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

This game really isn't as bad as some fans claim it is, and is nowhere near as janky as the third game in the series.

Unlike the first game it runs out of the box on Windows 10, though I highly recommend using PC Gaming Wiki to download a DLL that fixes the atrocious mouse acceleration. You *can* technically play the game without the DLL, but it makes the mouse look feel extremely squirrelly so I would advice against that. Apart from that the game runs just fine and even supports higher resolutions, which is pretty great.

One of the things that really bogged down the first game were the visuals and settings, which were incredibly repetitive; You were basically limited to office interiors and industrial complexes. Seeing any color besides gray and brown was a rarity, and I'm happy to say that FEAR 2 fixes this problem by adding lots of different types of scenery. In general the graphics in FEAR 2 look great, and the environments have a lot of detail in them.

Hardcore FEAR 1 fans would argue that FEAR 2 is "too colourful" and that this somehow ruins the "realism", but I honestly never understood this reasoning; The story is basically a sci-fi horror retelling of Akira, the famous Japanese anime/manga, and I don't think anyone ever complained about Akira being "unrealistic". My point is that this series is firmly rooted in science-fiction with lots of supernatural elements, which makes the whole "realism" argument feel pointless.

That's not to say that the game doesn't take itself seriously, or that it's high fantasy nonsense without any stakes; FEAR 2 dials up the horror elements, similarly to FEAR 1's Extraction Point, which is much appreciated and creates an interesting contrast to the action. Another thing that reminded me of the FEAR 1 expansions is the fact that it spices up the enemy variety some more, instead of having you fight the same replica goons over and over again like in the first game. Remnants are a good example of a new enemy type that keep you on your toes.

One critique that FEAR 1 purists bring up that I do agree with is the fact that the AI is a little bit more simplistic this time around. I don't think it's necessarily the AI that has been down-scaled, but that many of the levels just aren't designed like in the first game; The first game relied heavily on large rooms with lots of obstacles that the replica soldiers can use to ambush you, which created a really cool sense of intelligence. You always felt like you're facing a well-coordinated squad in the first game, even if a large part of that is smoke and mirrors accomplished with clever programming.

I too am sad to say that FEAR 2 doesn't really have this type of combat anymore, even if it tries to make up for it by giving enemies the ability to flip certain objects over for cover (which admittedly looks cool whenever they react to your presence). The player can now also flip tables and such to use for cover, but I rarely used it since a more aggressive approach is almost always more effective in my experience.

That being said, the combat is still very fun, and the addition of proper iron sights is much appreciated even if the purists will argue that this is too "COD-like". While the shotgun has been nerfed, the weapons in general still feel good and impactful, and they even bring back the laser rifle from Extraction Point, which I thought was a nice homage. You can also still karate kick enemies to death, which is just as fun as in the original, though getting the opportunity to use it is a rarity.

As I said earlier, the horror elements are back in full force, and the ghost enemies now actually look like apparitions instead of floating guys that disappear when you shoot them, which is much scarier and at times allows them to sneak up at you when you least expect it, like in the infamous Elementary School level. I'm not someone who is easily scared by video games, but I do appreciate the effort they put into it this time.

There's also a couple of mech sections in which you control a giant robot, and while they're fun distractions (and a clever nod to Monolith's old mech FPS Shogo) they are for the most part very easy since you have a ton of firepower at your disposal. Near the end you fight a couple of other mechs, which raises the difficult a little bit, but it never becomes as challenging as FEAR 1 could be at times.

In fact, I would say that the overall lack of difficulty is my only big gripe with this game. Normal difficulty feels too weak and feels more akin to "easy", and they really should have tweaked this some more for the final release. I reckon that this was done to make it easier for console players, which I can understand, but I can't shake the feeling that a FEAR game needs to feel a bit more punishing than this. The included add-on Reborn does increase the difficulty a little bit, which is nice, but it ends rather abruptly after maybe an hour and a half or so.

FEAR 2 is definitely not a flawless game, and neither was the first game for that matter. Unfortunately, the quality doesn't always reach the same heights as the first game's, but it still provided some small but noticeable improvements on the action-horror formula here and there that make it worth playing through. I certainly enjoyed my time with it.

Rest in peace, Monolith Productions.

