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

[@MandaloreGaming]

FEAR on GOG - gog.la/FLASHLIGHT THE LIST - docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1_K3ziSxT9zcUUGCddS4sF1uNJTWHSbOwB1CQX2Rx4Uo Please post local legends/monsters that could've been fought instead of Alma again. Bonus points if they're in groups canonically.

[@DelishushSchrambleSchmeg]

Notif Gang

[@lastgamecube9688]

Groypers

[@samtemdo8]

Should have done Vampire Bloodlines for this month.

[@FunnyJapaneseGirl]

Please put an epilepsy warning next time my man :)

[@katanatsunami]

Chupacabras. Imagine a FEAR game set in an old Mexico town. Western Horror!

[@GugureSux]

25:20 Funfact: originally, the FEAR's story about Alma and Paxton Fettel were all meant to be one single "case" in a vastly bigger FEAR series. So each game would have a FEAR squad go after some other spooky incident, somewhere else. The sequels, and to a degree the version of FEAR1 we got, did render those chances practically impossible.

[@julianmorales-silva160]

Soooooo SCP?

[@az12223]

@@julianmorales-silva160 no?

[@coaxill4059]

I really do feel like by the time they were making FEAR 2, they had somehow forgotten everything they learned in the development of the first. It really is quite sad. There was so much potential. This just confirms it.

[@essex3777]

The only F.E.A.R. I really liked was the first, the 3rd I didn't like the combat and just didn't _feel right_ . The second still had some bad combat but to a lesser degree, only feeling stiff, but most of the problems were story and characters.

[@Mixu.]

That's actually what I thought the game would be back when I had only seen a few minutes of creepy gameplay of it. Feels bad to know it's not that.

[@audiosurfarchive]

"Beckett is no more of a character than the syringe that gave Alma her first two kids." _Damn._

[@niwatorimeat]

How Beckett's treated in 3 really reinforces this point too :/

[@1r0zz]

@@niwatorimeat because fear3 was written by and for the guys hating fear2...so people who do not understand fear1 at all

[@dangerdonkey4383]

@Maintenance Renegade Nice Futurama reference

[@zayl777]

Oof...

[@1r0zz]

