Review by: Tracy Erickson

President Franklin D. Roosevelt proclaimed in his first inaugural address the "only thing we have to fear is, fear itself"--that includes the sequel. There's plenty of reason to be fearful of this lackluster sequel, although the cheap scares that pepper the mediocre action certainly are one of them. F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin is a scary reminder of the thin line that separates phenomenal shooters from the ordinary. While the game offers a decent presentation and satisfying mechanics, the final package is not the sum of its parts; instead, it ends up teasing great action without ever delivering it.

Picking up before the conclusion of the first game, F.E.A.R. 2 has you lacing up the boots of Sgt. Michael Becket in an operation to locate Armacham president Genevieve Aristide. The mission turns sours as the city of Auburn experiences a destructive blast that obliterates the local population and levels the city center. Armacham black ops forces descend upon the crumbling streets in search of Aristide, while inexplicable psychic disturbances haunt the members of Becket's squad. The arrival of genetically cloned soldiers and bizarre creatures complicate matters, forcing Becket to find a means to end the madness.

It's a story that has potential, yet never fulfills it through the course of more than a dozen single player missions. Becket doesn't know what's going on for the first half of the game, wandering through hospital hallways and office buildings with little sense of direction. The attempt at suspense and mystery works for the first few missions, but wears away as plot points trickle in at an annoyingly slow rate. Even as the game ends, you're never given satisfying answers to the questions that the game poses. What you suspect from the start--the psychic disruptions are all Alma's doing--is validated too late in the game to be a compelling point. The game's ending, which can hardly qualify as providing narrative closure, introduces more questions than answers. More details regarding the plot are gathered via the 76 intelligence files scattered through the game than the cutscenes and dialogue.

The game hardly lays out a convincing tale, which leaves gameplay to perform double duty. Unfortunately, it's painfully mediocre. The visuals and interface have evolved with the new generation, yet the gameplay lags behind. Razor-sharp enemy intelligence no longer impresses and surprising action set pieces are now predictable. Quite surprisingly, enemies are nowhere near as smart as in the first game. Rocket launcher-equipped units can be witnessed killing themselves in stupid attempts to shoot at you through solid objects, their rocket fire blasting themselves to bits. Only snipers seem to have any sense about them, taking aim at you with haste whenever you make yourself visible. In the few sections laden with snipers, the game actually poses a challenge and forces you to work for every kill and think before running through the repetitive environments.