F.E.A.R. (360 Demo)

[EvilBoris]

Just gave this a whirl to see if there was much improvement over the Pc version.

Graphically it looks quite nice, the lighting effects are as lovely as ever although the lack of next gen texture effects makes the scenery look distinctly flat and plain. Whover said that the game must be using SD textures is wrong, I think game just doesn't has as detailed textures as newer games have, not that it really matters because after he first area you will of seen every possible texture the game has to offer and it will look bland and repetitive no matter how high detailed it is :(
The game is definately comparable to the PC version of the full settigs, it even has quite a decent amount of anti aliasing and looks jag-free

The game seems to run at a stable 30 FPS with no apparent slowdown or screen tearing.

The controls are slightly confusing at times, you get the feeling that there are too many functions to map to the 360 pad in a way that seems sensible.
It feels very much like Call Of Duty or Prey in respect it is very easy to look around, although there seems to be little/no autoaim which makes gunfight aiming very twitchy and hahazard, I dread to think how hard the later levels may be because of it.

Unfortunately there is no Multiplayer in this demo, which is a shame as it was quite good fun doing a slow mo flying kick into someone's face in a FPS.

[dvdmike]

Its a shame it runs at 30, FEAR on the pc says itself that it aims for above 40fps

[John Beaulieu]

where did you get the demo from?

[EvilBoris]

official xbox mag

[stainboy]

Bumm0rz, was getting excited there that it was on the marketplace.

[Concept]

Don't magazine exclusives somewhat defeat the point of Marketplace? I suppose they could say the opposite, but.... meh.

[chopemon]

so far there have only been three demos that appeared on mags first haven't there?

full auto, timeshift and FEAR?

isn't FEAR down to come to Marketplace as well?

[EvilBoris]

This is literally the 3rd demo that the magazine has got first, I dread to think how much lower the 360 mag sales have been compared to other consoles.

Poor multimillion pound future publishing, my heart bleeds.

At least 1 exlclusive game demo (a whole 3 days!) means that this sub I was bought isn't totally defunct.

[chopemon]

At least 1 exlclusive game demo (a whole 3 days!) means that this sub I was bought isn't totally defunct.you mean besides the high quality written content...

[dvdmike]

One whole review last month .........., I think its a good disc for people without live shame the free mag the comes with it is dross

[Team Andromeda]

The demo is ok I guess, Graphics aren't that hot, the water effects in HL II onthe X-Box look better In saying that the PC version wasn't that much of a looker in my view. Gameplay is ok but the aiming and button layout inthe demo game sucks big time But the gameplay is just a good as ever.

[Supergoal]

Its a shame it runs at 30, FEAR on the pc says itself that it aims for above 40fps

I average 55fps on my laptop with settings maxed. At 30fps that'd be a big let down.

[EvilBoris]

People would be whinging if it ran at 60FPS though, and complain about the screen tearing yadda yadda yadda. I'd rather a solid 30FPS than an unstabe 60FPS.

If I had not said anything alot of people would of thought it was 60.

[ShadowDancer]

I got this demo yesterday and thought it was pretty average overall. The aiming wasn't all that (there was a option to play with sensitivity) graphics were average, but nice lighting effects, especially the shadows, frame rate was iffy i thought, i'm pretty sure it was bordering on choppy sometimes.

If this can get fixed and tided for release it may be worth it if you haven't played it on the PC (like me!) if the demo was a good likeness of final product i wont be bothering personally.

[EvilBoris]

Weird, the framerate was solid as a rock for me, aiming was definately shite though.

[ShadowDancer]

I may have it slightly wrong...when you get to the first enemy, it looked liked the cross hair was slighly jumpy, that might be the aiming rather than frame rate, i still do think that it didn't run quite well though, certainly not shocking like quake 4, i'm not saying that.

[EvilBoris]

Are you in SD or HD?

[ShadowDancer]

was in HD.

[EvilBoris]

Even weirder, same here.

[ShadowDancer]

I'll play the demo again to see if maybe it was just the cross hair movement, i'm still sure it didn't run brilliantly, maybe i was too critical, i'll get back to this thread....

[ShadowDancer]

Well, my new HD arrived today and i got a chance to play it again, frame rate is steady, but the aiming isn't right, i'm still underwhelmed tbh, but i reckon the full game could still be decent.