65%

"FEAR 2: Project Origin" is a first-person shooter with a mysterious horror framework. The graphics provide a substantive world where glass windows can be shattered with the butt of your guns and tables can be thrown over as cover. But the realism isn't quite there yet at the time this game launched.

"Project Origin" has a terrible habit of making the way forward a backtrack the way you've come, and the gunplay while satisfying, is brief, overly simplified, and overly convoluted all at once. I almost wish the spaces were larger, while at the same time they feel too large. It's a strange game of contradictions. Perhaps, it was all built by an earlier generation testing out new gaming engine capabilities, with an earlier sensibility. Genuinely fun, nonetheless, "Project Origin" offers up a number of jump-scares and creepy visual distortions that are hard to ignore as elements of exceptional design and storytelling.

Honestly, the 3rd game in this series "FEAR 3" truly perfects this series' gunplay, including enemy counts and level design. Grab that installment of the game for the most fleshed out experience in this world.

R.I.P Monolith
Ya'll deserved better.
I completed this a few months ago.
F.E.A.R 2 is your average FPS shooter of the late 2000s. It wasn't as revolutionary as the first F.E.A.R, crysis or COD:MW1.
It just felt average, nothing stood out about this game but it wasn't that bad either. In my opinion, the DLC for FEAR 2 is actually better than the base game although it's only about 40-50 minutes.
The worst downgrade I noticed in F.E.A.R 2 was the level design and the peek option being removed. The armour suit was fun to use but it wasn't some mindblowing addition to the game. It's definitely better than F.E.A.R 3 but it's not as good as the first part. The only new weapon in the game was the napalm cannon and it was just horrible to use.
There are some memorable parts in the game and the gunplay is decent,
The only reason I am not giving it a negative review is because it's not a bad game, it's just average.
Would I recommend this game? Probably not, there are much better FPS games to play. Although I would suggest you to just buy the bundle during sales because the price difference between F.E.A.R 1 and FEAR complete pack isn't that huge and if you wanna play it for the story then you will have the option to do so if you get the bundle.

Cool game, but it feels like im playing a child of F.E.A.R., HALO and Bioshok for some reason

fun game (SOMETIMES) but an absolute dogwater sequel to the first game bro ts fr pmo :skull:

Easily, when you go into a sequel- you're expected the game will be good. In the case of F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin, this game basically becomes the worst sequel in existence. Nothing of this game screams good, and honestly compared to what F.3.A.R. is, this game becomes the sad downfall of the franchise. Not only is this game shorter, but the level design screams "Well now we must be on console, and somehow make an abysmal story". And the expansion Reborn is EASILY the most "Giving a Fuck Challenge" ever. It's an hour of just shooter gallery weakly setting up the basic plot for F.3.A.R. which shocker, *It does NOTHING*. But yes, F.3.A.R. somehow is worse, I wish I was joking.

Better than the original game F.E.A.R , but less horror. Overral i enjoyed the atmosphere and the ambience. The story-line is a bit confusing but it was nice. Totally recommend it if u played the original one.

🩸 F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin – A Thrilling Descent into Terror! 😱🔥

💀 Alma is back… and she’s angrier than ever. 💀
Monolith Productions takes us deeper into the nightmarish world of F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin, delivering an adrenaline-pumping mix of psychological horror, brutal firefights, and an unsettling atmosphere that never lets you breathe easy. If you thought the first game was terrifying, think again.
[hr][/hr]

🎭 Story & Atmosphere – A Mind-Bending Horror Ride

From the moment you step into the boots of Michael Becket, you realize this isn’t just another mission—this is survival. The game throws you into a city devastated by Alma’s wrath, and her twisted presence haunts every corner. The cinematic storytelling keeps you engaged, blurring the line between reality and terrifying hallucinations.
✅ A gripping narrative that expands on Alma’s dark past
✅ Disturbing horror sequences that will make your skin crawl
✅ A world that feels alive… or rather, dead and decaying
[hr][/hr]

🔫 Gameplay – Tactical FPS Combat at Its Best

If you love fast-paced, tactical gunplay, F.E.A.R. 2 delivers one of the smoothest FPS experiences out there. The classic slow-motion (Reflex Time) mechanic returns, letting you dodge bullets like a sci-fi John Wick. The gunfights feel intense, strategic, and brutal, thanks to:
🛡️ Smart AI enemies that flank, take cover, and force you to adapt
🔫 Satisfying weapons, from the powerful shotgun to the devastating laser rifle
🤖 Powerful mech segments that let you wreak havoc on enemies
Every encounter feels visceral and cinematic, making each fight feel like a battle for your life.
[hr][/hr]

