The Ultimate F.E.A.R. Collection now Available at Direct2Drive: 3 Games-in-1

     

A few days ago, something hit Steam – and that was the entire original F.E.A.R. collection. This consists of F.E.A.R., F.E.A.R.: Extraction Point and F.E.A.R.: Perseus Mandate. All of these bundled cost just $9.99.

F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin and the Reborn DLC are not featured in this pack.

But I’ve learnt that this bundle isn’t exclusive to Steam anymore. You can also now get the  “F.E.A.R. Ultimate Shooter Collection” over at Direct2Drive, for the same price too. The download size is over 16 GBs though.

For the price, it’s worth it just for the first game. The expansions aren’t bad – especially Extraction Point - which was quite good actually. Of course these weren’t developed by Monolith like F.E.A.R., but Timegate Studios, so the storylines encountered in them aren’t canon, but then again, F.3.A.R, coming this year, isn’t being handled by Monolith either.

By the way, when I last played Extraction Point, it requires F.E.A.R. to be installed, but Perseus Mandate is a standalone expansion. Don’t know if this still applies in this pack.

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Source: Direct2Drive

The Ultimate F.E.A.R. Collection now Available at Direct2Drive: 3 Games-in-1

F.E.A.R. 3, AKA F.3.A.R., Officially Announced, Trailer Released

Rumours of the title have been going around for at least a year about this title now, but Warner Bros. has officially announced yet another of the industry’s worst kept secrets: F.E.A.R. 3.

However, Monolith, developer of the previous two games will not be handling this sequel. It will in fact be developed by Day 1 Studios, who had a hand in the console ports of the first game.

John Carpenter and Steve Niles, who worked on The Thing and 30 Days of Night, respectively, will be contributing consultants on the creative side of things on the project, making sure the game is scary enough. Carpenter is handling the cinematic, and Niles on the script. If you want scary, you should give Clive Barker a call sometime.

F.E.A.R. 3 will also feature co-operative play and will get with the times and bring in a proper cover mechanic- something which F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin toyed with a bit. It let you kick over obstacles and hide behind them, but the effectiveness of such an action was nearly zero, seeing as you couldn’t hug the obstacle. Oh damn it, just play Gears of War or something and you’ll get my drift.

Alma makes a return in this title, as does Paxton Fettel and Point Man, her sons from the first game, one of which was the antagonist and the other the protagonist, respectively. There is speculation that the two will be on the same side this time, evident in the trailer below, and even play a part in the co-operative mode, with play differing depending on which character you choose. They also sat that Point Man will again be the playable character this time.

As for characters from the second game like Michael Becket and his baby whom he shares with Alma, will have to be seen or heard about at a later date.

Apparently the logo is still F.3.A.R., but it’s pronounced the other F.E.A.R. 3. I say turn the 3 around so it looks more like an E. Confirmation on the alleged Project Hades subtitle remains, but it might not be a subtitle – just a project in the game like Project Icarus, Origin, and Perseus.

The game is set for a release in “Fall” this year, which for us in the southern hemisphere probably means Q3, 2010. F.E.A.R. 3 will be available for PC, PS3, and Xbox 360.

Oh, I just remembered that a live-action announcement trailer with a smattering of gameplay footage has been released as well.

Watch the trailer and you’ll see Alma screaming in the hospital while giving birth to Michael’s Becket’s baby, which was conceived after she raped him at the end of F.E.A.R. 2, and this is followed by the creepy narration by Paxton Fettel who sounds quite cheery about the whole situation, as he teams up with Point Man to off some soldiers.

The end of the trailer has the phrase:

“BLOOD RUNS DEEP,

F.E.A.R. RUNS DEEPER.”

Perhaps it could be argued that this is a reference to either blood as in family, which it likely is, but I find it quite ambiguous in that it could also refer to another series of Monolith’s, called Blood, which only received two games, whereas F.E.A.R. has three. Just a thought.