[Uli]

Well, my new HD arrived today and i got a chance to play it again, frame rate is steady, but the aiming isn't right, i'm still underwhelmed tbh, but i reckon the full game could still be decent.

hmm, didn't notice this with the games convention built i played. can you adjust the sensitivity in the demo?

[ShadowDancer]

You can.

[Uli]

You can.

and, no use?

[ShadowDancer]

and, no use?
I personally found it a bit loose, maybe someone else could get it better, but for me, too loose. I'm not writing the game off though, i heard mostly positive things said about the PC game and i'm pretty sure that the 360 can equal or if not better that.

[EvilBoris]

I think it is because there is next to no auto aim, so your cursor is flying over and around enemies and not sticking to them at all.

[Wools]

Just played this.

It looks identical to the PC version with a nice frame rate, so it's PC perfect. However control is a little twitchy for my liking but the button layout is fantastic.

The game itself looks brilliant with a great atmosphere, combat is meaty and brilliant fun just like Half Life 2 and it is jumpy.

Brillaint conversion and I'm very impreessed with the game. Looking forward to the finished game.

[dvdmike]

Just played this.

It looks identical to the PC version with a nice frame rate, so it's PC perfect. However control is a little twitchy for my liking but the button layout is fantastic.

The game itself looks brilliant with a great atmosphere, combat is meaty and brilliant fun just like Half Life 2 and it is jumpy.

Brillaint conversion and I'm very impreessed with the game. Looking forward to the finished game.What rig are you running it on ? mine looks so much better the textures are lower res, the effects are lessened, ie the slowmo fire looks like a texture and not organic

[Wools]

I dont have a fancy PC I'm affraid but I've completed the game at work. It had a ATI 9800 with 1gig of ram.

As always I know if you had a whatyoumaycallit with more Ram the game will look nicer but I'm geninuely impressed with FEAR & PREY on 360. They're smooth and good looking, so PC perfect in my eye's. :happy:

[Mardigan8]

Played the demo and totally agree on the controls issue. Needs some serious tightening!! When you try and walk its as if he is running and you cant be precise, I was walking into shit all the time and the melee stuff just wasn't working with his legs disappearing and stuff. If they tighten up the controls etc it could be really good because the presentation and mechanics are spot on from the PC version.

[anephric]

I can promise you FEAR looked better on my P4 3.2ghz/9800pro/1gig RAM rig, and that's obviously with everything not even close to maxed out.

[Wools]

Did I hit a nerve with some people? :blink:

Well it's to be expected that it looks better on a few hundred / thousand PC than a £250 console. Whatever, it's a brillant conversion.

[dvdmike]

Did I hit a nerve with some people? :blink:

Well it's to be expected that it looks better on a few hundred / thousand PC than a £250 console. Whatever, it's a brillant conversion.Nope its just the lack of a "imoh" it read as statement not opinion

[Crimson Day]

well i agree with you mate, i really enjoyed the game never played it on the pc, i dont buy into the constantly ugrading of pcs to play new games. Loved the graphics, loved the atmosphire and loved the slow motion

[Wools]

Well surely every post is someone's opinion?

If I had to type IMHO every sentance, I wouldent be able to reply to anything! :(

[dvdmike]

well i agree with you mate, i really enjoyed the game never played it on the pc, i dont buy into the constantly ugrading of pcs to play new games. Loved the graphics, loved the atmosphire and loved the slow motionBut you bought a 360 to play new games
I built my rig about 2.5 years back and company of heroes is getting rather close to my spec (2x 3.0666 xeons 2gig ram nv6800gt)
so I will build anew next year.
Thats close to how often I buy a console

Well surely every post is someone's opinion?

If I had to type IMHO every sentance, I wouldent be able to reply to anything! :(If thats true then why do I get flamed for missing it ?

Anyway back on topic this needs some major work if its going to compare to any fps, let alone FEAR pc.
The aiming is useless and in later levels on hard every shot counts

[anephric]

I'm just pissed because it's fairly poor shovelware, imo. I'm expecting much more from Monolith's own 360-bound follow-up.

Saying that, PC FEAR was resource-greedy for no real reason, as far as I could see. The spec needed to run it well was not reflected in the visual fidelity.

