Customer Reviews

F.E.A.R.: First Encounter Assault Recon

5 star:		(74)
4 star:		(61)
3 star:		(23)
2 star:		(15)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

I loved this game, it is easily the best FPS since Half Life 2. Is it better than HL2? No. I don't understand how people can say that it is, seeing as it does have a host of flaws, but it does come closer than any other shooter in recent memory.

Graphics: Terrific IF you have the hardware. While it's true that the maxed out graphics of FEAR are potentially better than HL2, the hardware and processing power required means that only people running twin Geforce7800 in SLI mode will be able to get them. The lighting is gorgeous, and the textures and effects are second to none. I can't fault FEAR for pushing the envelope, but I have to praise Half Life for giving us graphics that are just as good (for the majority of PC owners) with lower hardware requirements, a year earlier. Oddly enough, the facial graphics aren't as good as either Doom 3 or HL2.

Sound: Awesome. The sound is really, really well done and is easily the best I've heard in a while. This game in 5.1 surround will scare you and blow you away!

Gameplay: Terrific, although there are only 3 "real" levels. While there are 11 levels in the game, they all take place in either an abandoned warehouse, an office building, or a secret research lab. That's it. They are really well done, but this is where the game drops the ball- the repetitive nature of the levels and the enemies will turn off some gamers. The "horror" angle of the game is very well implemented, and there are some genuinely freaky moments. If you liked The Ring, you'll like FEAR. Overall, this game takes the best bits of various shooters and combines them: Max Payne's slow-mo bullet time is here, and very well done, as is Half-life 2's "story unfolds as you go" brand of storytelling, which is more effective than the boring exposition that accompanies most games. The controls are intuitive and effective, and the gun battles fun as anything.

Overall: A terrific game, though the repetitive nature of the levels and enemies makes for some disappointment. The ending is also a tad of a letdown, though I didn't mind it. I recommend this game very heartily, it is an instant classic. Does it blow away HL2? No. The story is somewhat formulaic and easily predictable, the levels a bit dry, and the game a bit soul-less when compared to Valve's masterpiece. That said, this is a keeper.

This is one terrific shooter. More involving than half life 2 and I swear the the graphics are at least as good if not better. Certainly, I have never seen better use of lighting or shadows in any game I have played.

FEAR is more linear then Far Cry but much less so then HL2. The story line is suspensfull. At times it can get downright chilling. The combat action is fierce. One of best shooters I have played in several years.

Some folks have complained that FEAR needs a super PC to run decent. I don't know what they are talking about. Yes, it needs a bit more power. I had to turn many of the graphic options to medium. However, I'm running on a rather old PC (slot A Athlon overclocked to 1.1ghz, 512mb of PC100 SDRAM, Radeon 9700Pro at AGP 1X - yes 1X!, 17" LCD monitor at 1024X768). No problem at all running FEAR on this rig and it has half the power of a low end PC today. I guess if your running this at max settings on a 50" monitor, you may have some issues.

There is some bad news. Like HL2, there are 5 CDs to install. Unlike HL2, once the last CD is loaded, you don't have to spend the next couple hours getting "steamed" before you can play.

The game itself runs flawlessly. I have encountered no problems whatsoever - how refreshing.

If you love shooters, I highly recommend FEAR. You will not be dissappointed.

I've heard tons of ranting and raving about this game, and tried to read some spoiler-free reviews on here to give me the scoop about this game. Based on that I opted to go to Wallyworld last night and plunk down my hard-earned $30 to see what all the hooplah is about. I just finished the game and I'm far from disappointed!

FEAR starts with an unusual premise. You're a no-name super-soldier who's joined a special ops group named First Encounter Assault Recon (the titular F.E.A.R.), and your shtick is to investigate (and by extension whack) out of the ordinary bad guys, namely paranormal and psychic types. You have the special ability to use a "Slo-Mo" feature, basically a handy function that slows everything down around you, identical to the bullet-time feature from Max Payne. The government has dispatched you to take out an out of control psychic "general", named Fettel, who holds mental control over a battalion of his own customized troops. He's on the loose in the local water treatment plant and is killing everyone he comes across. As you pursue him you'll also be seeing a creepy little girl who seems to have personal plans for you, in addition to popping up at random times and scaring the (censored) out of you.