🎨 Graphics & Sound – Immersive and Haunting

The game’s visuals, even today, hold up surprisingly well. The eerie lighting, blood-soaked corridors, and grotesque enemy designs create an atmosphere that feels oppressive and nightmarish.
🔊 The sound design? Pure nightmare fuel. The unsettling whispers, distant screams, and Alma’s eerie giggles will keep you on edge. Add to that a tension-filled soundtrack, and you have a horror experience that sinks deep into your bones.
[hr][/hr]

🎮 Verdict – A Horror FPS Classic You Can’t Miss!

F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin isn’t just a shooter—it’s a horror-fueled, blood-soaked rollercoaster that blends top-tier gunplay with mind-bending terror. While it may not be as revolutionary as its predecessor, it refines and expands the formula, delivering a must-play experience for any FPS or horror fan.
🩸 Final Score: 8.5/10 🎯
🔥 A heart-pounding shooter that keeps you terrified and entertained from start to finish!
👉 If you’re ready to face Alma’s wrath once more, grab your guns, take a deep breath, and step into the nightmare. 💀🎮

While FEAR 2 does a lot of things ok its just that. Its alright. The game hasn't aged well.

The graphics are pretty much on par with a lot of xbox 360 era shooters. You'll get not very detailed textures and washed out colors. There's not much to say about them otherwise except keep your expectations in line with the games era and you might not be as disappointed. I would still say the first game was better in this department.

Gameplay feels like a downgrade from the original game. Enemy AI is not very smart and often do some very strange things. While this leads to some laughs it would have been better to see this vastly improved. The environments get repetitive very quickly. The majority of the game is battling it out in office, sewer or industrial settings. The maps tend to often be maze like which doesn't help to freshen things up from mission to mission. Mouse movement has a nice smoothness that I did appreciate. The default control scheme however is terrible and makes you realize how far we have come in the realm of user friendliness.

The story is not very interesting and the horror parts of the game mostly fall flat. Another aspect of the series that was done way better in the first game. If the series story interests you then there is something here for you although be it in a very small amount. I didn't find it memorable and with not very solid gameplay to fall back on it doesn't carry much weight.

To sum things up it is a very mediocre game at best and it does not do anything to hide that fact. Is it worth a play through for a few bucks? Sure if you like shooters of the era or the series itself. I would make sure I got it at a deep discount none the less. Don't go throwing the last few bucks in your steam wallet at this. You can do better.

It fucking sucks. Strip away everything that's fun from the first game including leaning and you have a boring generic 2000s console game. It's not fun to play, feels more like a chore than a game. There's no variety, the weapons suck and they sound awful, you approach every scenario by holding down M1 with the SMG. The level design doesn't allow you to sneak up on or melee/kick enemies save for a scripted tutorial segment at the start. Can't force myself to play past the streets level, what a slog.

The fear factor, the horror, this one has some of the best.
The gameplay on the other hand is spectacularly mediocre.

Honestly the thrills of all the scary bits are pretty impressive and immersive. Especially if you're sitting in the dark, alone with some good headphones or better yet some decent speakers. Some of the stuff can send me to a state of shock well after the encounter is over.

But when it comes down to everything around this horror, it really fails to impress. Which is sad really. It's not even that much better than what a lot of PlayStation 2 era games had to offer. In fact it's pretty much what i would expect from a PlayStation 2 game.
It is essentially a cover shooter with a basic cover system. Feels very disconnected from all the terror.

The graphics are decent enough for the time but it's really nothing groundbreaking.

Controls on Steam Deck are janky but acceptable. Because the game has no native controller support, you will be at the mercy of community profiles that convert mouse and keyboard controls.

Anyhow, i guess it is fine if you've barely played any shooters in your life but otherwise i suggest getting your thrills somewhere else.

