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F.E.A.R. First Encounter Assault Recon | 
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| From: Sierra
Category: Video Games
List Price: $29.99
Buy Used: $10.99
You Save: $19.00 (63%)
New (8) Used (21) from $10.99
Rating:  64 reviews
Sales Rank: 1311
Platform: Xbox 360
Genre: Shooter Action Games
ESRB: Mature
Media: Video Game
Edition: Standard
Autographed: No
Memorabilia: No
Batteries Included: No
Age: 17 - 20 years
Operating System: Xbox 360
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 0.1 x 0.1 x 0
MPN: 72583
Model: 72583
UPC: 020626725835
EAN: 0020626725835
ASIN: B000HKGIOA
Release Date: October 31, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: 100% GUARANTEED! Fast shipping on more than 1,000,000 Book, Video, Video Game & Music titles all in one location! Discover Your Entertainment at goHastings.
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| Features:
| • | Face squads of tactical teams using coordinated attacks and flanking maneuvers to pin you down and take you out | | • | Take out high-tech assassins who cling to walls and ceilings and ambush you from the shadows | | • | Employ high tech firearms and classified weaponry such as the corkscrew missile launcher, rapid-fire battle cannon & sub-nuclear blaster | | • | Spectacular Situations - Experience a catastrophic helicopter crash entirely in-game and then fight off waves of enemy special forces; ride shotgun in a high speed car chase, pursued by assassins on motorcycles and enemy attack helicopters | | • | Features for Xbox 360 include - Instant Action Mode, ranking the top F.E.A.R. players; New explosive and deadly weapons for Xbox 360; Exclusive missions |
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
In F.E.A.R. you aren't a soldier -- you are a weapon. A paramilitary force infiltrates a multi billion dollar aerospace compound taking hostages, but issuing no demands. The government responds by sending in its best special operations teams, only to have them obliterated. Live footage of the massacre is cut short by an unexpected wave of destruction that leaves military leaders stunned and in disbelief. With no other option, they send in the ultimate warrior: You.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 59 more reviews...
Playing through the nightmare January 6, 2009
Horror is in many ways along the same paths as comedy which can create terror or laughter when they can but certain people will be immune to it, the difference between blood and guts to subtlety, or in other words, a fart joke to satire. So along with books and movies, gaming can also create a horror atmosphere but whether or not it succeeds really depends on how well they pull it off and whether or not you're into that kind of thing. F.E.A.R (First Encounter Assault Recon) is one of the more well-known games in the horror field so with the sequel coming up really soon, I thought I'd check it out and my general feeling is not one of disappointment or amazement but somewhere in the middle: the gunfights and horror elements work well but then they just didn't get to me either the other times.
Story: You play as the "Point Man" a special operative in the F.E.A.R who's job it is to terminate one Paxton Fettel, who's taking control of enhanced soldiers via psychic abilities and taking control of a government building. You're sent in to deal with this threat but something's aren't what they seem: visions fade in and out, sounds are heard with nothing around and a strange apparition of a young red-dressed girl keeps showing herself to her. Her identity, as well as yours, is the basic for the game.
The problem is...I didn't really care. I mean the whole story about Alma is interesting but the problem is that it's very easy to get lost in the narrative even though it's a pretty simple tale. Unlike the Half-Life 2 games where characters spoke in cutscene directly in front of you and even optional subtitles can be called in, Fear on the other hand has a really small window on the top left for who's talking where I literally had to lean in close and squint just to make out the names (even though your health and ammo counters are pretty fat numbers). It's a really immersive environment and the atmosphere is quite tangible like any good horror story but it's the actual narrative that is either uninvolving or just hard to figure out.
Graphics: Originally released for the PC, Fear makes it way onto the Xbox 360 and its apparently inferior port onto the PS3 (like the Orange Box it seems) and graphically it's hit-or-miss. Facial animation is quite good and the lighting is very convincing in mood and seeing ripples and bullet trails in slow motion is awesome however the repetitive level design and same-y looking rooms and corridors kind of drag this down. Where the experience really goes into the cool zone is the weird visual tricks the game employs to mess with you which range from split-second frame inserts to vanishing people to temporary location moving (one time I went from a corridor/room to a long hallway with blood on the ceiling and back and again...don't know what the hell that was about but sweet!). It does get a bit old seeing another "did I just see...?" image but by that point, you've been playing for so long, you buy into it. Slowdown is apparently in some cases but it's usually for the big fights anyway.