I'm not a hardware expert and couldn't pretend to be, but the game ran fairly well on my Athlon 3.2 Ghz and ATI X800. On medium detail the game is well-detailed and despite a few slowups my system didn't have any major problems handling it. I have cheap, stereo headphones though and this is a game that makes me lust after the thought of having a full fledged EAX surround system for my computer. The ambient sound is unbelievably well done, evoking feelings of paranoia and dread at various points of the game.

As I played the game I made a few mental comparisons to some of it's forebears. This game isn't so much Half-Life 2 as it is a mixture of Doom 3 and Far Cry, with a number of ideas pulled from AvP2 for good measure. The latter doesn't surprise me at all since both AvP2 and this game are LithTech creations, and these folks *know* how to create a creepy atmosphere filled with things wanting to kill you. Weapons selection was pretty good, although one can only truly carry 3 different weapons at once (much like Far Cry). I found myself drawn to the shotgun and I never came close to using up all the ammo for it. There's a number of different machine guns and a couple of exotic weapons for those who like em' as well as the ability to purportedly use hand to hand actions, though I couldn't seem to get those to work right.

Between FEAR's plot, pacing, action, and horror angle, this game does very well for itself. It's not HL2 and doesn't try to be. Still, even a game this fantastic doesn't have a few issues. The flashlight function is first and foremost in my mind. It has a pathetic battery as you can only use it for about 30 seconds at a time, and the last thing I want to do in a pitch black room is have the thing run out of juice and having to wait helplessly for the battery to charge up. On the other hand, as it is, it provides a little extra horror addup since I half expected to see that creepy little girl whenever I turned the thing on again. The lack of manipulatable items (cans, lights, etc), as in HL2, would be a welcome change. I can't count the number of times I went through a half-lit room and couldn't use the little desk lamps sitting on furniture to help light the place a bit more. And as much time as I spent bumping around in the dark trying to find my way a few loose items falling to the ground would have amped up the scare factor considerably.

This is a game that was worth *more* than what I paid for it, and I'm very happy with the purchase. If you enjoy a different kind of shooter from the standard fare you may just want to check this one out. Keep your lights on though!

I was lucky enough to get the chance to play this game at the E3 2005 conference and I must say that I was completely blown away! Everything positive you've heard about this game is TRUE. Many of the games at E3 were just movies of gameplay (some even pre-rendered movies - Killzone 2 anyone), but I actually PLAYED FEAR myself. Everything that I state below is from my first-hand experience PLAYING the game. No faked demo, just full on gaming goodness!


GRAPHICS:

Screen shots do not do this game justice. If you can find a video of the game, I highly recommend watching it. FEAR must be seen in real-time to be believed! The attention to detail is astounding. All the lights in the environment cast shadows in real time! If you shoot a light it either goes out or swings around realistically flickering on and off and casting MOVING shadows the whole time. This might sound like a small detail, but it really helps to make the environment feel real/dynamic and not static. Also, you can destroy almost all the glass (windows) you see and they shatter realistically (I had a blast just running around shooting the windows). Also the weapon effects are breathtaking! The muzzle flash lights up the world around you and sometimes even the bullet impacts create light flashes...dynamic lighting is very cool! The bullet holes created by shooting the environment are actual holes! Some of the weapons even create big holes in the walls/ceiling/etc.! Also, unlike most FPS there is a lot of smoke/sparks created by the gun fights which makes it very difficult to see the enemies sometimes. This adds a TON to the realistic feel of the combat (which I'll get to next).

Also, there is this very cool bullet-time like mode where you can slow down time. It works just like Max Payne except is WAY cooler as all the weapons create FX like the movie The Matrix so you can see where your bullets are going. This mode is something you just hit a button to activate and it gives you a big advantage over the extremely challenging AI (see below). When in this mode all of the sounds in the game slow down too! Also there is this cool effect where everything looks a little blurred...Hard to explain, but cool as hell!

The environments are very beautiful too. I'm so glad it's in a real-world location and not some lame space station. The level I played felt like a real place...this made the scary moments (encounter with the little girl...see below) all the more scary. The detail was incredible. The bricks on the walls didn't look flat like most games, you could actually see each individual brick had depth! Also the real-time shadows added a ton. You can even see your own shadow! (and legs...it's about time!). This added to the creepy factor a lot as I ran around every once in a while I'd get scared by my own shadow! But you actually get used to it pretty quick (it's hard for me to play Half Life 2 now as I feel like I'm just floating around as a body-less head and arms :)

In other words, this game's graphics engine is second to none, I hope more games make use of it!