Project Origin is a huge step down from its Predecessor. In all aspects, the experience feels much weaker and not as cohesive. If you look at the history of the development, it was a complete mess. This kind of explains why everything feels thrown together and not cohesively blending. Graphically, the game looks much better. This is the only leg up I can give it over the Original Fear. Otherwise, everything is much worse off. Level design is worse, enemies are worse and dumber. Although i did like the inclusion of supernatural enemies, the soldiers and replicants feel like a shadow of their former selves. The atmosphere and plot are way worse, making the game feel more comedic than anything else (THE SEXUAL ASSAULT ENDING BOSSFIGHT LOL). Overall, it feels like a more dumbed down version of the original game with a strung together plot. I do not recommend for fans or anyone else. Play as a joke when you want a good laugh, it's fun to shoot stuff at least.

A great sequel to one of the best enemy AI's in game. FEAR 2 hits all the right notes!

10/10
The characters' premise fits my needs of perspective.
This might not mean anything, and I apologize if this isn't misleading.
I don't leave bad reviews, all efforts are a perfect score.

The epitome of a pc game being stripped of all interesting combat mechanics and gunplay and being consoleified into a spray and pray 360 game.
The enemies are completely braindead, the weapons all sound and feel horrible, the movement is clunky, and all the fun gameplay elements from the first game (e.g. combat talking, enemy flanking, leaning, etc) are absent. The art direction has completely lost the plot and the game looks like walmart off-brand Killzone. The story is nonsensical and boring not even mentioning the random r*pe scene at the end and the gritty military scifi atmosphere generated by the first game is almost entirely absent.

Come on dude lmao

Decent shooter with improvements in graphics and gore but with decline in AI behaviour in comparison with first game

Probably the scariest fear. Gave me the heebie jeebies. But in all honestly the ending is alright. It shares the same ending as all the other ones so I can't hate it. I only wish the ending battle wasn't so meh.

It just got frozen after have passed many level... I lost many hours to get frustrated 😤

I had such an awful experience with the first game that i'm not even interested in playing anything in the series. Even tho i got all of the game for dirt cheap it's not worth wasting time on bad games.

the assassins are still pushovers and the shotgun got nerfed, what a pile of white d0gsh1t

update: nvm its a good game wish i was as lucky as beckett and had a ghost woman trying to consume me 10/10 would slaughter clones again

As of news today, Monolith is shutting down. It's sad to say that this incredible franchise will never get a remaster.

Since I am literally unable to access F.E.A.R. on the Steam Store because of senseless regulations, I am forced to write my review for the whole genre on this Steam page (more detailed reasoning in the review of the first game).

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F.E.A.R.:
Pretty great game even 20 years later.

The Story is extremly intriguing but also kinda confusing, I like the concept of combining horror with shooter and I like how the game switches between these two genres - it feels well balanced and neither overstays it's welcome, even though I would have wished for a little more horror elements.

The combat feels amazing and superior to a bunch of games nowadays. The enemy AI is extremly smart, trying to flank you at any given moment, recognizing flashlights and listening to sounds - they react to damage, start walking with a limp if their legs get damaged and overall have a bunch of different reactions to taking damage. The enemy AI/KI just feels extremly responsive and I honestly never seen something as detailed. Enviornments are destructable and the physics for the most part are insane for it's time, certainly on the level of half life 2 if not even better. The game is very atmospheric and can get quite scary, sound design is great.

The difficulty spikes immensly from moderate to high difficulty. Moderate is too easy in my opinion and high too difficult. I wasn't a fan of the sentries/turrets and bullet sponge enemies in the later stages of the game. The enemy variety in general felt a little dull and shallow. There are humanoids which are basically all the same enemy type throughout the game, just their design varies, their accuracy increases, the amount of bullets they can sponge expands and they'll get stronger weapons. Except one humanoid enemey type, which can go invisible and only attacks from melee range. There are also some rocket shooting mech robots - but except these you ain't got no variety in enemy type - I expected more terrifying ones, these ones that are rarely utilized. It definitely almost managed to overstay it's welcome with the bullet sponge enemy types.

Unfortunately I had a bunch of issues even getting to run this game properly. First major problem was buying this game, since Germany has implemented new regulations. Which makes every game, without a registered and valid USK, unavaible for purchase. So any game, especially oldschool games whose development team no longer exists or got bought up, is now lost - atleast for people out of Germany. So I had to order a Steam Key from some thrid party charity site instead. Then I encountered huge issues with the performance of the game, which fortunately were fixed with the download of a DLL fix file. I still had graphic issues, especially when a lot of bullets hit a wall my screen started filling up completly with dust and smoke but it was manageable enough to play through the game. The game also liked to crash whenever you tab out, so quick saving was necessary. Key bindings are weird aswell and I don't like how you aren't able to sprint.

