Review

Fear, a horribly addicting game that is about as scary as they come.  Although from first glance, the game seems to be another First Person Shooter, where you are the person to save the day using your assortment  weapons and amazing accuracy, but in actuality, it really goes a lot deeper than that. The story starts off as you being the latest recruit to the F.E.A.R. team, a government SWAT team that deals with highly unusual and implausible missions. For your first assignment, you are sent in to find out what happened to a team of Special Forces soldiers that were sent in to a multi-billion dollar aerospace compound after it was invaded by a group of paramilitary replicates led by an individual named Paxton Fettel. As you reach the corporation, you quickly learn that the Special Forces team was wiped out by "something". Now it’s up to you and your team to track down Fettel and put an end to him to stop his telepathically controlled replicates. Once you start to make your way through the first door, you quickly realize that there are some very odd things going on, including visions of your team, a creepy little girl in a red dress and objects that move by themselves. While the creepiness of the game plays a large part, the actual game play, physics, graphics and everything else make this game one hell of a ride.

You will definitely need a power house of a computer to be able to run F.E.A.R. effectively. The graphics of F.E.A.R. are easily good quality as DOOM 3 and Quake 4 and with the appearance, the shadows, lighting and texturing found in the game, it really is a sight to behold. The similarities stop there however. Once you are done with the initial introduction and enter the facility, you will soon enough run into the replica soldiers you are sent in to investigate. When you square off against them, you will immediately notice they aren’t like most enemies you encounter in other games. They will duck and run, seeking cover. They will yell at you, call out to each other, give away your position, and will even push and knock over objects like shelves. They also take it upon themselves to get closer to your location by climbing ladders, jumping over railings and diving through windows.

In addition to the incredible AI the enemies have, they also feature some excellent physics. A shotgun will take off a head and a proximity mine will separate the body from the legs of what ever gets close enough to set it off. As for other objects, shooting a drum or crate will shift it along, knocking it around, which of course, should be expected in today’s games. Knocked lights will cast swinging shadows, as well objects floating in water and glass breaking, react just as realistic. One of the key game play advantages you hold over your enemies is your ability to slow time through your "incredible reflexes”, a advantage that lets you slow time, you move faster than the enemies and can nail them with several shots before they have the chance to shoot you.

  While you have a full arsenal of weapons you will also find out during the game, you have the ability to use melee attacks. You are able to perform a roundhouse kick while jumping, a slide kick while ducking and a regular punch. When you are holding your weapon, you are able to bash your opponent in the head with the bottom of your gun for an equally effective hit. These attacks are exceptionally strong and are very effective in slow motion, for those times you find yourself low on ammo.

  As you are making your way through the game, you will start to learn more and more about what is actually going on at the facility and your purpose of being there is not all it seemed to be from the start. You pick up bits of information from answering machines and laptops as well as ghostly voices that seem to speak inside your head. The game does seem to get a little boring during the middle of the game, only because you are searching through cubicle after cubicle but the scares and frights are there to make sure you get through it.

With the single player aspect of F.E.A.R. being the thrilling experience it is, the online multiplayer modes are not too far behind. The game delivers 8 different game play modes, 6 of which you are able to play with the slow motion booster. F.E.A.R is a must for any fan of the first person shooter.  It scares you and throws obstacles in you way but most of all it is easy to learn and a great game to play.