F.E.A.R review
F.E.A.R is not really a new game but I did manage to finish it recently, so I’m just writing down my opinions of it.
Graphics (8/10):
The graphics of this game is really nice! It makes extensive use of vertex and pixel shades (which I love!) and alot of the effects are really well executed, for example, the SlowMo feature looks nice. I’m not sure the graphics compares with newer games like Unreal 3 engine games, but I wouldn’t know since all I have to go from is screens from Gears of War (*drool*). Even though the graphics are nice in this game, I was dissapointed to find that it was heavy, even for my Dell m1710. 2ghz, 2gb ram and 512mb 7900 gtx. IMO it should be able to do it better, compared with the ease of which this laptop churns unreal 2, Source and doom 3 engine games.
Sound (8/10):
My sound equipment is not really that good 
, but I will however notice that the only thing I disliked about the sound is some of the ambient sound has a funny choppy sound to it, I thought it was an error to begin with but, it’s just some sound for electrical disturbances or something. The weapons are quite satisfying though! Lastly, you get to listen to answering machines through the game, the volume of these were quite low in my opinion (compared to other sounds), tweaking the speech didn’t seem to help much.
Gameplay(6.5/10):
This is where I have to knock this game down a notch. In the beginning of the game you get a kick out of using the SlowMo feature and the small “scary” scenes and situations are refreshing and quite nice. But the magic disappears when the game progresses further. The problem is simply, It’s all been done before, and better :/. Halfway through the game I was getting sick and tired of the “Blocked Door, find nearby ventilator shaft” syndrome, but it reappeared over and over. The fights were spiced a little with a few extra weapons, but the lack of diversity in the adversaries kinda turned me off. Some of the enemies were just down right annoying (I’m looking at you laser triangle fuckers). All the while through the game, the mystic part of random flashes are building up some exitement for the end of the game, and I must admit that I was sorely dissapointed by the actual story behind it all. (And the last “fight” in the game really, reaaally sucked imo).
Conclusion:
I guess I was entertained for a while, but after the 5 hours were over I was left with a feeling that, like doom3, it was alot of rinse and repeat, with a promising but in the end lacking storyline and besides some really nice eyecandy, cool firefights and a bigass explosion, this game is a pretty standard FPS.
, maybe Aalborg Uni will pay it if I go for the Game Developer specialization. Xbox360 will also have HD video download of my favorite TV-shows I hope. Combine that with the this AWESOME looking game and a couple of other interesting games, and they might just be in for a new customer. (Even though all my money this season goes to Wii and the Wiim0te).