Despite a change of developer, this might well be the return of the goodness that we saw in the first game. A surprising amount of people thought that the expansions and the sequel, F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin, were lacklustre additions to the series.

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Source: whatisfear.com – Joystiq – IGN [Trailer]

F.E.A.R. 3, AKA F.3.A.R., Officially Announced, Trailer Released

F.E.A.R. 3 now Known as F.3.A.R., Reveal Coming Soon [News]

Rumours have been going around for a year or more about a possible sequel to F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin, which will no doubt be F.E.A.R. 3.

In some Spanish magazine lately, there was a page that appeared to advertise a reveal of one “F.3.A.R.” in its next issue. NeoGAF forum members eyed it, and the rest is history.

But have a look at the image above. The guy on the right is Paxton, with a bullet in his head from the first game, when Point Man shot him. He looks like Randy Orton. Alma is in the middle with the baby conceived after screwing Michael Becket in the second game. And the guy on the left is probably Point Man – without the balaclava, I’m guessing. You can tell they’re all related. Great artwork though, by the way.

They say Pointy’s on the baddie’s side this time. So, I don’t know who the protagonist[s] will be. Probably other F.E.A.R. operatives or something.

That’s the second game so far in recent memory that’s incorporated numbers into a game’s name, making it border on l33t speak. The other is Thi4f, or Thief 4. And you don’t have to be a super replica soldier to figure out that people aren’t liking it one bit.

Of course, there are others, like Driv3r, Wip3out, and Left 4 Dead.

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Sources:

F3AR revealed.Yes, it's named F3AR, so original. [NeoGAF]

F.3.A.R.: They're Really Calling It That? [Kotaku]

F.E.A.R. 3 now Known as F.3.A.R., Reveal Coming Soon [News]

Possible F.E.A.R. 3 Promotion Filmed

There have been rumours going around about F.E.A.R. 3 for a long time now, almost since the release of F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin. The ending certainly made it look as though there would be a sequel.

It’s been discovered that there was a casting call for a live action web promo for F.E.A.R. 3., to be directed by Marcus Nispel. Nispel was behind the Friday the 13th and Texas Chainsaw Massacre film remakes, which bombed by the way.

According to VG247, Paxton Fettel, who was supposedly killed in the first game, will be making a hell of a comeback, after being “reborn” in the F.E.A.R. 2: Reborn DLC, and is reportedly going to be the narrator for this web promo. They say he’s looking forward to the birth of Alma’s third son (the father was Michael Beckett, the player character from the second game). Fettel is the second child of Alma, and the first game’s player character, known only as Point Man, is the first. Point Man is said to make a return as well, this time on the side of Alma instead of against her.

The whole (dysfunctional) family’s here.

A while back it was revealed that F.E.A.R. 3 may possibly have the subtitle of “Project Hades”.

Some people aren’t looking forward to another F.E.A.R. title seeing as F.E.A.R. 2 got mixed reactions (it wasn’t that bad). Some didn’t even like F.E.A.R., the first game. I liked them, especially the first. Even the expansions had their moments.

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Source: VG247

Possible F.E.A.R. 3 Promotion Filmed

Rumour: F.E.A.R. 3: Project Hades Possibly Revealed

It seems there’s more on the trail of blood as concerns F.E.A.R.3.

It was initially spotted by Mountain Dew…whoops, I mean Superannuation, like a lot of things, on a CV belonging to one Joel Cueller, an ex-Monolith artist: the title of “Project Hades”.

People have immediately assumed that the name is the subtitle of F.E.A.R. 3. Seeing as it’s in development at Monolith, and that the previous title in the series, F.E.A.R.2 had the subtitle of “Project Origin”, which was originally the actual title (complicated stuff, don’t ask), it’s not hard to see why.

Cueller also worked on F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin and its DLC packs while still at Monolith.

In the F.E.A.R. universe, there are a lot of Projects: Project Origin, Project Icarus, Project Perseus, Project Harbinger, and Project Paragon. So Project Hades must be a new one then.