[dvdmike]

I'm just pissed because it's fairly poor shovelware, imo. I'm expecting much more from Monolith's own 360-bound follow-up.

Saying that, PC FEAR was resource-greedy for no real reason, as far as I could see. The spec needed to run it well was not reflected in the visual fidelity.Thats true but Monolith had little to do with 360 FEAR apart from making the game in the first place.
Blame the problems with the install that VU brought to the table and the lazy port.
It echos Far Cry and ubisoft the name will no longer sell the game as Fcpi on the 360 proved.
Im shocked that the demo of the new FEAR pc expansion is more of the same as I expected a write off

[Wools]

I was quite impressed by FEAR.

I'm all for atmosphere and FEAR has it all. The only games that have atmosphere and a fully belivable world is the Resident Evil series, Oblivion and Half Life 2. I'm so shocked by how FEAR can bring the player into it's world with only a demo. It's a solid world, well built and feel's believable. If the main game can continue in the demo's mould then it'll be one hell of a ride.

[Concept]

It's not bad in terms of atmosphere, but it's technical execution in consideration of the 360's power is fairly risible if you disregard the destructive aspects (imo etc. etc.)

Half-Life 2, released back in 2004, looks better.

I disagree with it feeling solid - it felt empty and last-gen box-like from the brief demo.

[Wools]

Surely, with FEAR being set inside offices and complex's, will come off worse compared to Half Life 2's globe trotting locales?

[Concept]

I'm referring to City 17 and not just art-style either. The problem with the demo is that the offices and the factory aren't convincing - there isn't enough detail to them. Whether that's down to difficultes with the port or a problem in the original PC version, I don't know.

[anephric]

Thats true but Monolith had little to do with 360 FEAR apart from making the game in the first place.
Blame the problems with the install that VU brought to the table and the lazy port.

I know, I know... that's why I said I had hopes for Monolith's own follow-up.

There's no excuse for 360 FEAR to look as unremarkable as it does, other than a cheapskate budget for porting it.

[anephric]

I'm referring to City 17 and not just art-style either. The problem with the demo is that the offices and the factory aren't convincing - there isn't enough detail to them. Whether that's down to difficultes with the port or a problem in the original PC version, I don't know.
The interiors in the PC version were nothing to write home about and quite drab (and got incredibly repetitive later in the game), but the particle FX and lighting/shadowing were more impressive than what's going on in the 360 demo (there's posterisation, ffs). There's also some ugly model pop which certainly wasn't there on PC.

[Wools]

I'm referring to City 17 and not just art-style either. The problem with the demo is that the offices and the factory aren't convincing - there isn't enough detail to them. Whether that's down to difficultes with the port or a problem in the original PC version, I don't know.

I imagine the original version is the host so that'll be where your problem is.

As always it's personal opinion but showing City 17 with it's brutal skyscrappers, ruined buildings, Europe inspired backdrops and chainlinked fences is easier to convey atmosphere than a office block.

However I feel Monolith have created a brutal, realstic and atmospheric world in those dank little rooms. :)

[anephric]

Monolith did a much better job with Condemned and its textural feel than it did with the identikit corridor greyness of PC FEAR. It's often so dull visually it feels like the gaming equivalent of a Hideo Nakata film (appropriately enough, since Monolith rip off The Ring at every opportunity). It's depressing, looking at the gorgeousity of the texturing in Condemned to see something as dismal and downgraded as this limp its way onto 360 a year later.

Still, it's only the demo. I can't imagine the final build looking much better, mind. They might fix the analogue/aim assist out for final release, though.

Still not buying it if it looks like this.

[mr_sockochris]

Monolith did a much better job with Condemned and its textural feel than it did with the identikit corridor greyness of PC FEAR. It's often so dull visually it feels like the gaming equivalent of a Hideo Nakata film (appropriately enough, since Monolith rip off The Ring at every opportunity). It's depressing, looking at the gorgeousity of the texturing in Condemned to see something as dismal and downgraded as this limp its way onto 360 a year later.

Still, it's only the demo. I can't imagine the final build looking much better, mind. They might fix the analogue/aim assist out for final release, though.

Still not buying it if it looks like this.

