but hear agonizing screams. You turn behind you and an evil apparition flies inside your body and takes all your life. You’re dead. Now that’s a spooky atmosphere.      

Missions

There are no real missions in F.E.A.R. or rather no missions similar to those in GTA or those of RPGs. Rather, there are objectives which are as simple as rendezvousing with your team, or locating and killing Paxton Fettel. But we all know the main objective of F.E.A.R. (and most other shooters) is to kill anything that moves including those large rats.

Graphics

Though F.E.A.R.’s graphics are considered ancient now, for a 2005 game, they are not bad. In fact, in HD and widescreen, F.E.A.R. looks pretty sharp. The shape of the guns look a little like toys some times, but trust me, they shoot like real guns especially when you watch a clone soldier get blasted into liquid.

Bugs

I played F.E.A.R. on Xbox 360 and had no bugs at all. F.E.A.R. also makes little running or “thinking” noise inside my Xbox.

I love F.E.A.R., in fact I’ll be playing it tonight for a couple of hours. Every time I finish a campaign, I start the game over again and assume the role of Point Man; I almost become him. Forget Beckett! (Just kidding, I like him too.)

If you love first-person shooters and haven’t already played F.E.A.R., I suggest picking it up. It will cost you probably no more than $15 if that much.

By the way, I don’t care if some don’t think F.E.A.R. is a “retro game” since it only came out six years ago. With the way games pop out, (and considering our digital age) everything that reaches the age of five is old, if not ancient.