F.E.A.R. Online Website Reveals New Details

Andy Chalk

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F.E.A.R. Online Website Reveals New Details

F.E.A.R. Online, the free-to-play multiplayer shooter, will actually be a F.E.A.R.-free experience.

F.E.A.R. Online was announced back in July [http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/126326-F-E-A-R-Online-Offers-Free-To-Play-Horror] and quickly led to questions about how a free-to-play online shooter could capture the tension and moments of outright horror that made the original F.E.A.R. so good. With the F.E.A.R. Online website now fully live, it appears that the answer is quite simply, "It won't." There will be low lights and "grotesque monsters" and probably a quick cinematic here and there, but the focus on multiplayer action means that the opportunity (if you want to call it that) to slowly creep down a blackened hall with nothing to back you up but a faint hope that Alma isn't standing behind you is pretty much out the window.

Speaking of out the window, F.E.A.R. Online will also be entirely lacking in F.E.A.R. - as in First Encounter Assault Recon, the elite military unit that gave the franchise its title. It's not entirely surprising - F.E.A.R. 2 was about a Delta team and F.E.A.R. 3 was all Point Man/Paxton Fettel - but neither would it be unreasonable to assume that you would play as a F.E.A.R. operative in a game called F.E.A.R. Online.

But no! The competing factions in the game are ATC Security, which has morphed from a gang of high-priced rent-a-cops to an "elite black ops team," and an unnamed "new military tactical unit comprised of soldiers with psionic abilities." The new guys are here to acquire Armacham's secrets while the ATC goon squad wants to cover it all up, and of course both teams will have to deal with all the paranormal monstrosities turned loose by the recent unpleasantness.

It doesn't really sound very F.E.A.R.-like, but hey, F.E.A.R. hasn't been F.E.A.R. since fearonline.aeriagames.com [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-QfrYhn2gQ].


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Owyn_Merrilin

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To be fair, it sounds more F.E.A.R.-like than F.E.A.R.'s own multiplayer was. That was just running around the levels and using the weapons from the game on other people, no ghostly apparitions or anything. The creepy sound effects were still in place, but that was about it. The lighting was even a little bit brighter than the main game, if I remember correctly.

Still an odd choice for the franchise, but then, it's officially a zombie series that is not longer developed by the people or the company that came up with it.
 

SilkySkyKitten

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Ehh, doesn't surprise me at all really. Fff-three-aarrr (err, excuse me, F.3.A.R., or F.E.A.R. 3) felt nothing like a proper F.E.A.R. game and felt more like a CoD-expansion with F.E.A.R. elements thrown into it, so seeing this new game in the franchise continue this trend of not being like the previous games at all isn't surprising in the least.

It sucks, since I adored the first two F.E.A.R. games, but oh well...
 

K.ur

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I like the approach, that while you try to kill the enemy, the world tries to kill you both.
 

Sniper Team 4

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Based solely on that trailer, I think that game looks pretty close to a good F.E.A.R game. Dark corridors, Alma lurking around, crazy stuff going on with the camera, monsters...it looks more like a F.E.A.R game than 3's trailers did. But then the moment multiplayer is thrown into all of that, it gets completely screwed up. Too busy running and shooting and trying to kill the other people to notice anything about the atmosphere.

And it's a shame too. I just recently replayed the first game and holy crap is it light years ahead of its sequels in terms of tension and atmosphere. There's also a HUGE amount of lore left to explore in the universe (at least to me there is) and plenty they could do to make another game in the series. Too bad they have decided to go with a multiplayer game, as I would really like an official sequel. I still have so many questions about characters...
 

The Rogue Wolf

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Andy Chalk said:
....but hey, F.E.A.R. hasn't been F.E.A.R. since F.E.A.R. [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1-QfrYhn2gQ]
Yeah, I hear.

The thing is, the first FEAR game at least tried to maintain some semblance of tension. It really did have a few almost-genius points where either Alma, Fettel or some grotesque imitation of life would surprise you, and didn't overdo it (too much) on the scares. Unfortunately, FEAR 2 drove the formula into the ground, and FEAR 3 ran over it with its Jeep until the formula looked like pudding; each game really had only one area where tension and suspense even seemed to be part of the design intention (the school for FEAR 2; the supermarket for FEAR 3).

As for this outing... well, it does seem mildly interesting, what's basically a team deathmatch with some hostile critters that are a threat to both sides roaming about. But I sincerely doubt there'll be any real, well, fear to be had.