Gaming by Miksa

There are several games I can mention that managed to scare the living hell out of me. One of those games was F.E.A.R. a tactical first person shooter by Monolith. Many players might remember FEAR as one of the first titles (after Max Payne) that utilized the use of the slow-motion trigger which obscured the movement of your enemies, while letting you move faster and go on a sudden killing spree.

I for one, remember FEAR best by it's scary set pieces that were implemented in half deserted locations, best represented by menacing half open doors, broken windows, blinking lights and loud footsteps. That is of course, if I exclude the encounters with that little girl named Alma (obviously inspired by the same little protagonist from the "The Ring"). Unlike her big screen counter-part, Alma had this nasty habit of being a psychic experiment gone wrong that controlled a psychic army of psychic clones and used the best of her abilities to screw the player around (literally). Part of her daily harassment policy consisted of sudden burst of objects in the near vicinity of the player - partially demonstrating the excellent physics engine of the game and partially making you painfully aware that you will not leave through another heart attack.

The story in a nutshell was the typical "revenge of the enraged experiment" which we have seen so many times before, though there was this sudden twist involving the connection of the main protagonist with Alma that kept things at least a bit unfamiliar in the end. What made the game so unique and interesting was the winning combination of subtle horror atmosphere and intense action (against the rather unusually cleaver AI), presented through shining new engine and menacing sound effects.

The game wasn't without flaws of course. While the levels felt as claustrophobic and derailed as possible, the pacing seemed to vary greatly from one mission to the next. This was bound the lost sense of progression, a fact backed up by the the small variety of enemies. Also, after some time spent on the main campaign, you could anticipate when a scary piece was about to be unveiled, usually by the sudden "mute" from the environment and the shortage of spawning enemies. This was a big minus since, as a game that pictured itself as a "horror oriented," knowing when you will get scared isn't the best selling point. However my biggest complaint was tied to the representation of the main character - the voiceless Point Man. While it is OK to have a mute character in a FPS (Half Life proved that several times over) there must be at least some level of interaction with the supporting cast in order for some identification to be established. FEAR seemed to neglect all that by throwing in the "hey buddy" phrase in a mission briefing, which sounded pretty cheap and also made me feel like some scrub being instructed in Boot Camp.

Several years later and couple of name changes (along with a courtroom drama between Sierra, Monolith and Warner Brothers) F.E.A.R.2: Project Origin finally resurfaced, restarting the previously established plot  in Extraction Point and Perseus Mandate, the two expansions for F.E.A.R 1. In their defense, Monolith developers claimed that Project Origin is the original direction which they wanted F.E.A.R. to be taking in the first place.


Following the catastrophic ending of the first game, where Point Man witnessed the "boom" of a tactical nuke in front of his helmeted eyes, the sequel kicks in with a new protagonist named Michael Becket. The unfortunate champ is a member of an armed organisation that is tasked to take into custody elite members of the Armacham Corporation, previously known as the bastards who enraged Alma and created all those Replica clones from F.E.A.R. 1. Of course, things go bonkers quickly as Armacham mercs swarm the place in order to erase evidence, while Alma (all grown up now) is ready to share her love with the world.

Through the course of the game Becket will sometimes join arms with members of his scattered team.  Unfortunately these segments are heavily scripted and are usually boiled down to achieving simplistic objectives which don't really add up anything new to the overall experience. What is worse, each members gets mowed down by Alma in the same way, which makes you ache for a chance to yell at your comrade who "just happen to see a young girl that needs help."

The story takes you on a trip around the ruined city in search for a way to disarm the psychic powers of the ever present Alma, while dealing with all manners of old and new types of enemies. The main storyline is composed of several sections which takes place in ruined buildings, underground laboratory, an abandoned primary school, a hospital, a city subway and an old nuclear reactor. Each location is nicely varied and depicts the dull and claustrophobic atmosphere of the first game. However, the horror elements have been dumbed down significantly, especially by adding ghosts and other superficial beings that act more like aggressive shooting targets than a scary set-piece. Even slammed doors and weird echoes of the ventilation system are not what they used to be. Every now and then, Alma appears and tries to bite you, kiss you or whatever, and you have to push her back by using the left mouse button. Rather unusual and  tiresome way which showcases the developers lack of ideas for new horror elements.

The firefights are still a blast though. Becket gets to try the enhanced reflex system (or what we normal people call "the slow motion") for himself, again turning action into a slow-mo massacre. Hence, the weapons feel a bit overpowered, but handle great and it's a thrill to just keep the trigger squeezed and watch those rag dolls dance on the sweet sound of bullets... yaargh!!!


Apart from several new weapons (like the laser canon and that experimental-sniper...err, thingy) the biggest addition to the firing arsenal comes in the form of Armored Suit - pansy name for a mech. Though only available on two occasions, the Armored Suit will turn regular action into pure destruction-fest, since you will be practically invincible and able to fire rockets and use 55 mm cannons to erase enemies from existence.

The major flaw of F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin is it's lack of innovation. Apart from the mech battles, several unique enemy types and few "cover" additions (the ability to push objects for cover), the game doesn't exceed it's predecessor in any way. I can even go and say it went several steps backwards in terms of pure enjoyment. First, there's the scattered key logs that are as old as Doom 3's PDA notes. I have no problem with reading texts that complement what I was doing in the first place, but putting distracting notes of irrelevant information isn't just bad practice - it's flow breaking. This becomes painfully obvious if you try and ignore the lot of them, only to find out that one particular information is mandatory for the progress on that particular level.


The game also suffers from severe repetition since all you ever do is shoot, shoot some more, find a body armor or med kit, and occasionally throw a grenade to spice things up a bit. Oh, sure, you will be able to experiment with the slow-mo mechanics but it all goes down pretty fast so you won't even bother to improvise.

In terms of visual presentation, Project Origin certainly delivers, though the "WOW" factor of the original is certainly gone. The locations are littered with details that shine out with the help of the superb lightning and shadow effects. NPC and enemy models look sharp and detailed, though their animation might seem a bit too "realistic" at times, especially in an explosive scenario which will negate the effect in your eyes.

When it comes to creating atmosphere, the sound effects in Project Origin are up to the task though, they sometimes miss the real chance to scare your guts due to distractions in form of those god damned enemies. Still, expect a healthy dosage of creepy sounds and voices that will make you question your sanity and decision to play further (at least from time to time).

Overall, F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin may fell like a letdown when compared to the highly appraised original. But I must confess that though I might have felt bored and "sane", there's something more to the game that will drive you to finish it in the end. Sure the story and horror elements have been dumbed down, and the firefights could be compared to any recent game with slow-motion mechanics, but combining those pieces into F.E.A.R experience, and you might get some fun after all.