If you succeed in getting the game to run properly, it's definitely still a great game. I am kind of bummed out I couldn't experience it back in the days when it came out but 20 years later I still managed to find some fun even though it probably would have been more atmospheric and scary back in the day. Still a solid recommendation. (8/10)

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F.E.A.R. Extraction Point DLC:
Still the same great combat and atmosphere, even better visuals and more options to make combat more fun like turrets and weapons, moderate difficulty felt more balanced this time around but I cannot comment on hard difficulty. Unfortunately even more bullet sponges and general issues.

Still not able to sprint and key bindings are also still weird. I wasn't able to play on my native screen resolution, which was annoying but no reason to quit. The same DLL fix file worked for the FPS issue in this one aswell but in the later stages of the game it constantly started crashing. I managed to fix one of these crashing instances by going into the graphic settings and checking "Force Restart" but I couldn't get past the second instance of constant crashes, so I had to watch the end of the game on YouTube. Because of these issues I don't want to rate this DLC.

I liked Extraction Point more than Perseus Mandate, until it gotten pretty much unplayable for me.

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F.E.A.R. Perseus Mandate DLC:
Still the same great combat but worse atmosphere, honestly it looks worse and reminds me a lot of Garry's Mod horror maps. Moderate difficulty felt a little more balanced this time around but I cannot comment on hard difficulty and the enemies seemed to be not as smart anymore.

The DLL fix file worked perfectly fine this time and I also was able to play on my native resolution. Still graphic glitches but atleast I was able to play through the game, without any major crashes.

Still not able to sprint and key bindings are also still weird. They utilized the "scary" enemy type way more but unfortunately also the bullet sponge enemies. Atleast they gave you way more options to deal with them, in the sense of grenades, turrets and strong and whacky weapons - the grenade launcher sucked ass though.

Can't comment on the bonus maps. The final "boss fight" was pretty lame, aswell as the general story. This addition to the F.E.A.R. franchise was alright but pretty skippable. (5.8/10)

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F.E.A.R. 2:
The game isn't good compared to the first F.E.A.R., especially the german low violence version is utter garbage.

I am finally able to sprint but the movement while sprinting is weird and clucky. The key bindings are also still weird. Extra mouse button keys can't be binded, which is odd since it worked in the first game and all of the DLC. No way to auto safe but the savepoints semmed to be fair enough but enemies also seem to despawn sometimes whenever you trigger one of these save states.

I encountered some bugs but nothing special or worth mentioning.

I liked that they utilized more of the "scary" enemy types.

Combat doesn't feel great anymore and is just in general a massive downgrade to the first one. Enemies are easier to kill and also not as smart, they also don't react to damage they way the usually did and sometimes just spawn out of thin air and as a result of the low violence version regularly just disappear into thin air. Unable to peak around corners. Weapons in general didn't feel good or fun to play, except maybe the pulse weapon. Not as atmospheric or creepy anymore, some animations and cutscenes were alright but most of them just looked awful to be honest. A bunch of very odd and unecessary action sections, robot mech action, button mashing quick time events and endboss - the ending was simply weird.

This felt like a massive downgrade, some of my issues with this game most likely stem from the censored low violence version but I believe even without it I wouldn't have recommended this one. It felt like the focus was on the action aspect of the game which they didn't improve on in my opinion and the scary aspect of the game came way too short. This game definitely suffers from a bunch of questionable design choices and I can see where and why this game's story set up the next one for failure - the first one was great though. (3.8/10)

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Summary of the franchise:
First game was great, first DLC was because of technical issues and bugs unplayble at a certain point but pretty good until then. Second DLC wasn't too great. Second game wasn't good and especially the low violence version was utter garbage. Mixed review of the franchise, started of great but was extremly unenjoyable in the latter stage.

game engine mechanics

Same great slo-mo run and gun action from when I was a kid. Awesome!

