Fear Effect first impressions

[02.26.00] » Are beautiful FMV and solid gameplay mutually exclusive? Maybe not.

   It's been frequently said that Fear Effect looks like a cross between Blade Runner and Akira. But now that the title has been released, how does it play? Somewhat like a cross between survival horror (read: Resident Evil) and old-school adventure games like Flashback or Out of This World. While the mix is initially potentially confusing, gamers will soon master Fear Effect's unique style.

   The game begins as Hana is dropped off on a Hong Kong rooftop--her supposed rendezvous nowhere in site. She inflitrates the building, trying to discover the fate of her missing "friend." Needless to say, she soon finds herself over her head.

   Fear Effect plays a lot like one of Capcom's survival horror titles. In addition to the traditional character relative movement scheme, Hana has running and crouching walks, as well as a 180-degree turn. Unique to Fear Effect is an "evade" manuever. By holding L2 and pushing the control pad, Hana will take a small roll in that (character relative) direction, deftly avoiding enemy attacks and gunfire. While seemingly difficult at first, running, crouching, and rolling soon becomes second nature to the player.

   Hana's energy is also handled in a creative manner. Instead of the traditional "health meter," Hana has a "fear meter." Events like defusing bombs and confronting heat-packing opponents increase her fear meter. The higher her fear meter goes, the more vulnerable she becomes. To succeed, gamers must play calmly and aggressively, mastering their "fear" and facing the game's challenges head on.

   Something different from your standard survival horror paradigm is that, in Fear Effect, gamers will die a lot. As in the aforementioned old-school adventure titles, progress is made via incremental play-die-repeat loops. While some gamers will quickly fit into the groove, others will never quite be at ease with the backtracking and replaying necessary to survive.

   Aesthetically, Fear Effect is extremely gorgeous. The barrage of FMV-rendered backgrounds can be overwhelming. It can sometimes be difficult to find "hotspots" through the compression artifacts, but the interface helpfully pops up whenever Hana approaches an interactive location. One glaring mark against Fear Effect is the large load time after each (often unavoidable) death--a quick restore would be much appreciated.

   Still, any game that lets you simultaneously head-shot two opponents has a lot going for it. First impressions of Fear Effect are very positive; look for the full review in a few days.