F.E.A.R. 2 Project Origin
Monolith Productions
Warner Home Video Games
FPS Horror
PC, Xbox 360 & PS3
10 February 2009



I am going to start this review with a quick reference to a Xbox 360 Dashboard capability: Demo and Downloads. Reason being, is because it would have taken me much longer to pick up this great game, if I hadn’t played the demo. The ability to download and play F.E.A.R. 2’s demo convinced me to not only acquire F.E.A.R. 2, but also to go out of my way to find the ’06 release of the original F.E.A.R.: First Encounter Action Recon and F.E.A.R. FILES. I highly recommend playing F.E.A.R. if you want the full experience of F.E.A.R. 2. The references, alone, from F.E.A.R. make F.E.A.R. 2’s storyline all that more profound, although F.E.A.R. 2 is easily an enjoyable game all by itself.

Now that I have gotten that out of the way, I bring you a review of, truly, one of the scariest video games I have ever played.


In F.E.A.R. 2 you take the POV of Delta operative, Michael Becket, starting along the timeline 30 minutes prior to the end of F.E.A.R.. Becket is quite literally the best of the best, his reflexes are actually so high that he caught the attention of Armacham Technology Corporation’s “Project Harbinger”. After being knocked unconscious, Becket awakens to a team of surgeons operating on himself, and soon after, discovers the fate of his other teammates. While fighting your (Beckett’s) way out of the hospital you find that you have increased reaction speed and a friend with an eye in the sky named “Snakefist”. At this point the game opens back up to the governmental conspiracy game that F.E.A.R. was. You now have to find and destroy Alma, a telekinesis inclined individual, who is attracted to your brain wave pattern and wants to absorb you, which will indefinitely kill you. The game play really picks up from here. Using the enhanced reaction speed (slow-mo), coupled with the new ability to aim with weapons irons sights, you are able to surgically cut down each of your enemies with super-human accuracy and efficiency. The other added feature that really gives you the edge, especially when you are being swarmed by Replica forces, is the ability to flip and take cover behind certain objects; i.e. tables, gurneys, couches, etcetera. While being guided through an underground top secret hospital, the ruined city above and ATC Facilities, by Snakefist and your team, you will have ample amount of time to fine tune your skills and tactics on many enemy forces.


The graphics have gone under a massive redux. If you did not play F.E.A.R. you will not notice the difference but you will definitely notice the quality. The Jupiter EX engine and crisp graphics, really bring out the detail in every surface in the game. Additionally, this is where 5.1 Dolby Digital or a really good pair of headphones come in to play. The radio chatter of replicas, scurrying of rodents and the resonance of paranormal activities will make your skin crawl with anticipation. These refined aspects of the game make it all the more easy to believe you are actually, Beckett, traversing the horror house-like environment of F.E.A.R. 2.


Some argue that the changes done to the controls were made to “dumb it down” for console gamers. The same critics also stated that the levels become repetitive or predictable and that the game is set up to have a “vehicle segment” or a “sniper segment”, etcetera. What other games does this sound like? How about, all the CODs, GRAWs, Halos and on and on. My point is that any FPSs could be criticized in this manor, some more than others. I promise you, that even though F.E.A.R. 2 may not be the best FPS, out of the previously mentioned, it most definitely is not the worst. All and all, F.E.A.R. 2 is a well rounded game. It has more than enough action for FPS veterans, scare tactic for horror fans, and storyline for gamers who want to justify all the blood they are shedding.


I give F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin, 4 out of 5 Almas