M. Rephun (c)2008
I’ve often been faced with the accusation that video games are "a waste of time". My response to this is that video games are not a waste of time because they, especially the games that are being developed nowadays, are an art form, and like any art form they demand critical appraisal and analysis by people who can appreciate what they have to offer. Anyway, here it is, my first videogame review. Enjoy!
From its very first moments, when a madman emerges from the shadows to strike you with a piece of plywood, the aptly named F.E.A.R is a game that holds you firmly in its clutches, leaving you terrified to take a step further, yet absolutely compelled to go on, if only to see how the plot will resolve itself.
And what a plot it is. Assuming the role of a nameless, genetically enhanced member of the elite government squad from which the game derives its title, you are dispatched to investigate paranormal occurrences at an abandoned warehouse. Things only become more twisted and disturbing from there, however, as you confront clone soldiers, disappearing ghosts, and most prominently, grotesque nightmare-visions of a ghostly girl with a penchant for vaporizing unsuspecting soldiers and setting things aflame.
The game’s design is brilliantly creepy, with levels that shake the games atmosphere and storyline for every ounce of tension and dread they’re worth. As you go from abandoned offices, to factories, to shadowy warehouses littered with blood-stained corpses, the game never fails to do anything less than chill you to your core.
F.E.A.R has been criticized in some circles for the repetitiveness of its environments, a complaint which has some validity: the endless maze of corridors and dark, haunted office buildings do tend to become a bit bland and tiresome after a spell. But ultimately this is a flaw that can be overlooked, as the game throws enough incredibly inventive surprises your way (ceilings replaced by rivers of blood, and confrontations with the ghost girl Alma) to hold you more or less spellbound the whole way through.
The sound in F.E.A.R is another great contributor to its unique mood of terror and mayhem. The music (when present) is beautiful and haunting, with an almost classical feel to it, and the alien sounds and ghostly noises which permeate the game are remarkably effective at inducing panic, even if they are along the lines of what one would expect in a game of this sort.
The combat system in the game is another aspect worth mentioning, since it contains some very interesting elements. One of these is the ability to temporarily slow down time, in order to more effectively combat one’s enemies. This is a feature that has been used in games in the past (Prince of Persia, God of War, and more recently, Timeshift), but here it works surprisingly well: in addition to making the game slightly easier, the visceral thrill that comes from watching one’s opponents blown to bits by the blast of a shotgun or grenade is truly something to marvel at.
In the end, F.E.A.R is the kind of game you play with the lights off–or on. It doesn’t really matter. Either way, your heart will be pounding, and the ghosts will still be there, lurking in the shadows.