@@Spr1ggan87 I do not say it's "good", I say it's made by people who designed it "against" Fear2 for the vocal people against FEAR2... the problem of "vox populi" is that many times what you perceive from the people is not what you should do, as masses tend to simplify "negatives". the "designer" (if even there was people doing that...) of F3AR watched what the perception of what people "liked": the badly written Expansion packs, Pointman as a murder-machine, interest to Fettel as some sort of protagonist, firefights, the "construction" of the esoteric antagonist, hallucinations, the "family" thing ecc. and made a game out of that. ironically missing the "point" of everything... the expansion packs were liked because they were an excuse for "more FEAR 1 gameplay", even tho they seriously have a ton of problem present in FEAR2 that are simply ignored. the pointman was a murder-machine in FEAR1, true, but it was because it was a "low key" narrative element (he is a better fighter because he is one of Alma's Son) and simply because he was the main character of a shooter where you face off circa 500 replica... his portrayal in F3AR as some sort of superhero is frankly childish and his stance as the "stoic good guy" is insanely cheesy... Fettel in FEAR1 was a "narrative tool" to explain the story. originally wasn't even the prominent bad guy as there was a separate character leading the replica... his overblown importance is very much fanfiction-y, his presence is just because "he was there". the true focus of FEAR1 is Alma... and F3AR managed to fuck up her design... FIrefights was interesting not because they were "firefights against armed dudes" but because they were Firefights IN FEAR combat system... the reactivity and the "emergent" structure of the fights present in FEAR1 and still present even if less pure in FEAR2. the construction of the Esoteric also was completely disingenuous, in FEAR universe not everyone can become a super monster and not everything becomes "esoteric". there is a structure and a reason behind the "monsters". Alma is a super-psychic that trasended the limit of physicality (much like Akira and Tetsuo in Akira), Fettel wasn't that powerful, surely Wade wasn't anything, and the "craizies" are as far away from what FEAR "lore" is as humanly possible. the rejects in FEAR2 aren't insane because Alma makes people nuts, they are insane because they are rejects of forcing the link connection with Replica Soldiers (something actually present in FEAR1 story, but not shown) that instead "linked" with Alma, same as Fettel, but completely unable to "keep up" as him. the *only* reason why Beckett managed to keep up was because Alma "liked" him... Hallucinations weren't "stuff that just happened" in FEAR1 and FEAR2, I mean technically they were in a mechanical sense, but not in narrative. FEAR1 hallucinations were the link between Alma and Pointman due their relation. in FEAR 2 they are the result of the forced "link" between Alma and Beckett (this is why they are more "visually" confused, they cause severe pain to beckett, as we can see since the other soldier who gets them is ruined by them and leads him to insanity...) and the worse thing is the "family" thing. while Alma in FEAR1 is not "helping" her sons, they aren't obviously her enemies (they tend to get vaporize), but it's kinda obvious that Fettel is doing everything to free his mother, even sacrifice himself to his brother (probably knowing that the destruction of the sphere would free Alma instead of killing her). there is NOTHING in his character that define him as power-hungry or even really antagonistic to his brother (he could have murdered him on the roof of the first level...) he sends Replica against him to slow him down...and probably to lead him to know his past? he could very well just act as a proxy of Alma the whole time... we didn't need some stupid fanfiction "life story" of him and pointman, and surely not something so bloody silly as some sort of "generated hate" between the two (as said before Fettel does not really "hate" him). frankly the whole "family plot" as already resolved in FEAR1, it was already "spent"... F3AR is too short? it's terrifying considering they literally didn't had even enough plot for THAT... half the game is padding through the most "gamey" way... they are " a zombie" away to be the less creative game ever, and the craizies are already half "zombie-level" character design. (zombies by themselves are the cheapest enemy character you can came up with in a videogame, as they ALL use the same movement and AI and you can just generate them easily...every good game with "zombies" actually mutates them in something more interesting). it's the only game that I NEED to put a graphic injector in as they not only desaturated the look, but also made it incredibly low contrast. it literally HURTS my eyes as the game "blurs" into a dirty sludge every time I turn the camra... even The Order isn't that painful to watch. and the only games that "managed" to put single-Coop hybrid campaigns, excluding mods, are Army of Two 40th day and Resident Evil 5 and 6... there is also Dead Space 3 that is playable, but we are talking about Dead Space 3... the only way F3AR would have been good, it was if it wasn't anything like F3AR... one of the few game in existence that I cannot find any saving element, and I find them even in game I HATE...

[@hiimmeurnot]

The full line was "You're like free pizza at an anime convention. She can SMELL you. she WANTS TO CONSUME you!"

[@doloresmeatrestauranteater1451]

what the fuck

[@DragonWinter36]

I don’t know why the fuck Mandalore thought that was bad writing, that’s the best thing I’ve ever heard

[@youngkappakhan]

Normally I'd agree that this line is awful, but I think they were just trying to imply that whatever the fuck his name was I can't remember was an otaku and con-goer, so it's spoken within his frame of reference. I remember the pseudonym he went by being embarrassingly edgy and there's also the fact that he wears a Shogo shirt, which was an anime inspired game (you can chalk it up to Monolith just calling back to an earlier game of theirs for the heck of it, but this particular use of the callback makes me feel that way)

[@youngkappakhan]

In short it's not as sinful the extremely fucking dated and out-of-touch "I feel like a Japanese schoolgirl" one-liner from Serious Sam 4

[@xavierrodriguez2463]

@@youngkappakhan describing it as sinful just made that quote 1 million times better lmfao Im fuckin dead

[@dominicmurphy8986]

"It is convenient that F.E.A.R. 2 has an image of a large ball being dropped." Simple, incisive and hilarious, thank you Mandalore.

[@leramar]

Man, I really want to see what a F.E.A.R. Anthology series would have been like. The squad traveling all over the world dealing with supernatural threats sounds awesome.

[@I_Made_it_Up]

its sad, its the same thing that happened to halloween movie series. now we just get terrible shit with mike instead of a cool anthology

[@TheSweetTeaGuy]

@@I_Made_it_Up Friday the 13th was originally going to be a horror anthology series too after the 1st movie but obviously there was a change of plans.

[@ryngobrody1627]

Trepang2 is basically that

[@FoiledYetAgain]

Milestone achieved: Mandalore says the word "doujin"

[@reanamet1901]

The way he pronounced it gave me an aneurysm though.

[@GearsofDutyHa1o4Dead]

i believe he actually said "dalgin"

[@sanuki3579]

Darn, I missed that part. Please give me the time stamp, and I will reward you with a doujin of Jotaro X Joseph.