Add to this the rumours that have been going around about F.E.A.R. 3 over the past few months, and the ending up F.E.A.R.2, and it’s quite clear that even if Project Hades isn’t F.E.A.R.3, that title will most certainly be in the cards for the future.

F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin wasn’t a bad game, but it was different somehow, and arguably not as hard hitting as the original. F.E.A.R. was one of 2005’s most anticipated titles, and upon release was named GOTY by some publications and even spawned a series of machinimas in the  P.A.N.I.C.S. series. Project Origin was one 2009’s sleeper hits, and has since faded in to obscurity.

I think they should get someone like Clive Barker in to work on the F.E.A.R. series. He would make that game scary and weird as hell, maybe even more so than the first one. Remember Undying and Jericho?

That’s what it needs to be – scary. That’s what the title, even though it’s an acronym, is supposed to indicate. I seem to remember the replica soldiers, even the weakest ones, in the first game being a lot bigger and scarier than the ones in the sequel.

Rumour: F.E.A.R. 3: Project Hades Possibly Revealed

Video Game Deals: F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin

Over at Amazon, there's a pretty good deal on F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin for the console versions (Xbox 360 and PS3). You can get the game for nearly half the price for both systems. They're now the same price as the PC version, which dropped in price, but only a little.

If you need any convincing as to whether it's worth picking up the game or not, you can always check out the review I wrote for it at the beginning of the year.

Fear 2: Project Origin (PS3) - $19.99 - Save $16.00
Fear 2: Project Origin (360) - $19.99 - Save $14.50
Fear 2: Project Origin (PC) - $19.99 - Save $4.00

Video Game Deals: F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin

F.E.A.R. 2 DLC on the way; Play as a Replica Soldier

As if someone read my mind, there's a new F.E.A.R. 2 DLC on the way. This time it puts the player in the role of one of the replica soldiers, which are usually the fleshbags that you use for target practice. This character's name is "Foxtrot 813". Better than "Pointman" I suppose.

A while back, I remember posting about how cool it would be if you could play a campaign or a spin-off series just like this, so I'm excited about it.

The mini-campaign, called Reborn, will be about four missions long.

There's still debate whether it will come to PC though. The other multi-player focused DLCs did eventually, and they were free patches too, and at the end of the video on VG247 it says it will, so here's to hoping.

Sources:

Single player F.E.A.R. 2 DLC coming in August
Single-player F.E.A.R. 2 DLC landing next month
http://xboxlive.ign.com/articles/100/1008718p1.html

F.E.A.R. 2 DLC on the way; Play as a Replica Soldier

The Wish Granter: F.E.A.R. 3

After playing F.E.A.R. 2 and noticing the overall average reaction (I enjoyed it at least a little), with many comparing it to original, citing its shortfalls, I thought, “Where to with F.E.A.R. now?”

After the events of F.E.A.R. 2, Alma became pregnant with Michael Becket’s child, hinting at the probability of F.E.A.R. 3, with the baby being the third prototype.

I thought about not necessarily a F.E.A.R. 3, as in continuing the story of the F.E.A.R. series, but a game taking place in the same universe but in an alternate reality. Armacham Technology Corporation (ATC) carried on with all of their projects, like Origin, Perseus, Icarus, Harbinger, and Paragon (there are others, these are just the main ones). The Department of Defence, the Military, Law Enforcement Agencies, and even Terrorist Organisations become interested in ATC’s projects after exclusive reveals and want to use them. It would be the start of a new, different, unwinnable war which would make trillions for ATC, where all sides have access to ATC’s expendable, replaceable, highly-trained clone soldiers, psychic commanders, covert assassins, and other ATC technological innovations, like Powered Armour units (mechs), and weapons.

Basically it would be as if the events of F.E.A.R. hadn’t happened, and maybe in this game, the player would assume the role of one of the psychic commanders controlling a squad or a platoon of clone soldiers.