COMBAT:

Definitely the thing that sets FEAR above and beyond any other FPS I've ever played (and I've played them all!). The AI is the best I've ever seen! It doesn't feel like you're playing against AI it feels like you're playing against real people! They call out to each other just like real soldiers. If you throw a grenade, the yell "grenade!" and take cover. If you try and circle around them, and one of them sees you they'll say "He's trying to flank." Also, they understand/use the environment in ways I've never seen before. They jump over railings / crawl under pipes, knock over things to give themselves cover, etc. Also, if you're hiding by something, they'll yell to their friends "he's by the pipe" or "he's behind the wall." It really helps to immerse you in the game. Also, they use real-world tactics against you. They won't just rush you like every other FPS AI, where you can just hide around a corner and wait for them to come one at a time into your aim. These guys will wait for YOU to come to them...Or if there's an alternative route (which there usually is) one of them will go around and attack you from behind (so you can't just play the waiting game). In other words, when it's 3 AI against you, just like in real-life you feel like you're a bad @$$ if you beat them all. However, saying all that you should realize FEAR isn't like a tactical-sim (Rainbow 6) game. It has elements of that, but it plays more like Call of Duty or Half Life 2. However, the combat is waaaaay better than either of those games. Seriously, if you like FPSs download the demo and give it a try...you won't be sorry!


STORY:

Everything I stated above is more than enough of a reason to buy this game. However, the thing that I think will make FEAR an instant classic is that it has a very interesting story as well! In the demo I played at E3 not much of the story was explained, but if you look around the web you can find out more about the story. Basically you're part of a group of highly specialized soldiers that is only called in when the situation gets really bad (somewhere I read it's sort of like an X-files SWAT team...or something). In other words when something extra-ordinary (supernatural?) is involved they call in your unit. As far as I can tell the premise of FEAR is that there is some type of super-powerful little girl (sort of like the movie The Ring) that is killing lots of people. However, she seems to appear out of nowhere and can move quickly from place to place, walk on the ceiling, etc....very creepy! Also there is some sort of army of super-soldiers that either she controls or some 3rd group controls (not sure about this one as the information is somewhat sketchy). Anyway, I'm totally convinced the story will be awesome! Monolith (the developer of the game) has always made games with outstanding stories (like No One Lives Forever and Aliens VS Predator 2).


BOTTOM LINE:

BUY THIS GAME! If you like FPS you will be glad you did

This was one of those where I found myself up at 2AM trying to get through a portion. Nothing like this since Half Life 2.

The graphics are excellent. The AI is pretty respectable and the gore and effects are beyond belief but not gratuitous. The weapons are slick and the limitation of carrying only 3 leaves you making decisions along the way that affect outcome and ability. There were usually multiple ways of attacking an area if you explored which made for a great strategy angle missing from most shooters. The ability to change difficulty mid-game was a great idea. SLO-MO and LEANING AROUND CORNERS ROCKS!

PARENTS WATCH OUT, there is some seriously foul language that cannot be turned off. A guilty pleasure though as I liked the realism it brought. If someone just lobbed a grenade at me I would probably not say, "Dang! and Gee Whiz"

I LOVED this game and here comes the but...unlike HL2 the story and continuity were lacking. I did not feel drawn into it and at the end I still didn't know quite what they were trying to reveal. They tried to build the story up too much, too shrouded in mystery with many loose ends and incomplete characters. What was with all the answering machine messages? They did nothing for me. Rather than feeling like it was a seemless story line (think HL2), it still felt like a traditional level based game.

In the end though let's face it...I was HOOKED

The good:
A.I: Even though somewhat scripted, is the best seen in FPSs. Enemies can react in realtime to your movements, and your shots/flashlight. Enemies will also use the environment: knocking over tables or jumping through windows for cover.
FX: Bullet hits, sparks off of metal are capable even in medium-power computers.

The bad:
There's nothing original here.
The plot takes heavily from stories like 'The Ring', so the "psychic-murdering 8yr-old girl" is no longer as shocking. The entire game is set inside office buildings, so the maps are repetitive, and very little logic or strategy is needed.

I give fun rating a 3, due to repetitition and unoriginality. I give 4 starts overall because there is good potential for modding.