[@MrDrManPerson]

@@sanuki3579 24:57 , keep that link though, dont really want it lol.

[@blankblankpog]

@STORM LORD The problem is currently he's on meds, if something is slipping between his personalities it could be dangerous for him. Mandy could be taken over by his crazier personality

[@dzheliezniak]

6:20 Blood is red. Dress red. Caveman brain know Alma bad news.

[@coachrenaldo]

“You’re like free pizza at an anime convention.” Well, at least it’s better than being an anime fan on prom night.

[@lordfriedrick7911]

Or a woman cosplayer in a hentai convention

[@Linzmaus]

Dry Meme

[@Soneheve]

Ouch

[@rockstickcomics]

Nice profile pic

[@casedistorted]

Coach Renaldo I was into some anime in early 2000’s in HS and still got laid by my ex using non lubricated condoms on prom night. I bought the wrong kind in a rush to get laid, don’t judge me.

[@simonaspalovis1204]

I like how you described the F.E.A.R. team as “Ghostbusters meets Rainbow Six”, because I played the original F.E.A.R. as if I was a memeber of SWAT - I almost always moved slowly, checking all corners and using the lean feature quite often to peek around, before moving up. It was really fun and immersive.

[@giorgialadashvili4771]

I love how Armacham was retconned from a large, but still fairly conventional military-industrial corporation to a shadow mega-organization with mecha robots and private armies putting Umbrella Corporation to shame. The sheer amount of facilities they have in the city is just ridiculous. I get one, maybe two, but five?! There's simply no way it could have been kept as a secret.

[@marrvynswillames4975]

Yeah, finished it last week and the sheer size of the underground tunnel that leads to Still Island is too big for it to work, unless, idk, Armachan effectivelly owns the entire city and got the government to remain shut about it

[@giorgialadashvili4771]

@@marrvynswillames4975 It somehow gets even worse in the third one, when they effectively supplant the US military. I guess at that point, Armacham is ruling over the entire US, if not the world, which runs contrary to the first game, when the impression one gets, was, that the mysterious Senator from the intro was running the things.

[@Абобачек175]

I heard that it's a taboo to make the us soldiers an enemies in videogames, so they just made company really powerfull just not to involve military

[@ShadowPillX64]

Area 51? Deep underground military bases in real life. Most people go to work and then go home.

[@BlackPillVillain]

Area 51. Secret deep underground military bases today are top secret also.

[@Jarekthegamingdragon]

I don't see cooking grenades as an improvement since F.E.A.R. 1 grenades were contact grenades and were much easier to bank off walls into your enemies. They're easily the best grenades in any game I've played. Add the big shockwave effect and it's so satisfying. 11:30 THANK YOU! This is my biggest problem with so many games. Clown closets are never fun. It is far more satisfying to take on a squad of enemies with good AI.

[@MandaloreGaming]

You’re probably right since I preferred contact grenades as well. I was really looking for anything at all that could be a step up in 2.

[@Jarekthegamingdragon]

@@MandaloreGaming I just tried to heart your comment then realized I wasn't on my own channel lol

[@marysunshine9193]

Why not just have both. Problem solved.

[@Robert399]

I'd also say the infinite flashlight is a negative. Having your torch battery ticking down added to the tension of the scary bits.

[@okagron]

@@Robert399 Yeah, everytime it went out in the first game, i felt more defendless.

[@UnhealthyTherapy]

"We endured that together. Next time will be better". Can't wait, Mandalore. Can't wait.

[@goliver9991]

I can only think of painkiller

[@MalkHead]

I bet it's Clive Barker's Undying

[@steven.2602]

Its gonna be dusk, boys, Time for some throwback FPS greatness!

[@KM-H-tu4eo]

I bet the next one will be Monmusu Quest by Sseth.

[@skycat1820]

Weird, I genuinely liked fear 2 more than fear. *shrug* I'm odd that way I guess.

[@thirstysailor579]

“You are worthy.” DUSK TIME

[@hiddenshadow2105]

My thoughts exactly, even since last video.

[@apaullo2115]

He even showed 2 seconds of it with the riveter

[@ceresta1732]

Man I can't wait. One of my new favorite games!

[@LittleMushroomGuy]

@Old World Blues a Blood review would be nice tho

[@Deadsnake989]

@@apaullo2115 Akshully, it was the Mortar, even says it in the middle of the screen.