Idk why people say this game is worse than the first.. Honestly, besides that this game removed the leaning mechanic, and that it is shorter, everything else is better, a lot better actually. It is a better shooter because gun play is just better, graphics are better which also make the horror part a lot better, because in the first game the graphics were too goofy to be scared by anything, the map is better, especially the school part. This game is just as fun as the first, and honestly a better experience since it runs very smooth without needing any tweaks. 10/10

Hot Dead Lady Wants Ya

Its 2009 kids, Fear was a succesfull game that spawned 2 pretty good addons

But then developers decided to retcon all that and gave us a proper sequel

The story takes place right after original game. Big Explosion happened and all sort of paranormal stuff is unleashed on nearby territory
You take point as a dude who is resistant enough to be likable by a LittleGirl/Hot Lady/Ugly Grandma
In your attempt to guard your virginity you lose pretty much all of your squad members but at the very least - you get to kill a LOT of dudes.
Normal dudes, cloned dudes and weird dudes. 4/5

The visuals are still great, I dont know how people managed to make such impressive games back in the day and fail miserably now. Performs well too. 5/5

The gameplay - pure fun, walker robots included, with a lil' bit of horror and dark comedy. Hard difficulty can be annoying tho. 5/5

The level design is descent - there's variety at least and its still a corridor shooter. 4/5
Music is alright 3/5
Alma is hot, other girl kinda too
Cant remember anyone else 3/5
Not very replayable since all jumpscares are already seen and AI opponents are way more dumb than in original game (also with less hp) 3/5

Conclusion - 8/10

Cool Experience, still holds up, nothing too special.

This game holds a lot of nostalgic value for me. Despite being an older game, it still boasts high-quality graphics. The destructibility of objects is beautifully done, and one of the game's strengths, in my opinion, is the extensive use of blood in many scenes.

I liked it even though a lot of people hate it--with good reason. Gone is the horror, now its just a shooter. I still like the shooting part, and the graphics are much improved.

The ending-- its is disgusting. Thats all I can say. and the last boss fight is like a tutorial fight, you win in 2 minutes

Monolith develops most mid FPS game of all time, then proceeds to abandon the genre all together, permanently. What a waste.

honestly not that scary, the gun fights felt sluggish compared to the first game and in general it felt like a more boring copy of the first game. The lighting in the first game was stark and intense EVERYWHERE with long shadows being cast behind a corner. But here? it's just... meh... like they forgot :/

This is also the game where the story genuinely jumps the shark. The amount of infrastructure that Armacham has, rivals that of an entire government. They have schools which mean they control dep of education, entire cities etc. etc. how can there even be unemployment in the USA when Armacham is always hiring.

So the art direction, story and gameplay are all worse than the first fear.

It feels like generic low-grade military shooter with some "spooky stuff", gunplay is extremely boring (weak sound, weapon feel and environment physics, even special effects are worse than the first game, there is no spectacle anymore when you throw a grenade in the room), and atmosphere just doesn't work, it feels cheap and forced, devs are genuinely trying but can't do it, I just can't care about it (maybe because the game has too much color and silly "jumpscare" sounds, like when rooms with specimens open in the lab). AI is pretty good but doesn't saves the game, and their chatter feels like a cheap imitation of the first game. The whole game feels like a cheap imitation. I can get if you love it since you don't know better, but how can you after playing the first one?

Really nice gameplay and story told in a pretty dark setup. The bullet time and weapons are tons of fun.

Wow this game actually got my attention, the story and the combat mixed with horror made this game an actual masterpiece. I actually prefer FEAR 2 than FEAR 3 ngl. i played this on the hardest diff and without the slow mo, it made me feel like i was just a doll although with armor. The replica soldiers must be my fav bcs of their design compared to the first FEAR. Overall this game is just breathtaking.

The sequel to F.E.A.R in my opinion fixes many of my complaints of the first game and stands out as a great shooter experience even today.

Good:
* The enemy AI is a little less chatty than the first game, but otherwise feels just as compelling. They are very skilled with grenades especially.
* They mostly fixed the 'environment' problem of the first game; all of the places you move through feel reasonably laid out and designed. This falls off a little bit in some parts of the final area of the game, but it's not as egregious as the first game.
* Related to above, the devs cooked with the in-game assets; there's some hilarious fake brands and the grade school section stands out for all sorts of realistic objects, signage, artwork, etc.
* The game has a much better mixing of the gun fighting and horror sections. It's all scripted, but seeing Alma terrorize enemy soldiers and NPCs makes her seem much more threatening and unpredictable.
* The game stepped up the lore and story. You move through facilities directly related to the clone soldier and psychic power programs, and the 'lore collectibles' contain actual relevant details to the world and characters in it.
* The graphics are dated, but they are a step up from the last game and still look okay.
* The game introduces an awesome mech that lets you become an unstoppable killing machine. The segments aren't super long by they are a great time.
* There's music in the game now! It usually plays during gunfights to help amp up the tension.