Sound/Music: Sound design is quite stellar from the gunfire blasts to the weird ambience of the locales to the bizarre encounters, everything is delivered well. Like most horror, well...GOOD horror anyway, they knew when to use sound effectively whereas most directors have to shock you by turning up the sound really, really loud for 2 seconds, Fear likes to play tricks on you: silence and something's coming right? Well not always. Sometimes cues come up for you to get ready only there's nothing, turn than BAM! Voice acting for the most part is good but again, the characters aren't really that engaging so it's a case where I didn't mind the voices themselves, just who the voice was attached to.
Gameplay: For the most part, Fear plays like a typical shooter: guns with up to 3 available at a time, grenades which range from remote controlled to proximity to simple frag and melee attacks. The big selling point is the idea of using your superhuman reflexes and slowing down time to mow down enemies which strange as it sounds, is awesome yet weirdly out-of-place in a horror game. It's like John Woo's Hard Boiled by way of Ju-On or the Ring and while in firefights, it's incredibly useful (not to mention smirk inducing) its implementation into a horror game works well enough but then you wonder: shouldn't the game be more terrifying if I can't knock my enemies senseless? Oh and one issue: on the D-pad, left and right are used as a kind of tilt to basically see around edges without having to physically move however the flashlight is your down and in many cases I'd try to tilt only to have my flashlight turn on at the same time and the AI is so good, they'll point out your flashlight and you're going "aw hell" and forgo your plans for stealth and just Rambo the buggers.
The game isn't necessarily difficult and the times I died were really my fault since I'd rush in or wouldn't plan things out but then on occasion, there'd be an absolute moronic move on part of the developers that got my blood boiling. Example: one mission I won by the skin of my teeth with barely any health left (if you go below 25, you regenerate to that point, the rest is up to you with scattered med kits and body armor) and was airlifted by helicopter. Only here's the stupid part: they didn't bring me back to full health. I mean, this is my squad, my brothers in arms and they can't even bring me to full 100%? So when I landed, we were ambushed, 2 guys came out and shot me to death and going into slow-mo didn't help because there was 3-4 others on the roof anyway. Like what the hell?
F.E.A.R is the kind of horror game where it's a cool experience when the game tries to completely mess with you but then when it goes into shooter mode, it feels a bit...stock, a bit too "I've seen this before". At least Monolith's own Condemned games changed FPS playing a bit but this just feels like everything else I played, only without the creepy girl. It's well worth a go but I wouldn't call it flawless either.
 Great game December 1, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
My brother recommended that I try this game out as I was looking for a game that would scare me. I must admit it did just that. It was fun to play and very creepy. I can't wait until February!!
F.E.A.R. November 17, 2008
Great first person shooter. Played through it a little to quick.
Will start it again at the highest level. Great graphics.
Great game, needs more enviornments. September 13, 2008
A great mix of horror and action. The graphics are pretty darn good (the environments are a bit repetitive) but the AI is where the game is great. The enemies wont run around like idiots, they'll dive, slide roll, jump through windows, take cover ,whatever it takes to kill you. The game hits some light creepy moments, but then there's plenty that make you jump. You'll think the game is letting up and next thing you know you're in a hallway knee deep in blood. The guns may seem standard from a screenshot glance but honestly they're cool, few shooters actually make a gun feel like one, this defiantly does it. A must play.
 Long and repetitive September 4, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I know this is an old game so it isn't fair to compare to today's standards, but here are the high(low)lights:
-Weapons feel powerful especially the shotgun
-slow motion effect
-very long, I'm at level 8 and I finally gave up playing because I have a short attention span
-levels are very dull and similar as are the enemies
-graphics are okay for older game
-a little creepy, but it's mainly a typical fps
It starts off slow, then you get better weapons and you start having fun, then you keep doing the same thing over and over until you hope that it ends.
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