[@Toupalacy]

The part where the bad guys where gonna attack on 3 and only one dude peaked his head out killed me

[@Lokislav]

that part was badly played by OP, but you can't blame him, I for example used a different route and the moment I heard them readying up, I cooked my grenade... perfect timing, it was designed for exactly that imho, but shit happens, I sometimes miss jumpscare scenes because I look the other way

[@TheComradeBritish]

"Clown car fighting" is now the technical term.

[@StrikeWarlock]

Fitting since one of the games that popularized that type of gameplay is a Clown fiesta

[@Ribbons0121R121]

yeah thats accurate atleast games like mindustry get away with this because its a tower defense game

[@s.a.l.1974]

this weird dream again, deja vu

[@Nightfurygaming247]

When i die, i want to make a loud bass boosted sound too.

[@fuzzydunlop7928]

You will, out of your ass. It will be awkward for everyone still breathing.

[@benox50]

that detail in the video was amazing

[@andrewstewart1464]

Me: *dies* Also me: 🅱

[@worldoftancraft]

@@andrewstewart1464 ruh

[@UnhealthyTherapy]

I legit said "Ah hell yeah" when I got the notification. I love Mandalore and his reviews

[@MizantropMan]

Same.

[@markwaring3638]

Same

[@Guyfrom2001]

MizantropMan same

[@punishedredruby]

Same.

[@lonelyheartproductions5237]

Didn't like this one much I must say :/

[@FumblsTheSniper]

Sadly this series potential was totally wasted. Hit the nail on the head when he pointed out the potential of the concept of the FEAR teams.

[@kallemort]

I wish someone would buy the IP, reboot it but insert references that FEAR 1 was canon. Then just create the past and future adventures of paranormal SWAT.

[@FumblsTheSniper]

kallemort exactly. I could list off a dozen good types of horror games that would be easy to skin over a FPS

[@chip9649]

Didn't persus mandate reference other mission they had taken?

[@JewTube001]

@@kallemort what's the point of buying the IP though? just call it something else. they aborted the original concept of FEAR before the first game even came out, so there's nothing worth inheriting from it.

[@tylerkelley4788]

@@kallemort or FEAR: II (202X).. and just pretend that FEAR 2 and FEAR 3 aren't canon and ignore any complaints to the contrary

[@jennifermunro4374]

As someone who does lighting for video as a profession, it makes me happy to know that people appreciate and notice good uses of lighting. Games or not, lighting makes the atmosphere.

[@meteor22]

Couldn't agree more. Same can be said for music which I feel is another critical element that often goes under appreciated but makes a massive difference.

[@jonah3985]

When I was playing FEAR 2 it was summer so I had my shirt off. I was playing in the pitch dark save for my monitor and just as I was rounding a corner in the game a bat flew into my room and landed on my chest. About the only scare I got out of the game, honestly.

[@jennibeanthesweetsqueen5245]

Did it bite? Are u ok?

[@madcourier6217]

@@jennibeanthesweetsqueen5245 Bats often carry rabies. So let's hope he didn't get bitten. XD

[@jonah3985]

@@jennibeanthesweetsqueen5245 I don't think it bit me, no. However, I've heard bat teeth are actually so small and so razor sharp a lot of folks don't even feel it when they get bitten by them. Which is especially frightening given that they're one of the leading carriers of rabies. And yes, I'm okay!

[@olisk-jy9rz]

@@jennibeanthesweetsqueen5245 Bats biting like pitbulls in heat is a myth bound to the vampire wolrd. Why would a bat ever bite you? They eat flies for fucks' sake.

[@andyjacobs7010]

@@olisk-jy9rz I'm not very educated on rabies, but I do know animals with rabies lose a degree of control, hence they may bite a human despite not being normal human biter.

[@lorddirt5532]

This game’s Shotgun compared to the one in the first game broke my heart. The Elementary school segment might’ve been the scariest moment in the entire franchise though.

[@MandaloreGaming]

The shotgun is when I lost hope. It's been a few years but I can still remember the disappointment.

[@Mick824]

In a way, the Shotgun was an avatar of everything wrong with FEAR 2.

[@RetroTox]

Sensory overload ≠ scary

[@Gruntvc]

I'd take FEAR 2 over FEAR 3 any day. But yes, original is still the best one.

[@thatonebee6095]

But the sniper rifle was was one of the most satisfying I've ever seen. Even at close range. It basically worked better as a shotgun than the actual shotguns in the game. The Shark FL-3 Laser was also nice.