Mid:
* The guns are mostly the same as the first game. There's a couple of new big weapons, but I found the rocket launcher continued to be the most reliable and useful. The real tragedy here is that they replaced the last game's shotgun with two variants in this game, and neither felt as powerful or as fun.
* The slow motion ability is back, and it's effectively identical to the first game in both making some moments more epic, and having questionable value outside of that use case. I wish there was something more to it like puzzle solving or allowing the setup of some crazy shots.
* The first game allowed you to save wherever you wanted, whereas this game has set points where it saves. It is nice not to have to remember to save, but at the same time there was a spot or two where I'd wish I could just replay one section and not go back so far if I decided to reload. That said for the most part the game saved frequently enough that it wasn't really a problem.

Bad:
* Like the first game, this was released on consoles. And like the first game, the PC version basically does not recognize controller as a viable input option.
* Weirdly, the first game recognized an extra mouse button and let me remap it, but this game didn't. Not a huge deal, but it would have been nice to have the same flexibility.

This is one of those great times where the developers created a good product the first time, and then the second time around improved in just about every way with almost no downsides. There's still a lot of potential that I would love to have seen realized, but for the time this game came out, what F.E.A.R. 2 did puts it above a lot of its contemporaries.

I remember playing this game back in 2010 and it still holds up. The story is interesting and contains some good jump scares. Think of this as a horror Call of Duty.

it's alright, i prefer a lot of the mechanics and visuals from the original, although you CAN drive the powered armor, so it lowkey peak and the mini DLC is also pretty fun

Absolutely hands down one of the classics. If you haven't played this game, play it ASAP, especially if you like anything horror related!

It's scarier than the first, but I don't think it's better. It's still a solid game and worth playing to continue the story.

Absolutely wonderful.
Lovingly written story with deep lore.
Rendered beautifully in the game engine.
Really appealing to look at.
Fantastic sound design.
Okay that's enough about Keira Stokes.

As for the game itself? I mean its alright i guess, previous game had a much better atmosphere and horror factor, only thing this game has up on the first is the graphics which have been improved by a LOT. I would say its worth a buy if on sale or in a bundle with the whole trilogy.

The one cool scene in this game is really cool. but that is it.

Plays great and still looks just fine! Might not be as "deep" as F.E.A.R. 1, but still very enjoyable!

Fear 2 and Fear 3 are my favorites in the series. So unlike the first game which was so dark and dusty that it was borderline unplayable and just more like a really bad haunted house, Monolith actually made a fun game with awesome setpieces, a great soundtrack, and improved audio, graphics, and some nice new additions to the world and story from the first. Immediately, you'll notice the lighting and shading is much better, as well as the characters and animations being an upgrade across the board. Dynamic shadows now work in conjunction with soft lighting, bloom, and a cool in world republic commando styled HUD. Throughout the game, NPCs interact with the world and other npcs as well as you more often than the first, and the locations are much more varied instead of being the same offices, sewers, and warehouses.

There's a lot of different locations, including high rise housing, secret labs, a hospital, bombed out city streets, subway tunnels, obviously there's the spooky school which is probably everyone's favorite, alongside a nuclear power plant and a few others like a train and big construction areas. The thing that stuck out to me most was the places in this game felt real, and not like reject Halo 2 maps in the first game. The soldiers had conversations with each other outside of combat as well as killing civilians from around corners, making them more believable, since you could see them doing things regardless of you, which it barely felt like prior. When I was in a fight in a construction area, one of the soldiers crawled under a pipe and tried to flank me while his buddies were shooting, which was well animated, even during an intense battle with tons of effects

Speaking of, the animations and characters were improved, now looking more expressive and emotional, Vaduk being one of my favorite new characters, as he was a pretty well acted villain who yelled and raged a lot when his troops kept getting killed by me. Probably having the most memorable line in the game: "Good morning, chickpea!" Although I was disappointed that he was mostly behind glass and wasn't a boss, instead dying in a qte. But then again, this was a game made in 2009 so whatever.

