FEAR THE TEENAGED GIRL!
Gaming today is filled with First-Person Shooters left, right and centre. It's hard for one specific title to shine through the shadows of the rest but when that one game does, well it can be a very special and entertaining event. But there are on occasions, games which stick to what they do best and don't try anything that they know might unbalance a franchise or lose the interests of the gamers who spend their hard earned cash on such titles. This is the case with Monolith Productions latest installment in the surprisingly delightful F.E.A.R series, despite suffering from some questionable new expansions in the franchise over the past few years. Monolith have clearly seen that sticking to what the franchise does best is both the right decision for the developers and the actual gamers who enjoyed the original F.E.A.R back in 2005. For F.E.A.R 2, or Project Origin as it was originally titled is indeed a fine direct sequel that offers enough of what we loved about the original yet also offering some new mechanics and scares along the way for the experience to still feel somewhat fresh to those playing.Much of what you get with F.E.A.R 2 is much of what we have all seen before, it doesn't particularly do anything outstanding even if it's still as atmospheric as ever. Some will place the 'Generic' tagline onto F.E.A.R 2 and although in certain areas there is simply no denying that it can feel like a 'been here before' experience, there is still something about this Monolith creation that seperates it from the average FPS currently on the market. It is clearly a game built with care and the developers leave the gamer in no doubt that they have a love for the fiction and lore they have created within the F.E.A.R Universe, I to have to admit a fondess for the Universe of F.E.A.R. Which makes it sad that often Monolith don't do more with it, simply because as enjoyable as Project Origin is you still wish that more of a risk was taken with both the gameplay and it's scare-factor which simply isn't as hard hitting as the original. Though to call F.E.A.R 2: Project Origin scary is maybe a little off, but like the original it can put you on edge and keep you prepared for almost anything to happen. The sequel does this well, but I was dissapointed to see many fewer attempts to shock the gamer then what the original game provided. I was eager for it to spread it wings a bit more and I couldn't help feel that Monolith went for a more conservative approach when what this game truly needed was more risk.
In F.E.A.R 2: Project Origins you play as Michael Becket, a Delta Force Operative who is sent in to capture Genevieve Aristide. The single player game starts around 20 minutes before the end of the original F.E.A.R as you witness the huge paranormal explosion caused by the physic young female Alma who as been part of Armachan Corporations 'Project Origin' experiment. Becket soon obtains super human abilities very much like those obtained by Point Man (the original F.E.A.R's player controlled figure) after the explosion of the city takes place. Throughout the single player game Becket finds out more information about the young women Alma through intel found throughout the locations of F.E.A.R 2. Overall there is much more emphasis placed upon the young women (teenage) Alma rather then the child form, infact the child form of Alma is rarely seen throughout the players experience as you now witness a much older and even more scarier Alma who is drawned to you for a number of obvious reasons. The Single Player experience will be where most gamers will find enjoyment from the overall package, it is a worthy length and offers some interesting insight into the lore created by the developers. It would have been nice if the information offered in the games many pieces of intel was actually provided through dialogue (audio tapes for example) or through cutscenes rather then through text all the time. But if your not scared of reading then it shouldn't be much of a problem, if you are then you simply can choose not to read them.
One of the biggest complaints drawn towards the original F.E.A.R game was how linear the games levels were. Sadly this is an issue that as not totally been rectified in the sequel for Project Origin still feels a little to linear heavy even in some of the more open locations. Some of this makes sense and there is some variation in where you choose to go, but none of it makes a huge difference and usually only means you choose to go up one staircase instead of another, but it is worth remembering that F.E.A.R as a concept draws on a much more linear and contraphobic feel so some of this can be forgiven. Though I shall admit to quite enjoying the fact that I knew exactly where I at to go and didn't need to walk miles upon miles just to reach my destination, a issue I have grown to despise in games like Fallout 3. There are a few other new mechanics in action within the sequel, for instance the player can now create his own cover by moving certain specific pieces of furniture about. This mechanic had the occasional use but was nowhere as useful as it should have been, partly due to the fact that only certain pieces of furniture can be moved or pushed over for use in cover, the game doesn't exactly make which furniture can be interacted with clear. So often you might find yourselves going from furniture to furniture looking to see if it can be used for cover, this is especially the case when you realise that there is an achievement for interacting with 50 pieces of cover.
F.E.A.R 2 does indeed have it's moments though, for instance the brilliant mechanical robots you get to experience in the middle of the single player game and also online. These tough mechanical pieces of modern warfare are simple but delightful to operate as you shoot off your stylish missiles at some lone enemy A.I or Human Player when taking part in F.E.A.R 2's online mode. These robots are not indestructable though, with the right amount of hammering from the opposition it is pretty easy to take one down especially if you have the best weapons for the job. Speaking of which Project Origin features a nice if generic selection of weapons, from the expected automatic rifle to the missile launcher. There are one or two more interesting weapons but sadly none of them are truly outstanding and thrilling to use, for example the games version of the flame thrower which though neat, isn't particularly fun and felt a little temperamental to use even if it is quite powerful when playing online. I honestly didn't want to use the word 'generic' in this review because honestly F.E.A.R 2: Project Origins still does enough to stand out of the shadows of other First-Person Shooters on the market today, I just believe more risk could have been taken with the lore on offer here. Of course I have yet to mention the games Multiplayer component.
F.E.A.R 2's multiplayer mode can feel a little tagged on and again could suffer from being called 'generic' like a lot of FPS we see with a specified multiplayer modes. But I quite enjoyed the modes avaliable when I spent time with it, despite having some issues getting games to start I eventually found a couple of solid matches which were busy and quite exciting. There are the expected modes on offer with some maps featuring the fantastic large robotic monsters I spoke of eariler. All the weapons from the single player feature and although there is understandably no slow-mo bullet time, most gamers will find a lot to enjoy with the games multiplayer action. There are both quick player matches and ranked matches on offer and there are a number of other mechanics in place which we have at the least come to expect from a solid multiplayer mode. It won't be beating Gears of War 2 or Call of Duty: Modern Warfare anyday soon but I could see a good community of gamers spending quite a bit with what this mode. The maps are reasonable if a little unspectacular and as I said previously, the weapons avaliable are interesting if a little to generic. Though I could see some good techniques being used in a good online battle or two with the weapons as they offer a nice selection for the online gamer.
CONCLUSION
What I got with F.E.A.R 2: Project Origins is very much what I expected, I never truly expected to be blown away but I got the solid and enjoyable experience I wanted from the time spent with the game. It would feel a little generic if it weren't for the games fantastic fiction and overall gameplay which is as sharp and exciting as ever. It lacks the true shock factor of the original and it could be argued that the developers Monolith Productions played it a little to safe this time round, but the average gamer will still find a hell of a lot of gameplay time be it with the great single player game or the generic but still fun multiplayer mode. It can still look good from time to time even if the engine used is starting to show it's age, Alma Wade is honestly still as freaky and disturbing as she was four years ago and Monolith Productions have done a fine job to bring the F.E.A.R franchise back on track after a wobbly few installments. Rent or purchase, you'll still find that F.E.A.R is as fearful as ever.SCORE:
4 STARS OUT OF 5.
Review Written by Joseph Bayliss (TrueEnglishGent)
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