[@Skaitania]

I love how in the school the emergency EXIT sign doesn't flicker. Like in a park ride, where a skeleton jumps at you...in front of a green door telling you where to go if something really scary happens. Probably indicative for the state of the game. Also, Delta Force operator with a bare midriff. It's that kind of game.

[@DatcleanMochaJo]

I like how that is the main issue and not her having like a helmet or something

[@patchmoulton5438]

Ah tactical midriff. Those were the times

[@Skaitania]

@@DatcleanMochaJo Well, none of the team wear a helmet. Because they are heroes. The enemies do wear helmets.

[@alastor8091]

Female Delta Operator period.

[@sainsburyshopper]

Don’t knock the midriff; you never know when you’ll need to pop a tactical hard-on out in the battlefield.

[@TheLuc6s]

Puts daughter in chamber because she might kill everyone. Takes daughter out of chamber and is shocked she killed everyone.

[@nebeskisrb7765]

I don't think Alan Wade was shocked when he released Alma.

[@imjustsomeguy5048]

@@nebeskisrb7765 *Harlan

[@Zeon081]

"puts daughter in chamber"...sounds like a plot of a hentai doujin on nhentai.

[@Sigismund697]

@@Zeon081 not even wrong "She's become a woman and she doesn't even know it"

[@nebeskisrb7765]

@@imjustsomeguy5048 close_enough.jpg

[@dogboy0912]

It's amazing how CoD4 changed virtually every series in the fps genre.

[@ArcturusOTE]

CoD 4 was a great game but everyone kinda learnt the wrong lessons Then MW2 came and Infinity Ward mostly jumped ship

[@DakotaofRaptors]

@@ArcturusOTE I felt like I didn't get a bang for my buck with Cod 4; multiplayer aside, all you really had was campaign.

[@olisk-jy9rz]

@@DakotaofRaptors " multiplayer aside, all you really had was campaign" No shit? That's every game, genius? Actually not even, most games today only have one of the two.

[@DakotaofRaptors]

@@olisk-jy9rz MW2 and 3 had spec ops; the Black Ops series had zombies - you get more bang for your buck.

[@Stermy57HW]

Are you joking?

[@Wizuu0274]

>The first Blood game is amazing >The sequel is a disgrace >First Condemned game is great >Sequel is eh >First F.E.A.R game is still considered by some to be the greatest FPS of all time >Sequels are an insult to it Should we chalk it down as "The Monolith Sequel Syndrome"? Because it feels like NOLF and, surprisingly enough, the Middle-Earth saga (albeit it IS the responsible for Monolith now being chained to WB's basement) are the only ones to not suffer from it.

[@fuzzydunlop7928]

No, the sequel to blood is... FACKING *RAW*

[@ArcturusOTE]

@@fuzzydunlop7928 That's a weird way to spell Dusk Play Dusk it's gr8

[@keklulu332]

I've heard a lot of good stuff about 2nd Condemned, it's a shame it'll never get ported to PC :'(

[@luckycookie5994]

FEAR 2 and 3 was awesome in my opinion. Its just me

[@coolness124321]

@@luckycookie5994 You are entitled your horribly misinformed opinion

[@Henskelion]

"Or... perhaps... their minds were broken learning writing from the Nostalgia Critic." I almost spit out my food.

[@BorrisStonoyanovich]

It was so unexpected

[@Henskelion]

@@BorrisStonoyanovich My brain got crosswired and it made me think I was watching something by Chris O'Neill for a second.

[@PrutteHans]

@@Henskelion I turned on my nintendo and the nostalgia critic and peter griffin glared at me...

[@TheJubbert]

@@PrutteHans HE'S GETTING ANGRIER!

[@SeruraRenge11]

​@@Henskelion BLACK GUY, WOMAN, GET IN HERE! GET IN COSTUME! IVE SEEN AN IRREGULARITY!

[@morganraine9208]

I feel like Mandalore pronounced Doujin wrong on purpose, to throw us off the scent of his crippling hentai addiction

[@AVerySexuallyDeviantOrange]

Cesar Weizegger No, it’s because of the whole ”Sseth is Mandalore” thing. They both pronounce it in the same way, even.

[@nathanielcrosby2426]

@@AVerySexuallyDeviantOrange It's like they are the same fella. Really makes ya think, don't it?