Graphics:
Astounding. Although, honostly, I'm not sure how many people will get to run it full-throttle. I have a brand new Alienware, top of the line, dual video cards (PCI-Express / SLI), etc, and there were still a couple places in the game where it was choppy. Might just be a bug or two in the engine somewhere that needs to be fixed, but still, if I can't run it full blast with this machine, what will the average user with a 2-year old computer be forced to run it at?


Gameplay:
Looking back at it, I would have to agree that the level layouts were repetitive but I honostly didn't notice it when I was playing. The main thing this game has going for it is the absolutely fantastic A.I. The enemies in this game are the best I've ever seen, not like "aim-bots" in terms of accuracy but in terms of how they move, work together, take cover, anticipate your movements and communicate. By comparison, Halo 1 was super-repetitive not only because of the map but because the fights with bad guys just got old after a while. The A.I. was good but not fantastic. In FEAR, the A.I. is fantastic and no two fights were identical or felt boring. They were still surprising me even late in the game not by cheap tricks but just by being sneaky.

I also found the level design to be much more immersive, on the whole, than HL2. HL2 really annoyed me with artificial constrictions and stupid-obvious "puzzles" -- like oh, here's a ramp I need to jump, but it's not at the right angle, but oh, lucky for me there's just enough barrels around that I can prop it up with! Stuff like that is just an annoying waste of time to me and I'm glad FEAR didn't have too much of it. FEAR does direct you through a linear game but at least it feels more natural.

Basically, HL2 and FEAR have comparable engine technology but FEAR is vastly superior in terms of level design and A.I.


Replayability:
Ah, you know, the achilles heel of the FPS genre, this game, like most, doesn't have much singleplayer replayability. I advise playing it through the first time on a reasonably difficult setting because you're probably not going to want to play the whole thing over again. It won't be much different the second time. You could take it online but here's where I have to knock off 1 star on the overall rating: I can't get it to go online. Seems there's lots of complaints about this in their forum, too. Not sure what the deal is, it's probably something I can fix but really, it should be point-and-shoot. So to speak.

So much fun, I'm playing it again.

One of the best games played, since Dark Age of Camelot, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, and a few others.

First, this is the first game since Far Cry to actually STRESS a system I built. With an AMD X2 3800+ (OC'ed to 4800), 1024MB RAM, BFG 6800OC AGP, I was unable to turn on all the Graphics, but after trying out the "System Test" was able to play it with:
2x AA
8x AF
Computer Settings: High
Graphics Settings: Custom (Mostly Med/High)

Shadows cause huge reduction in frames/sec but is worth the performance loss. Makes the game so much more creepy.

Perfect game from anyone 17 or older per the MA rating.

I bought this game after trying the demo, thinking the demo was a sneak peek at what would be an even better final commercial product. What I didn't realize was that nearly everything in the commercial product was already seen in the demo. The same bland environments (3 total) The same enemy (nothing but guys in black body armor) No real in-game plot. No puzzles, no non-weapon equipment. Very little suspense. As soon as I saw a flashlight that needed recharging every 15 seconds, the lack of friendly fire (shoot at an ally and the bullets don't hit them), and gratuitous use of explicit foul language and blood, I knew what I was in for, because those are all things a company throws in when a game isn't well-rounded enough. The enemy AI and physical performance were interesting, but that's mainly all this game has to offer. And for a game that demands cutting edge hardware, the graphics still are bland, repetetive, and overall disinteresting. I wish I had waited for the Bargain Bin.

I am a FPS player almost exclusively and I have been since Doom and Duke Nukum. The game itself definitely kept me wanting to play and kept my interest but some of the breakaway and flashbacks left me with a "could you hurry up" mentality. The game doesn't do a good job of explaining anything to you as the player and when I reached the end I was thinking "what just happened? Is this it" I had to check out the internet for a explanation of the back story.

The game itself was excellent in the playing and if you retry a area the actions of the game would not be the same, the NPC's definitely look for you on several occasions so running in and destroy isn't going to be the mode of play. The graphics were awesome and lent a great deal to the game ie watching a shadow grow larger for your attacks etc. I completed the game in 6 days with 2 to 3 hours a day into it. Although I am a "sweep the room and smash everything" sort of player

I am running a 2.8 Intel system with 1.5 gig of ram and a X800 AIW. The game overpowered the system video wise only a few times but I was playing maxed. Although the "saving checkpoint" times were 3 to 5 seconds long most times.

Good luck, I am going to order the expansion pack today.