Giant Bomb Review
86 CommentsF.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin Review
4- X360
by Ryan Davis on
It's less tactical than its forebear, but Monolith delivers a tightly paced and atmospheric ride with F.E.A.R. 2.
F.E.A.R. 2 puts you in the role of a Sgt. Michael Becket, a member of a separate F.E.A.R. team than the Point Man from the original. Despite playing as a different character, you've got the same slow-motion and jump-kickin' abilities, something that's addressed over the course of the story. The game picks up just before the first game left off, allowing you glimpses of the climax of that game before heading off on your own mission to find and stop Alma, the tragic, psychically charged young woman whose thirst for revenge against the Armacham Corporation has laid waste to much of the city. Much like Monolith's queasily pugilistic Condemned 2: Bloodshot, F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin spends a lot of time revealing the truths behind the mysteries and conspiracies established in the original, often through memos and other bits of intel scattered throughout the environments. A fear of the unknown is what drove the first game, but somehow it's even more disturbing to see just how far-reaching and sinister the grand conspiracy is. If this is your first dip into the F.E.A.R. crazy-pool, the game does a decent job of catching you up to speed, and a quick look at our wiki page should sufficiently fill you in on the rest.
Aside from all the spooky ghost stuff, one of the defining characteristics of F.E.A.R. was the tactical style of the gameplay. AI opponents would intelligently flank you, flush you out with grenades, find cover, or make their own cover by flipping over tables and such. While the enemies in F.E.A.R. 2 are still pretty good about protecting their own hides, the game itself is so generous with your time-slowing reflex ability, ammo for your totally kick-ass weapons, body armor, and health packs, that it feels much more run-and-gun. Compounding this issue is that F.E.A.R. 2 is a phenomenally linear game, with only a few rare moments when it even seems like you have more than one path to take. In a way, I actually prefer the more-focused, more-forgiving style of F.E.A.R. 2, simply because it makes it easier to really appreciate the crazy atmospheric effects and gorgeous gore that are on display. A sequence where you get to pilot a massive mech suit--a moment that echoes Shogo--is a perfect example of what F.E.A.R. 2 is all about. There's little challenge to it, but the way it's presented, with its glitchy video-screen effects, the swirling trails of your cluster missiles, and the hydraulic moans of the suit itself, really puts you in the moment.
I honestly think there are few developers today with both the technical and creative chops to establish such a specific tone as Monolith does so successfully with F.E.A.R. 2. Even though the ghost-story stuff ends up being about as threatening as a trip through The Haunted Mansion at Disneyland, and the tactical gameplay is softened up by an abundance of player-boosting pick-ups, F.E.A.R. 2 still puts on one hell of a show.
