F.E.A.R.2: Project Origin

So, I finally devoted some time to actually finishing F.E.A.R.2 so I could properly write this review, which is a little late thanks to my being in Canberra for the last 4 and a bit days. Now, F.E.A.R.2 took me quite some time to finish, mainly because its atmosphere creeped me right the fuck out, and i took each step carefully; this is a point I'll be touching on later.

F.E.A.R.2: Project Origin is a Horror First Person Shooter, developed by Monolith Studios, as a sequel to F.E.A.R; and is available on PS3, Xbox 360 and PC. Project Origin continues to tell the story surrounding Alma Wade and the secret government projects conducted by Armacham Technology Corporation.

STORY
Project origin puts players in the shoes of Michael Becket, a Delta Force operator; whose team is sent to take Genevieve Arisitide (President of Armacham) into protective custody. After her rescue, Arisitide claims that Becket and his team are the key to stopping the supernatural being known as Alma; whose rage against those who wronged her causes an escalating paranormal crisis that threatens to devour and replace reality with her own.

F.E.A.R.2 has a well written story, that sounds like a classic horror movie about supernatural beings taking revenge on the people that wronged them; and anyone who gets in their way. It shares many horror cliches, such as teams splitting up to investigate strange occurrences; as well as your character being separated from the main group for any number of reasons.
The well written story would receive more praise, if not for the terribly executed development. Most of the story unravels through Intel documents that your character picks up along the way.

That said, it isn't impossible to figure out what's going on without them, although they do help you make sense of the story. Most of the major points come to light near the end, but in perhaps less detail than it needed.
So, great writing, with bad implementation can really bring down the story aspect of a game. Intel items can be nice to elaborate on a story and give players something to hunt for, but they shouldn't be the main medium for telling players the story.

PRESENTATION
Project Origin definitely pulls off its creepy, eery atmosphere well; and it really adds to the players experience of the game. The visuals in-game are quite good-looking, though not as pretty as some games. This doesn't affect my opinion so much though, simply because, although it doesn't have the best graphics, it does have the horrific style necessary to tell the story Monolith were trying to tell.

Blood stained walls, flickering lights, corridors littered with corpses; all features that bring this nightmarish game to life. These images, coupled with some of the scariest ambient music I've heard in any game, really keep the player on edge. I found myself, on more than one occasion, taking corners carefully, so i don't get attacked by some unseen monster.
Theres a lack of actual cut scenes, with Monolith taking what would appear to be the "Halflife" approach; using in-game scripted events, as opposed to cinematics.

The voice acting is of decent quality, and I can't really complain about the dialogue. It may be a bit cliched, but its horror, what can you really expect? I suppose that shouldn't really excuse it, but on the most part, the dialogue warmed me to the characters through their banter with Becket and definitely made them more human to me.

GAMEPLAY
Beneath the scary, gritty exterior of F.E.A.R.2 lies some solid First Person Shooter gameplay; featuring some really cool Melee attacks, as well as a variety of kick-ass weapons; and a somewhat misplaced bullet time mechanic.
First off, Project Origin has a well layed out control scheme; with little to really complain about, even the weapon menu works well, letting you choose any of your four weapons at any given time; at the cost of not being able to pause while you do this.

The melee attacks are somewhat varied when compared to other FPS games, as you can make Becket ram enemies with his gun... or perhaps slide kick into them... or how about a Chuck Norris styled roundhouse kick to the chops?
It's all very cool to do, but loses its newness about half way through the game. Oh well, it was cool for quite a while.

The wide range of weapons available to you include shotguns, assault rifles, SMGs, rocket launchers, lasers and hammerheads (which i like to think of as giant, industrial nailguns). However, some of the horror aspect of a game is lost when you're able to nail your foes to a wall through their skull.

There are a few other gameplay aspects that kind of ruin the horror aspect a bit. The bullet time mechanic is extremely cool to use in a gun fight, especially since you can see the shockwave of explosions, or bullets flying past you.
But when the slo-mo meter is almost always full, you'll find that players use it when startled by the horror aspects of the game; and when the horror aspects are slowed down, it loses alot of the scare in it.

The horror element also decreases when giant Mech suits are introduced into the equation. When you're covered in metal, and able to liquify enemies with your machine guns, you haven't got a whole lot to really F.E.A.R.... see what i did thar? =P
But all in all, it IS fun; and when it comes right down to it, as a game, its main priority is fun.

REPLAYABILITY
Theres not a lot of sense in going over and playing F.E.A.R.2 again, unless you're a trophy/achievement whore, or you want to know all of the story through Intel items; in which case, go right ahead. If you don't plan on doing this, F.E.A.R.2 offers some solid multiplayer for those who feel so inclined. Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch and a Search and Destroy style game are only some of the matches that await you online, in both ranked and unranked modes.
DLC has also been made available, both multiplayer (maps, and Mech Suit modes) and a new campaign, following the story of the original F.E.A.R's antagonist Paxton Fettel.

OVERVIEW
F.E.A.R.2: Project Origin is a fun, atmospheric title, with a well written, albeit poorly executed story, and solid gameplay. If you're looking for a scare, you'll probably find yourself jumping at shadows after playing this one, and if you're in the mood for gore, you should definitely take a quick look.
Unnecessary gameplay features such as Mech suits and bullet time, while fun, do take away from the horror elements in the game, but are fun, so can be overlooked on the most part.
OK, so I'm posting this today, instead of last Sunday, because I was in Canberra for the weekend. I'll be sure to post again this Sunday; probably on something I know quite well, like InFamous, or Modern Warfare 2. Anyway, until then, i won't be sleeping; and I'll see you next time. Oh, and keep reading, sending to friends, sharing on facebook, leaving feedback; ANYTHING to know that some people out there ARE actually reading this.