That little bitch Alma is at it again. F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin takes place 30 minutes prior to the large atomic explosion at the end of the original game. You play as Michael Becket (who has no affiliation with the Point Man from the first game..who died..yes he died..DEAD..spoiler..sorry.) Becket is a Delta Force operator whose part of a squad that is sent to find Genevieve Aristide and put her under arrest. You may know her as the woman who started all of this. Aristide thought it would have been a good idea to restart the ORIGIN project, using the Point Man as her prototype (which details the entire first game). The game begins with Becket having a hallucinations of Alma in the ruins of the destroyed city, being lead to the swing set that plays a constant role in this game, all the while she is transforming between her younger form and older form. He awakens in the APC where he is debriefed about the Aristide mission. Before they can even reach Aristide though, Beckett and his squad are attacked by Armacham Technology Corporation Black Ops. You of course as Becket must handle the Black Ops and reach Aristide first, but before you are able to take her into Custody, the explosion from the first game comes crashing down on your character, leaving him unconscious. This is where the second game begins. Becket and his squad are taken to Auburn Memorial Hospital, where he is operated on (and has a nightmarish hallucination of Alma doing the same operation on him) to become more like the Point Man. Introducing the same SlowMo effects that were present in the previous title.
Gameplay:
F.E.A.R. 2 is true to the previous titles. You get the SlowMo effect, the smart A.I., the frightening Alma always hidden just in the corner of your eyes, as well as a few great add-ons. Since this is an FPS, let’s talk about gunplay first. Guns have been amplified in a few ways and deprived in other ways. For example, the new start up pistol is much weaker compared to the previous title’s version. You can no longer dual wield two pistols at the same time either. The new sub-machinegun is the default for this game, and for a good reason. Aiming is now centered on the screen with a lovely red-dot viewer (similar to the award winning Call of Duty 4) that makes targeting a breeze. Weapons like the combat shotgun, rifle, sniper, rocket launcher, are all similar to the previous titles, yet a favorite gun of mine, referred previously to as the nailgun (or railgun) has been renamed the Hammerhead and with that change seems to have affected it’s power. Gone are the days were you could rush a room full of Replica soldiers and leave them all completely nailed to the walls. It’s nice seeing the new spikes jutting out of an enemy’s helmet as they try to continue aiming only to have another blast against their face..but I enjoyed plastering the walls with ragdolls.
Level Design falls under the same linear p ath. Walk into a room, see Alma, shoot some soldiers, pick up ammo, repeat. It’s not a broken system so why fix it right? The hospital, the subway and the school all seem a bit familiar if you played the first title (and thankfully aren’t office buildings..) Once you reach the sections outside you get to experience a new part of the series..MECH BATTLES! Yep, while in the first title you would only see the smaller Mechs as hard enemies to challenge, in this game you get to pilot one of the larger machines. Destroying Replica soldiers here and there and facing off against other large Mechs. It’s a nice refreshment from the constant room hopping and simple puzzles. In addition, Becket will mount the APC turret a few times including a long section toward the end that becomes intense. They never feel like a complete alternative to the game like some turret scenes are and don’t last long enough to be a bother.
Moving on to enemies, you have the basic Black Ops from the start, the Replica Soldiers, the new spookier nightmares (they have amazing lighting effects and just looks realistic), these crawling creatures similar to the ones found in Uncharted Drake’s Fortune (also a great game), and the new [insert name of screaming creature] that revives dead Replica Soldiers (a key hint that one is around) and has tons of health. Alma even joins in from time to time to time to attack Becket, leading to a button mashing section until she’s shoved away.
Horror, horror, horror is the name of the game (literally.) There are moments in this game where the lights begin to flicker, leaving you in total darkness at times and you aren’t allowed to turn on the flashlight. (Like somehow Becket just..completely forgot how to do it.) During these times, blood begins to cover every inch of your surroundings. Nightmares spawn from walls and Alma comes out to spook you at every turn of these sections. This game was meant to be played with all the lights off and a good pair of headphones.
Controls:
Simple enough. If you're playing this with a mouse and keyboard, then good job! You're playing this game the right way! Playing it with a controller? Well..you'll still enjoy it..I'm not sure how you're doing it exactly but you will. Problem with the mouse though, no side button binding. =/Graphics:
While this game may not break benchmarks like the first game did when it was first released, it still looks amazing. If anything this game is able to look amazing without giving graphical hiccups. Lighting, character designs, level designs..they all look amazing with the right video card. My console friends of course don't have to worry about this..they'll just have lack luster AA support and framerates. :3
Obsession:
From the start of the game, Alma just seems to have this weird love/hate relationship for Becket. At times she’ll attack the delta squad member, while other times she’ll deal with the Replica Soldiers. Often times she’ll even appear as a completely normal (yet still naked) human form. It gets even stranger when you reach the last chapter of the game. Locked in the seat of the psychic amplifier with Alma after the last actions of Genevieve Aristide, Becket is forced to take on a mutated version of his squad member Keegon (screaming “You’ll never have her!” and “Why does she only want you?”)..all the while scenes of Alma in the amplifier seems to be “beating” at Becket. I can’t really say what she was doing and the last scene because it’s just an amazing reason to play the game fully for yourself. (It is ridiculous..)
Spoiler below..you have been warned.
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Rating 5/5
Pros: Great fun. SlowMo effect, fun gunplay, frightening scenes, Mech loving. More Alma goodness and a good story. More enjoyable squad members.
Cons: Weak nailgun =[. No dual pistols. Simple puzzles (Key Card problems..) While you do get a great new middle sight..you can no longer lean around corners even though your enemies can.
