F.E.A.R. (PC)

Voice

The voice acting in F.E.A.R is good; not A-list style material but the VA’s do their roles with heart and soul. There are some notable performances from the various NPC actors and the voice of Mapes and his attitude makes him one NPC that I want to throttle. A little shout out must go to the voices of the soldiers, and the way they’re used – along with the stunning visceral combat AI their vocalisations actually make sense most of the time, they’ll report if a squad member is down and sometimes they’ll reply with an expletive to a fellow squad-mate.

Creepy girl is also particularly effective, while she doesn’t have a lot to say, when she says it – it’s enough to raise the hairs on the back of your neck.

Music

F.E.A.R takes a minimal idea regarding music, there are a few pieces now and then and they’re good. Most of the time you’re given a kind of ambient Resident Evil Movie style soundtrack that compliments the game and tends to react to situations, creepy music for the darker/nastier sections of the game for instance and some harsher stuff when you’re thrown into a pitched battle.

Multiplayer

Deathmatch: All vs. All in a fight to see who can score more frags.

Team Deathmatch: 2 teams against each other, the team with the highest score wins.

Elimination: One winner, like a last man standing. If you die, you’re out till the next round.

Team Elimination: The team with the most players/any players at the end of the round wins.

SlowMo Deathmatch: There’s a reflex booster in the level, grab it and score points for how long you have it. Once your SlowMo bar is charged you can initiate your special and dish out some Matrixy flashiness. You will move twice as fast to your enemies.

Team SlowMo Deathmatch: Just the same as the above, except that when the team’s player with SlowMo kicks it in, the whole team gets the benefit.

CTF: Two teams battle to nick the opposition’s flag, score points for nicking the flag and bringing it back to base. Defend your flag, your flag carrier and base to earn even more points for your team.

SlowMo CTF: Like the above but when you have the reflex booster and your SlowMo bar is charged, you can activate SlowMo and give your team a big advantage.

Multiplayer in F.E.A.R has its ups and down, it doesn’t quite cut it with the rest of the game yet I have heard/seen people having more fun with it than some of the other shooters. The new SlowMo modes take some getting used to but the styles of gameplay apart from this offer nothing really new.

The weapons all have individual characteristics and you’ll find you keep to a few favourites, like the Penetrator (the best nail gun in a game ever) which has a rapid fire, good damage and skewers your enemies like there’s no tomorrow.

There are a few MP glitches with the game and server crashes but if the developers can iron out these problems, add more maps and so forth the MP side of the game won’t just be an addition to the great SP.

Final breath

Pros: Good looking game with some gorgeous and atmospheric special effects, twisted story. Excellent enemy AI and encounters, intense and gripping with frenetic combat. Unpredictable AI adds to replayability.

Cons: Short game, fiddly MP, not much MP innovation. Requires a powerful machine to run, requires a cutting-edge gfx card to get the best out of. Some levels are barren and feel empty. Repetition of enemies can make the game feel a bit samey at times.

F.E.A.R for those shortcomings is an excellent addition to the shelf of any shooter obsessed gamer. If you’re not into shooters but you’re looking for something to begin with, then F.E.A.R is a great entry into the crowded market and performs extremely well against the major competitors. The shortcomings don't stop this game from being one worthy of major accolades and hopefully a larger sequel.