I've pretty much gotta agree with all of that. Graphically it seems a bit simple and I didn't really like the aiming controls. Call of Duty 2 has spoilt me. I'll still get it, I never got to play the PC one properly due to my crappy PC specs, but it'll be a <£20 buy for me on the evidence of the demo.

[Uli]

had problems with aiming while moving in slow motion. apart from that the controls worked surprisingly well. i think the textures (e.g. the uniforms) are not on par with the PC version. but hopefully this is just the demo.

[IanE]

After reading and hearing of a load of negative impressions, I've now played the game and it's pretty darn good. Better than on any PC I've played, very nice if a little bare (by design).

[MartyG]

Yeah, I came away with the same impression. Having not played the PC version I can't compare, but I thought the demo was packed with atmosphere, ran nice and smoothly and looked pretty good. Nice tight controls too.

Reading what's been posted here I was expecting a pilo o' poo - might even pick this one up.

[Uli]

Reading what's been posted here I was expecting a pilo o' poo - might even pick this one up.

i've played a hell of a lot of FPS and F.E.A.R. is one of the very best. just don't expect a well working blend of FPS and Silent Hill-style horror adventure. this is a very pure shooter with some tactical elements. the shallow horror elements are copy-pasted from some japanese movies and seem to be made up for better marketing only. however, the game has a very creepy atmosphere!

[MJ]

Apart from the low res graphics and choppy frame rate, I enjoyed the Marketplace demo; the shotgun was messy!

[EvilBoris]

I found the lack of horror in the full game rather dissapointing, hopefully they have rectified this in the 'improved' 360 version

[Yoshimax]

I've changed my mind about this having played through the demo to completion last night - I found it very, very enjoyable. The likelihood of it being purchased will lie with what else is out around the same time.

[Paulos G]

I enjoyed the demo of this too. I suspect that with all else that's coming out in November I'll end up picking it up when it hits the bargain bins.

Oh, who am I kidding - I'll no doubt cave within a couple of weeks!

[Kotatsu Neko]

i've played a hell of a lot of FPS and F.E.A.R. is one of the very best. just don't expect a well working blend of FPS and Silent Hill-style horror adventure. this is a very pure shooter with some tactical elements. the shallow horror elements are copy-pasted from some japanese movies and seem to be made up for better marketing only. however, the game has a very creepy atmosphere!It does suffer from repetition though. There are only a few enemies throughout the entire game, and the environments are mostly very samey office/warehouse type affairs.

The shooter mechanics are good though, no doubt about that, I just prefer an FPS with something extra in it to keep it interesting... like Half Life 2 or Prey.

[Mofoman]

I really enjoyed this demo, really enjoyed it, I thought the atmosphere was just incredibl;e, it was very, very creepy and had me shiting myself to see what was round the next xorner.I feel this would have been totally lost if they had enemies all over the place, it kept you on the edge with it's lack of enemies.

Aiming was the only thing that really dissapointed me in the whole demo, I felt like others it was a bit imprecise, but hey it's a demo and there is time to tighten it up and there is an option to adjust the sensitivity which I never used either.

Just my opinion but I thought the demo was scary and it got across the "horror" theme to me.I never had a chance to play the pc game due to my shit set up so I can't comment on comparisons with the pc game.

[EvilBoris]

I thought exactly the same thing when I played the PC demo "this is fantastic" but I found the full game to become tedious and repetive with scary moments few and far between.

[Crisp_Rapper]

i quite like this, good solid fps...

[Kotatsu Neko]

i quite like this, good solid fps...Solid is a good way to sum it up. Competant, reasonable, decent, etc.

Fine if that's all you're expecting but if you want more it can leave you a little deflated. I kept waiting for the PC version to really ramp it up and go bananas, but it never really does. It's pretty much the same as demo over and over and over.

[weightgain]

Really enjoyed the demo - slow mo better increase as the game goes on tho - only a few secs worth !!!!!

[Kotatsu Neko]

Really enjoyed the demo - slow mo better increase as the game goes on tho - only a few secs worth !!!!!it's does if memory serves, but not by much.

[Crisp_Rapper]

Solid is a good way to sum it up. Competant, reasonable, decent, etc.

it's just i haven't played a solid fps for a good while, this felt nice and chunky...

[Yoshimax]

He likes dem chunkz :D