[@AVerySexuallyDeviantOrange]

Nathaniel Crosby I’m not gonna confirm or deny anything, but I just wanna say something. I’ve never seen them both in the same room.

[@michaeljordon8298]

Is it wrong though? Are you about "u" being silent?

[@alejandrorivas4585]

@@AVerySexuallyDeviantOrange its always funny because I really dislike the sseth content and greatly enjoy the smarter analytical mandalore stuff

[@-Raylight]

I hope the next horror FPS is Condemned: Criminal Origins That game is just lovely

[@redline841]

Nah it Dusk time

[@peppermillers8361]

Condemned is closer to a sequel to FEAR than FEAR 2 is, to be honest. Hell, I can buy that they both take place in the same universe, especially with all the weird shit.

[@HadesWTF]

Condemned is honestly one of the most unsettling games I've ever played. Then the sequel just pooped on it.

[@SR-388]

I kinda want him to roast doom 3 lol

[@Deadsnake989]

@@redline841 Unworthy!

[@fmsyntheses]

'Beckett is no more of a character than the syringe that gave Alma her first two kids.' God damn that's cold-blooded.

[@Vmac1394]

I forgot the level of sheer contempt I had for this game, mostly because FEAR 3 made FEAR 2 look amazing by comparison. It has all the hallmarks of a phoned in console game from the mid to late 2000's. BLUE AND ORANGE ✓ Bloody screen so real ✓ Awful bloom and post-processing effects ✓ Blood looks like strawberry jam ✓ No story point is left to the imagination ✓ "Streamlining" to both the story and combat ✓ The whole game a rehash ✓

[@TehTezMan]

It feels so weird to say but I will never forgive them for eliminating lean.

[@ReplyequalsNerd]

Fear 2 wasnt perfect but it was way better than 3

[@marysunshine9193]

But 3 was even worse

[@okagron]

@@ReplyequalsNerd It's still crap and an huge drop in quality from the first game.

[@SiphonRayzar]

@@ReplyequalsNerd Being less crap than it's crappy sequel doesn't make Fear 2 good. It's still a poor sequel to the first game.

[@ET-Gamer]

0:14 That was about as scary as coming through the front door and having your daughter run up and jump into your arms.

[@DSFARGEG00]

Alma isn't too scary in 1 either save when she's doing things little girls don't normally do, like crabwalking through a ventilation shaft at the speed of a coked up squirrel.

[@zeuberstriker]

The dna test came back positive

[@dimas3829]

Personally, I would pet Alma any day, she's adorable.

[@AVerySexuallyDeviantOrange]

Especially since I have no daughter.

[@Strider119119]

alma is so fucking hot in this

[@davidwilson2916]

What I love most about Mandalore as a reviewer is that, even when reviewing a game that he could rightly set on fire, he still keeps it professional. It's nice to watch a video about a bad/mediocre game that actually explains what's wrong with it, rather than simply relying on its status within fan circles as justification - certainly a far cry from certain other channels.

[@Chris-ih3ke]

"You're like free pizza at an anime convention."

[@Drakyry]

What does that even mean? I've never been to an anime convention

[@crysanthiumvega]

Chicks DIG that line homie

[@msr0685]

@@Drakyry I'm guessing the joke is all weebs are fat and will bum rush free pizza like zombies in the wall scene from world war z

[@theoverlordofcats5511]

Is like an anime fan on prom night!

[@ProductofSeebach]

S N A K E F I S T

[@lonewolfM16]

Man, F.E.A.R doing the SCP thing and letting us struggle to fight and contain a ton of horrific anomalies would have been so much better than what we got.

[@mexic8l]

U've played the trilogy, haven't u?

[@trustytrest]

It's fucked how the only good SCP game is Lobotomy Corp. The actual SCP Games only show you what happens when one fuck up occurs. LC has you seeing the day to day horrors and lets you experience how the evil SCP management ends up making sacrifices out of necessity, and shit still hits the fan in countless ways.

[@calebduke2832]

I think you’re spot on about the aesthetic comparison. The scifi/supernatural elements lose their dramatic edge when every item, vehicle, prop, etc. is trying to compete for the “interesting” look. I feel like a lot of sequels struggle with this.

[@pyromancingking]

One pretty cool aspect about this game is that if enemies are lit on fire they’ll actually stop, drop, and roll then take out their pistols once the fire is put out. Doesn’t save this game but I don’t know any other game that has that.

