FEAR 2: Project Origin

[audioave10]

Left For Dead is a Valve/Steam product. The problem with a non-
Steam game on Steam is that you don't have control over files,
mods and changes you might want to make. Steam is a good online
service for online MP people except when new games come out and too many people are trying to install at the same time. Many who
bought FEAR2 retail disks could not install it until Steam was ready for the activation. Some had to wait over 24 hours even though they had the retail product in their hands. This is crap for us that just want to play the single-player offline game.

[Balious]

Ah I understand now. Although I hate steam for being crappy at times (like somehow causing half-life 2 to be corrupted and had to reinstall and had to reinstall left 4 dead twice. One because it kept turning my comp off and the 2nd because I couldn't join anything to do with multiplay and it randomly froze twice. 3rd time so far is okay )

I don't understand why for retail people can't just install it and play it like most games. I understand Left 4 Dead as thats from Valve but other games that rely on steam.
Why can't they have like both? Football Manager 2009 is an example that has two options of install. One being steam the other being unilock (from what I can tell its just a normal install). I kind of understand how steam could be easier to use for the not needing disk thing but the rest is just crap.

[EggChen]

I would not mind if the game was authenticated through STEAM... but I'm not installing STEAM to do it. I try and keep my PC as clean as possible, only installing what will be used a lot.

My issue with STEAM is time. I installed and played the Left 4 Dead demo one night, next night I clicked on the Left 4 Dead demo, and waited a total of 15 minutes before I could play it.

By the sound of it I'm not getting this game

[Nightwatch]

Thanks guys, so Game for Windows seems to be the lesser of the two evils. I would prefer to live without either of them though.
One of the best ways I can think of is getting a good firewall and stop any programs that you see as not safe enough from going to the internet, blocking their way out.

I've downloaded the FEAR 2 demo, but haven't had chance to play it yet. I might check it for a few minutes in the weekend. But, no matter how much I may like the demo, if the retail game forces me to install STEAM (other than just going there and activating the game) I'm afraid I won't be buying the game.

[audioave10]

Game publishers just don't "get it". Like the US bankers that made
50 million dollars last year while their banks were failing. They
should be taken out in the backyard and shot with a Deagle!

[Balious]

Guys I have a question. Whats worser? Having to use Steam or knowing that EA published the game? (think spore)

I guess I ask my friend how fear 2 is with the installing part.

[EggChen]

I'm usually not fussed who published the game, I care about my "experience" when installing it.

I got GTA IV for Christmas, but would never have brought it. Out of respect for the person who brought it I installed, played, and admittedly loved the game. The "experience" of installing it was a nightmare, that lasted for days!!

Balious - Would be great if you could share details on the install, I would like to get this game, and I will get it one way or another

I'd prefer to get it in the manner in which I don't break the law and I do get to play multiplayer.....

[Balious]

Bad news for those that hate steam here. It is only steam install according to my friend. Although he made a rather good point. You can just turn steam onto offline and you won't recieve any updates won't ruin you game. And I admit this is better then having a limited number of activations for some games (spore anyone?).

And heres what I think about steam. Sure its annoying and sometimes makes you wait ages for some games to startup and may ruin it with waiting for updates but still look at the advantages to it. You don't need the disk to do anything like play or install (part from first time if its retail). In my opinion I think its worth it having to use steam if you want to play a really good game (left 4 dead & fear 2 for example).

[audioave10]

It's usually the Publishers who decide how your installation will go
and what DRM is used. However, since I do have a Steam account,
I might as well use it for this. I'll probably wait to see who gives it a "sale" price first.

[EggChen]

It's usually the Publishers who decide how your installation will go
and what DRM is used.

... yep, I should have thought of that

I was thinking in a "fighting globalisation and corporate entities" mode when I said I didn't care about who publishes a game, now I realise what Balious actually meant!!

I obviously will not discuss details, but I am getting FEAR 2, just won't be able to play online.

To the publishers (not that they will ever get the message) : I would have brought this you gamer-hating morons!!! You are creating piracy not preventing it.

[Balious]

I obviously will not discuss details, but I am getting FEAR 2, just won't be able to play online.

If I am honest I seem to be doing this also. I mainly do this to try the game out to see if its fun (stalker for example I tried it then later on I brought it). I will eventually buy FEAR 2 but it may be quite a while due to having no money.

Anyway maybe this thread could be called FEAR 2 now that the full game is released. Also I wonder how many people would expect the ending of this game. I never think that would happen.

[EggChen]

Anyway maybe this thread could be called FEAR 2 now that the full game is released. Also I wonder how many people would expect the ending of this game. I never think that would happen.

[EggChen]

Console game through and through

Why do they do it?

- No leaning round corners
- Actions cannot be mapped to extra mouse buttons like those on the side
- Huge amounts of mouse acceleration (I keep losing track of where I am looking)
- Everything is signposted (weapons, medkits and ammo are highlited in your HUD)
- Enemy AI is worse then the first game!
- In 16:10 widescreen you get a "letterbox" effect. Only truly supports 16:9 (ratio for TV's not monitors)

http://img246.imageshack.us/img246/2736 ... 225oo0.jpg

I am on the 3rd level, and while fun at times, I enjoyed the original far more, and I think average is the verdict. It does run like a dream and is well optimised, if you can max STALKER you can probably max this.

[Nightwatch]

damn! I was looking for this game and expecting it to be a hit actually. Too bad. However, unless people who have now started to play do not say it's absolutely rubbish, I still want to get it and play it. So, I would (and I guess many others as well) appreciate if you can describe the installation process, I mean in respect of its "activation process" it'll be very useful. As you know, I'm worried about the necessity (if) to steam servers and let them instal any stuff in order to have this activation go through.