The characters and squad you're with in the game had very good animations, lip sync was on point, and alongside the character animations being improved, so were the guns, which previously barely had reload animations, or the few that did had very stiff looking ones that made them look extremely robotic or at times not working at all like the dual pistols. Speaking of guns, they were also pretty good. Very responsive, shot fast, and reloaded fast as well. The hit impacts were very well made, instead of blinding me with smoke, they opted for Mortal Kombat or Doom levels of blood and having tons of sparks flying off of armor. I found this method to work much better and not stop the gameplay in its tracks like it did before.

The AI would do smart stuff like crawling as mentioned before, but another thing I liked was the enemy variety and improved scares. Beforehand, the enemies in the first game were either soldiers with guns who sounded the same throughout due to being replica clones controlled by Fettel, ghosts who exist, and maybe some heavy and melee monsters that looked really cheap. Now there's Armacham, the Replicas, failed commanders, flashy ghosts, heavies, snipers, big mechs, and armored cars, and a few others.

So a much better variety of enemies with much better animations and variety in personality. Alongside this, the scares now have much better production value, with spooky flashing and pulsating lights, fire, death, whispering, ghosts, and destruction, as well as Alma being kind of scary now, I say kind of because she's really not scary in any of these games, but this one clearly tried the hardest to make her scary. Meanwhile in Fear 1, most of the scares were pretty janky and more akin to a really bad haunted house at 3am. Needless to say, I'm not scared by shriveled up Empress Palpatine lol.

Overall, Fear 2 is a fun, if not very dumb game that improved on the original in almost every way. The only downside was that even though I think they improved the AI and their behaviors, the environments not being as open like an industrial jungle gym really hurt their presentation. The reject Halo 2 maps of the first were very flat and boring, but I can't say they were predictable by comparison. Both are good approaches, but both were dragged down in some regard, so pick your poison. I pick Fear 2 or 3, because both of them have awesome music and mech sections. As well as just being more fun and looking much better.

Horror is overrated sometimes. I think have to agree with 3's design of just having not a lot of scares, teaming up with Ghost Fettel, and killing everything you see in the tri-state area with big guns in coop. I'd love something like that in a Fear 4, like a drop in drop out spooky coop game with swappable squads and characters with different abilities and customizable guns and maybe more drivable vehicles too. Wouldn't hurt, plus I imagine if everyone's a silent dork like Pointman and Becket, it'd be fairly cheap to put together.

Anyway, Fear 2's awesome. Thanks for reading my review. Goodbye!

The PC port unmodded is very buggy, so beware of that. The gameplay didn't feel as good as the first FEAR, but it was still pretty fun. The story is about as mediocre as the first, but feels like a lot more significance is placed on it in this game. This one is also notably shorter than the first.

this game is basically just the first game but everything about it is better, and also ghost sex

Has a problem with not loading in some parts of the map sometimes, however this gets fixed by going to the last checkpoint. Other than that it's a decent game.

F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin didn't withstand the passage of time, it exceeded it. For every copy and paste modern shooter out there this game gains 10 points ahead of each one released. Why? The most recent shooters suck! That's why. Their graphics, their premise, their gun-play, their atmosphere, their artistic direction, their inability to pay attention to detail. F.E.A.R. 2, yes F.E.A.R. 2 exceeds what presently released first person shooters don't even attempt, that's artistic license and soul. What's even more amazing is that this is a console game adapted to PC.

If anyone involved with the game happens to read this, please lower your sensitivity in the game option, set on zero the sensitivity is still way to high & unplayable, i have to lower my Dpi to 400 to make it playable on zero sensitivity ingame.

Beyond that detail this is an awesome game!

I know this game is dated now but it still gives me chills when playing it an night with headphones!

Better than 95% of modern FPS and doesn't even look that bad after all those years.
Unparalleled/10.

Mouse fix & Reshade preset:
https://www.nexusmods.com/fear2projectorigin/mods/3
https://www.nexusmods.com/fear2projectorigin/mods/7

Can we get a trilogy remake?

There is a HIGH chance you will not like this game as much as FEAR 1, but that should not deter you from enjoying this game.

The thing that made FEAR 1 good is basically watered down or WORSE just flat out neglected. And its all because it came out in 2009, a Time when Consoles came first and Activision discovered an infinite money glitch with Call of Duty. The $14.99 price tag is too high for the potential value it can bring compared to FEAR 1 (it costs $9.99).

Just wait for the price drop, then its worth the money.