« Fallout 3 | Home | Ghostbusters: The Game »
FEAR 2 : Project Origin
March 31, 2009
Back in 2005, FEAR was rightly seen as a new standard in the horror game genre and gained rave reviews from all corners of the gaming industry. Four years on can FEAR 2 : Project Origin match, or possibly better its predecessor?
With the recent release of Resident Evil 5, it is going to be difficult for FEAR 2 : Project Origin to find itself selling as well as perhaps it would do with a slightly more considered release date, however the game does offer enough to players - both new and fans of the genre - to ensure it is a game worth playing at least once.
However, playing once is what many will find themselves doing and sadly those that do will be the fans of this specific game type, storyline and overall format. Where the original FEAR was eerie, full of suspense and riveting, FEAR 2 : Project Origin fails to follow suit. Instead the game offers what can only be described as steady paced action which rarely surprises you, and is interrupted occasionally by apparently random cut-scenes which seem to mean absolutely nothing to your current circumstances, or each other for that matter.
Don’t get me wrong, FEAR 2 : Project Origin looks fantastic graphically, and the sound that accompanies the game is not bad by any means. It is very possible that the huge success of the original FEAR title was simply too much to be lived up to, particularly with other arguably more anticipated horror titles being released around the same time as I’ve already mentioned.
The now iconic figure of a slim, pale young girl with long dark greasy hair as seen in FEAR and of course The Ring films is back once again, but the character, known in FEAR as Alma, is very rarely referenced to in FEAR 2 : Project Origin and acts more as a game cover than anything else which is a shame. It’s certainly a creepy image, and after delving into the abuse Alma suffered in FEAR, I had expected this to go further still in FEAR 2 but instead it is barely scraped upon.
The game itself begins in a similar way to FEAR, with a bang, and in the shoes of Delta Force’ Michael Becket you and your squad you are tasked with tracking down and capturing the president of Armacham Technology Corp, Genevieve Aristide. Revealing more of the storyline would spoil it, but as you do progress through the game there is far less mystery to unravel than you would expect, and may find yourself feeling disappointed to say the least.
The combat within FEAR 2 : Project Origin is one of the all too few plus points about the game. Shootouts take place in slow motion which can make for some great, highly gory frenzies once you have mastered the controls. Another plus would be the cut scenes, despite the fact that they seem to follow no plotline as such and appear completely unrelated to one another – they remain very creepy, and do a better job of getting your nerves jangling than any other part of the game.
Overall the single player campaign is playable to a degree, but will not by any means get your blood pumping like many better horror shooter titles will, but after the original FEAR title left all that experienced it gripped throughout, and having the odd nightmare or two – FEAR 2 : Project Origin ultimately feels like a let down.
The multiplayer modes offered in the game also feel like they have just been thrown in because we have come to expect some kind of multiplayer game options nowadays. They are right, we do expect them, but they need to be of a much higher standard than what FEAR 2 : Project Origin has to offer, they give you very little extra, and do nothing at all to increase the game’s replayability factor.
If you want a new horror game, this probably is not the one for you – I suggest you feast your eyes on Resident Evil 5 instead.
Topics: General |