[EggChen]

Hey buddy, I cannot describe the activation process I went through.... forum rules if you know what I mean

I gathered from a previous post by Balious that you have to get a STEAM account and install STEAM to install this game, so I took another route. I don't recommend piracy but in these credit crunch times when paying customers get a worse experience than pirates, the publishers are naive to say the least.

As for the game, don't get me wrong, I will finish it and for the most part enjoy it. There are just these nagging console-itis things all the time to bring me back down to earth and ruin immersion. This may sound weird, but it looks too much like a video game... I'll get a screengrab and put it here later.

Edit: http://www.mediafire.com/imageview.php? ... nn&thumb=6

Notice the medkit you can see through walls, the glowing gun above the corpse (it pulsates as well) and the marker round the other gun which is almost off screen far left.

The gunfights so far have been cool, and the AI is better than most games, but its not surprising me like it did in FEAR. I don't just mean the little tricks like flipping a table. In FEAR I could hold up in a position and if there were two approaches I would never know which way they would come (often from both approaches). Some of that may have been because the level design in FEAR allowed the AI to use that tactic, FEAR 2 feels more linear so far. Despite them dropping grenades on death, no enemy has thrown one at me yet, despite taking cover on a number of occasions to reload. It's also too easy, I'm playing it on hard and used my first ever medkit on level 3...... I have been shot plenty of times, it just seems like the army I am facing brought a few too many bullet proof vests and leave one in the next room after every gunfight. Interestingly as well, even in slowmo when I know I have shot them in the head it takes a couple of bullets, sometimes 3 or 4 from the SMG. So there is a homage to vanilla STALKER (I presume thats why they did it, unless bullet proof balaclavas have been developed).

So far in FEAR 2 I feel like Bruce Willis in Die Hard 3, hard as nails, but a puppet being told where to go and what (exactly) to do. At one point I had to find a secret door in a room, lets just say the secret switch to the secret door was pretty easy to spot, with an earlier clue and a big ass light pointing at it..... oh and the "Press E to activate" hud icon that pops up all the time. Did I mention console-itis things breaking immersion? Seriously, why do we need to be reminded what the keys are? I have an attention span of more than two seconds and a mind that is not screwed by years of substance abuse and apathy, I can remember which key I pressed 1 minute ago to activate something.

There is something about the FEAR part of it as well, maybe as a result of playing the first game, but it just does not scare me. I think it may be that the visions and apparitions of Alma are done with far too much frequency. I understand from a timeline point of view (this game starts roughly at the end of FEAR 1) but it does not work because tension is not built up.

Oh and if your wondering how you get super slowmo reflexes when your not related to Alma.... lets just say technology has moved on since the first game (despite the timeline) and you are enhanced by a "procedure".

Shit, this is turning into a rant!! Another console symptom, no screenshot key, you have to use "PrtScn", exit game, open an image editor and paste.

I don't know if you can tell, but I'm just not buying into this game (in the spirit of FEAR 2 that was another hint to my opening sentance for the console kiddies!).

[Nightwatch]

Thanks for the very good in-depth review of the game, just from the players heart and mind point of view, telling exactly what you'd get from this game.
Hmm...I didn't like the sound of the activation process that is tried to forced onto the "paying" consumer. I'm still in the view of (like many others) these enforcements are the infringements of human rights, let alone consumer rights. What's this? George Orwell's 1984? I may be too sensitive on these issues maybe, and this is just my opinion, I'm not advocating that anyone should follow this line, but I'm getting irritated more and more by the increasing grip of STEAM over the computer users and I absolutely have no reason to trust them more than I would trust the person who may sell hotdogs at the corner. I haven't seen the full script of their STEAM software and I do not have the ability to monitor and verify the traffic while they are in my PC, so I may be inclined to follow your procedure at the end.

[EggChen]

An update for those interested, I have given up on this game after 3 (smallish) levels.

I cannot cope with the mouse acceleration, it is really severe. I'm not a busetibi level FPS pro, but I am pretty good, almost instantly flicking to the next target and taking them out.

However, in FEAR 2 I am getting shot by dumb AI because of the controls (notice I said "shot" not "killed", despite the problems, even on hard I am yet to die once). What happens is you get a flash of gunfire and can tell someone is to the side of you, flick the mouse, go "huh?" realise you turned about 270 degrees rather than 90, and you are now being shot in the back. Some people may think you can adjust your movements to compensate, but no, if I move the mouse slower to prevent acceleration I'm still getting shot because it takes too long.

Google has yet to find anything on disabling this acceleration, but plenty of people moaning about the same thing.

Consoles will be the end of PC gaming, not for their popularity, power or the titles, but because of shoddy console games being touted as PC games.

[Nightwatch]

Consoles will be the end of PC gaming, not for their popularity, power or the titles, but because of shoddy console games being touted as PC games.

That's a very valid and very good point.

[EggChen]

Giving this a second attempt, it is still an effing console game, but I am actually having fun. Some geniune scares, and intense firefights (though the AI seems worse than the first game, but they are still good).

The 1.2 patch has allowed proper 16:10 widescreen support (without the black bars) and added the option to remove the filmgrain effect. At least they do listen to feedback

Next step, remove the hud, shimmering weapons and screen prompts to "Press E to wipe your arse", etc, etc.

I'm trying my old FEAR trick of never using slowmo, and it is much more fun and challenging. They have also upped the gore factor, do we really need to see spinal columns? Well.... yes

http://www.mediafire.com/imageview.php? ... wt&thumb=6