A possible future SWAT team replacement?

Or 

A military force to be reckoned with?

Or 

FBI, CIA or Terrorists?
   

The Wish Granter: F.E.A.R. 3

New RRR article: F.E.A.R. 2

I've just finished a review of F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin. I've been playing it over the past week, even though I finished it after four days. I bought it for my birthday, and it was a good waste of time :).

http://hubpages.com/hub/FEAR-2

New RRR article: F.E.A.R. 2

It’s my Birthday!

Just on a personal note, I thought I’d just let everyone who happens to come across the blog know that today is my birthday.

Among the other gifts that I was so generously given, I got a new flash drive for all my music, and F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin, as well as Mirror's Edge. I bought the games myself, but I thought, "Why not?"

It’s my Birthday!

AAA is one month old!

Well, the blog’s been running for a just over a month now! I’ve posted on average about two posts or articles a day, keeping in mind that search engines like it when you update often, and so do the pilgrims that drop by.

I also can’t believe that it’s the end of February all ready!

We’ve had a few games come out this month, one of which stands out in my mind, being F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin, which has received positive reviews. There were others like Shellshock 2: Blood Trails, which is average at best, and Penumbra Collection, Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II, Tom Clancy's EndWar  and Burnout Paradise: The Ultimate Box, which are all good.

On the sadder side of things, two games, The Sims 3 and The Godfather II, didn’t make the deadline, and have been shoved back a few months. No doubt this will let EA do the necessary polishing and get the hype machine cranked up and running for when they do hit the stores later this year.

AAA is one month old!

PC Games released: F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin

According to the latest release dates, F.E.A.R.2: Project Origin is now out! I am a major fan of the original F.E.A.R. and its expansions, Extraction Point and Perseus Mandate.

This then is the proper sequel and takes place exactly where the last game left off, and ignores the expansions. The people at Monolith claim that Timegate Studios went in a completely different direction and it wasn’t what they planned for the series.

So, I’ve read that you now play a different character in the game instead of the pointman from the original, called Michael Becket, but some old favourites like Alma will undoubtedly be back to scare you well after you’ve finished playing it. Slow motion also makes a return. There are also some new additions like new enemies, and mechs to take control of.

I will likely get this game soon, perhaps in the next couple of months. Remember, play it at night with the lights off, the curtains drawn, and the sound turned up!

You can pick up a copy of F.E.A.R 2: Project Origin by following these links:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0016N4A7E?ie=UTF8&tag=apocalypso-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=1789&creativeASIN=B0016N4A7E
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00163LW7A?ie=UTF8&tag=apocalypso-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=1789&creativeASIN=B00163LW7A

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00163LW7K?ie=UTF8&tag=apocalypso-20&linkCode=xm2&camp=1789&creativeASIN=B00163LW7K

Other PC games that were released today:

X-Blades 
Perimeter II: New Earth 
Warfare 
World Mosaics 

PC Games released: F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin

Worthwhile PC games coming out in February 2009

February 10, 2009 - F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin

This is the sequel to F.E.A.R., and it should be a cracking good game. I’m not too sure about the release date (R.D.), because in some magazine adverts, it states ‘end of February’.

February 19, 2009 - Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War II 

For those who are fans of the Warhammer series. I’m not particularly one of them.
   
February 20, 2009 - The Sims 3 

February 20, 2009 - The Sims 3 Collector's Edition
   
For desperate housewives, wannabe interior decorators and architects everywhere.

February 24, 2009 - The Godfather II

The first one was boring, unimaginative, and smelled of a cash- in. I hope this one is better. It’s likely they’ll bring out a Godfather III to match the film trilogy, unless this one bombs.

February 24, 2009 - ShellShock 2: Blood Trails

I saw the trailer for this game, and it looks pretty awesome. I didn’t play the first game though. They’ve made the switch from third person to first person shooter, and it looks tons more exciting.

Worthwhile PC games coming out in February 2009