F.E.A.R

[J4MES OX4D 10,034]

Anyone played this gem before? It's an old FPS game from 2005 but absolutely way ahead of its time. It's primarily an action game but it does have some light horror moments set on a tense and atmospheric backdrop. The gunplay is amazing and the game also makes use of incredible lighting and particle effects. You can also slow down combat with a Max Payne-style bullet time feature to see each bullet hit and the environmental destruction that occurs. The AI is also very impressive and every gun battle feels and plays differently. It's feels almost like a Half Life 2 mod or something.

 

Currently it can be got at for £1.60 on Fanatical which is an absolute steal!

F.E.A.R - Info

ISTHEREANYDEAL.COM

 

Visually, it still holds up very well and it feels mechanically incredible! Well worth picking up as they don't make games like this anymore 

 

[Tar-Eruntalion 511]

such a great game, played it when it first came out and had a blast with it, although it was kinda spooky for me back then when i was still a kid, i remember how realistic the skeletons of the shredded soldiers seemed and how the enemies would coordinate to flank you etc and using the gun that shot huge nails was awesome with ragdoll pinning enemies at the wall

 

played the two expansions for the first time recently and they have aged really well, but i haven't cared about the 2nd or 3rd because i heard mostly negatives about them

[phil bottle 9,758]

Have FEAR 1, 2 and 3. Very creepy games 😁

[Antpool84 1,109]

I loved these games!!! As much as i enjoy modern horror games like resi evil 7 and man of medan i really miss horror fps games like this. It would be awesome to get a remaster of one of these

[J4MES OX4D 10,034]

I'm so used of facing brainless enemies in the likes of COD and Far Cry that I've been caught off-guard so many times in this game already - the AI is on another level here and one mission I was facing a guy in cover and another one on the level below who didn't have a clear shot at me but managed to bounce a grenade off the wall which almost landed at my feet. I tried running to cover but was killed by another enemy who was slowly flanking without me even knowing on the stairs the other side. When I tried it again, it played out completely different. There are no grenade indicators either plastered all over the screen so you have to use your eyes and ears during these frantic battles. Call of Duty is literally duck behind cover, shoot, duck, reload, duck when grenade icon appears and if you go off-rails ahead of the game intends then you just fall to the floor dead without even being shot. Harder difficulties in those type of games doesn't mean better AI either - it means more damage dealt and you get 'shot' more. 

 

It's just mind-blowing to see what happens in each encounter and the sad thing is this game being 16 years old and we've become so used of shoddy AI, phantom bullets, vision cones/alert bars and generally dumb AI that's an insult to the word 'intelligence'. 

[Bluebear 336]

Picked it up in the sale, and forgot just how much I missed it; I had a disc copy years and years ago but for ease I bought the full series on steam for pennies in the sale.

Me and a mate were discussing the AI, and we reckon it's due to games no longer being 'corridor' shooters or having non-static or open worlds. It's a lot easier to implement flanking behavior when the world's layout is 'baked in'. It's still absolutely fantastic to see in action, and as @J4MES OX4D mentioned, I've found myself caught out more than once already.

The sound design of the first game especially is still unmatched. Even the SMG feels meaty as hell. Not to mention the sounds for ambience (that disonnant tone and radio static 'marker' sound before/during spooky things STILL gets to me like nothing else).

[Diddums 4,346]

Epic game. It's a bit like STALKER matched with Dead Space, and will fuck with your brain. I could only play shortish sessions at the time because I was a little bitch, maybe I should have a go again. 

[Bluebear 336]

4 hours ago, Diddums said:

Epic game. It's a bit like STALKER matched with Dead Space, and will fuck with your brain. I could only play shortish sessions at the time because I was a little bitch, maybe I should have a go again. 

 

Absolutely give it a go again. The constant tension in it is immense, and I say that not as a fan of horror or scary stuff in general.

[Riff Machine 2,105]

The first game and both expansions were fantastic.  Fear 2 really improved the series overall both in story and presentation.  Gameplay was by far the best in series.  3 was total crap.  I couldn’t stand it at all.  

[phil bottle 9,758]

3 was the only one I've tried on PC and I managed 4 hours before quitting. 

[J4MES OX4D 10,034]

Finished the game in 8 or so hours and it was a remarkable experience! The tension really ramped up after a couple and remained throughout. I didn't find it outright scary but you were always on your toes with the overall atmosphere and not knowing what you were walking into next. There were plenty of challenging combat encounters and I really enjoyed the gunplay and general mechanics.  They really don't make shooters like this any more. If this was a modern game it would be x-ray vision, checkpoints every 30 seconds, enemies with vision bars, grenade indicators, minimap and weapon skins. This is definitely up there with the likes of Half Life 2. 

 

I now have TWO expansions to sift through - not shitty 30 minute DLC's like we see today, these are proper expansions old-school that you used to get on separate discs! I'm still in two minds about getting F.E.A.R 2 as I've heard it's nowhere near as good or unique. 

[Riff Machine 2,105]

I honestly liked 2 a tad more then the first.  Everything felt more refined and they really improved the graphics and sound.  It still had those jump scares and freaky moments throughout but the first one had a much spookier atmosphere.

[J4MES OX4D 10,034]

Been playing the Extraction Point expansion last couple of days and just finished it in slightly over 4 hours which is about half the length of the main game. It was an absolutely amazing experience and way more tense and terrifying than the base game. The levels were more varied too and there's even a subway one with echoes to the original Max Payne.

 

These days were usually getting shitty DLC consisting of bonus missions and crappy cosmetics to extort more money from the user at launch. Back then there were proper post-release content made from the ground p to compliment the base game and Extraction Point is no exception as an excellent addition. 

 

I will try the final Perseus Mandate in the next few days to round off the whole package.