theuerkorn's Full Review: F.E.A.R. Perseus Mandate for Windows
It has been a year that we got to the Extraction Point and one of those endings that didn't resolve anything but still didn't give it away that we might see another sequel. So here it is despite the developer relationships apparently changing in the form of Monolith changing stables. I have been longing for another expansion the moment I seemingly escaped the second time (finished the game/expansion). However, it was a bit quiet and I certainly was surprised when Perseus Mandate has been announced just a few months ago (unlike the typical hoopla that precedes a game by over a year). Sierra took the franchise and released one more time F.E.A.R. just in time for the holiday season. Let me state this upfront, I have been a huge fan of the franchise, but it cannot be overlooked that both game engine and story have been around for a while. So is it a worthy consideration for the end of 2007? Well, that's what we're here to find out ...
Note: Perseus Mandate does not require the original game, but if you have not played it now is the time to get the GOLD edition which includes the full game and the extension to prime you for the phenomena that F.E.A.R. turned out to be.
IN A NUTSHELL
The story line is very similar but you're now in a parallel team to get to the same goal. The term Team is taken literal now and you have some help in form of virtual team members. Their impact is noticeable without being too intrusive. The chatter, on the other hand, is less "professional" as previously shown by the F.E.A.R. series.
Enthusiasts will miss support for PhysX and DX10. Changes to the game engine seem to be limited to minor tweaks (if any). That shows in direct comparison to the latest games like TimeShift and Unreal Tournament 3, where F.E.A.R. now starts to show its age. EAX support is still a bit difficult, and under Vista only available with Creative's Alchemy tool.
Regardless of age and the lack of a few bells and whistles, F.E.A.R. has gotten a new chapter and it's a worthy continuation of a great game (2005's best shooter). Similar game play is not bad in light of the great basis the franchise offers. Fans should be pleased, while newbies may consider the game as the low price and strong gameplay are still good no matter what "Uebergames" are released at the end of 2007 (with DX10 etc.). Perseus Mandate is a bit longer (SP) than Extraction Point and the story is spread over 7 intervals. Complete those and you get access to three bonus intervals which aren't in chronological order and a bit detached from the story line in Perseus Mandate, but worthy nevertheless.
DETAILS
Game Play: [****-] Why change a winning concept, especially when F.E.A.R. already demonstrated shooter greatness and didn't need much improvement anyway? The story line now is parallel to the first game but overall seamless. Of course, for some that may be too little, but frankly that's why I got my copy the day it was released. Perseus Mandate (just like Extraction Point) nicely retaines the creepy feeling of entering rooms and areas with unknown forces present. Lighting, sounds and music all play nicely together and the intercom chatter gives vital hints. Be prepared to jerk the mouse many times when invisible enemies attack, or lights suddenly turn off, or creepy noises scare the @#$% out of you. Chapter 4 is even more creepy with a strange way of loosing and finding your team mate just to see him being killed by an invisible force right in front of you. However, overall variety may be a bit limited as there are no vehicles to use or puzzles to solve. Nevertheless, the total of 7 chapters and 3 bonus intervals makes for a solid game considering the price point.
Graphics: [****-] What used to be a poster child for DX9 greatness is still a great looking game engine at the end of 2007, though the recent wave of "Uebergames" (esp. graphics) like Timeshift, Crysis, Unreal Tournament III and so on clearly show better graphis at sometimes even better performance. Yet, Perseus Mandate feels polished enough, with a theme appropriate mood and excellent textures. HDR and DOF both are not used which confirms minor changes in the graphics engine, just like the rather basic flare effect. Yet, overall graphics is still good and even declassifies more recent but half-hearted implementations like Halo 2. Graphics performance, however, didn't seem to receive much tweaking either and despite my HD2900XT (upgrade from x1900XT for Extraction Point), the occasional hick-up is still quite noticeable.
Physics: [***--] Just like the graphics engine, no major changes are visible in the physics model which still relies on software emulation (instead of using PhysX). However, it does a good job in faking real life. (The level of effects is adjustable to match the processor, but even extreme physics often turns out to be a recording.) However, in light of the recent game releases it's nothing special (anymore) and the "lack" of destructible environment (like Ghost Recon: AWF2) and similar physics marvels still dim the achievement of Perseus Mandate.
Controls: [*****] Same old greatness and PC gamers will feel right at home. F.E.A.R. is best played via mouse and keyboard since the accuracy of the mouse pointing is hard to beat. F.E.A.R. Perseus Mandate maintained PC style game save and allows to not only use check points but also quicksave (F5/F9) at any time. Thanks for not falling into the console trap! One exception, however, are the bonus maps which don't sport any way to save unless you complete the level. It isn't terribly long, but challenging nevertheless.
Sound: [****-] Just like the first extension, EAX HD (5.0) sound card is supported but has trouble being properly recognized. One source of this problem is new, as Windows Vista itself does not provide support for hardware sound. However, even with XP, the recognition can be tricky and may require some experimenting with the settings in both the audio console as well as dxdiag.exe. Once technical issues are resolved, the 3D sound is well done (as usual) with only voice acting to be seemingly a bit less convincing. However, the balance between some sounds seems to be fixed, and the extremely loud dropping of a weapon compared to gun fire isn't an obvious issue anymore (as it was in the first extension).
Weapons: [****-] Very minor changes here and while maintaining changes in Extraction Point (deployable turret and the ability to wield two pistols), the majority will feel very familiar. Then again, it wasn't really necessary to change anything. Overall, F.E.A.R. Perseus Mandate maintains a realistic (or at least plausible) arsenal that's both fun and well balanced. One of my favorite new "toys" is the detachable chain link gun (which you can first grab from the crashed helicopter in chapter 3).
Artificial Intelligence: [****-] By taking the winning concept from the previous releases, Perseus Mandate still impresses with strangely intelligent yet lethal enemy replica army. Once in a fight, you need to watch out not to be outsmarted by enemies teaming up on you in the highest difficulty level. Of course, the lower difficulty levels take some of that "intelligence" away. Enemy soldiers can move objects like tables or sofas to use them as cover. New enemy types have new "technology" which makes them even scarier and they're not afraid to use it. (Being in a dark room with stealthy yet hostile creatures should keep your heart rate going.) A new twist are the black stains on the floor which turn out to be fairly scary (at first). The new group of mercenaries are tougher than the replica army as well and possess some remarkable artistic skills.
MultiPlayer: [n/a] (coming soon)
HARDWARE OBSERVATIONS
Load times are comparably short, especially when reloading a game (after being killed). It's one of the faster games in that regard and literally done loading minutes before Call of Juarez or Lost Planet. Main contributor might be the retention of the "old" game engine, while my hardware somewhat recent upgrade might be responsible for better load times. However, new graphics intense scenes still pause pretty much upon section load and stutters when lots of effects are deployed. Nevertheless, overall gameplay is responsive at 1600x1200 and everything set to near maximum (no soft shadows).
Sierra kept the old EAX sound problem that plagued the Extraction Point extension, which may be a driver issue with the X-Fi but other games like TimeShift don't seem to have it. As a possible root cause, the hardware acceleration may be set to basic and none of the settings in the console seem to change that (especially under Windows Vista).
Creative Labs: "If you are using a Sound Blaster(R) X-Fi(TM) sound card with Windows Vista, advanced sound options such as EAX will be disabled since Vista has removed the ability for DirectSound 3D calls to reach the hardware. Creative Labs provides a workaround with the tool ALchemy, which allows you to enable these options." (Perseus Mandate is currently not automatically recognized and the path to the directory where F.E.A.R.'s "launcher.exe" resides needs to be manually added.)
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