[@leonardblazevic3118]

GTA 4 NOoSE and FIB agents

[@collin1061]

“Well time for me to sleep” *Gets a Notification about a new mandalore review* “Maybe one more...”

[@lwoolterton72]

3am here. lets go!

[@dango2917]

NA bois winning for once

[@50sts]

12:18 "🅱️" cries the power armor as it draws its last breath.

[@Disc_Rat]

"Let's talk about positives." Continues to gush about the first game. NOICE

[@DarkOmegaMK2]

Yeah let's talk about positives: ... ...... Anyways, those are the positives of FEAR 2.

[@thegasmaskwarrior341]

A mod where Mandalore replace every sound bite with his own sound effects. Like a pew mod but funnier

[@zeuberstriker]

It would just be clips of van darkholme and Aniki

[@dimas3829]

a mod with less lighting effect would surely be beneficial.

[@thegasmaskwarrior341]

@@zeuberstriker I see why. That would also be funny too.

[@arnantphongsatha7906]

@@zeuberstriker and Home Alone

[@thegasmaskwarrior341]

@@arnantphongsatha7906 that would be great too!

[@nope1018]

Extraction Point is the real ending of the fear franchise, imo.

[@Argronok0]

And its frustrating that its considered non-canon when even with the official lore it can still technically fit in. Sadly, that one female character died in Extraction Point, but is still alive in F.3.A.R.

[@omnighast2054]

the Sseth personality is slowly slipping out i heard doujin

[@sentre749]

Mandalore talking about the potential of the F.E.A.R. organization just got me thinking of a potential game, like a mix between Hunter: The Vigil and X-Com. Starting out as a ragtag neighborhood watch looking out for the odd werewolf or vampire, to a mid-level supernatural crime unit, all the way up to a world-spanning armed forces unit dedicated to keeping the monsters away. I don't know if that's a super-viable idea, but it'd be more interesting than what F.E.A.R. 2 ended up being.

[@JanitoRiceMeister]

Just played this game. Gotta say, my favourite unintentionally funny thing was how sometimes the game would try to jumpscare you, but then, if instead of progressing forward you went back the way you came to explore or grab supplies or something, the game would sometimes forget that it already jumpscared you and when you return to that exact location it would try to jumpscare you again, in the exact same way. Happened like 2 times in my playthrough, it was kinda funny 😆

[@black979ful]

7:22 holy shit I initialy thought you put some cod music over the footage, took me like 6 seconds to realize that's the actual ost

[@kuehnjakob]

It also sounds a bit like Fallout 3

[@Whitelight]

F.E.A.R. Squad. Gang gang gang

[@MandaloreGaming]

Slow mo gang rise up

[@MrFrazer5800]

oh boy, i found this shit by watching your videos years back, im an mandalore now, this is the way

[@thesa-x2462]

Power armor: *dies* ZA WARUDO

[@BunkerDweller]

God, I had the exact same idea about FEAR being better as an anthology series. The Alma plotline was already flimsy at best, but to dedicate the entire series to her was a bad move by Monolith. But just imagine a whole series of horror games with FEAR style combat set in different settings and locals. Since FEAR 1 took inspiration from Akira and Asian horror, it would have been neat to see the rest of the games draw inspiration from other brands of horror. If the franchise ever gets a reboot (which is probably unlikely) that is absolutely what Monolith needs to do, just move on from the first 3 games and do their own thing. Anyways, congrats on essentially locking yourself in to reviewing FEAR 3. Not even Co-op can save that trash fire.

[@panameadeplm]

I feel compelled to let you know that during the "great sequence" Mandy mentions in FEAR 2 in the school, I was looking the wrong way for every single scare, and it kept happening, and I ended up missing 75% of everything there was to see, because I was frantically looking in all directions to not miss it, which made me miss most of it because of how the triggers work and how short the events are. My entire memory of it is literally looking at a blank wall in total darkness while hearing loud noises, then quickly trying to turn around to just barely see the last frames of it that my eyes didn't even have time to focus on. Funnily enough, for me, this was when I stopped trying to like the game, and I tried very hard.

[@inqntrol2047]

I'll never get tired of that Marv scream

[@JZStudiosonline]

There's a mod for Insurgency that changes the sound of RPGs to Marv's scream. Fucking terrifying.

[@Aboveup]

Wait, Alma has your ghost baby? Like how the ghost baby was born at the end of Ju On 2?

[@crozraven]

Well, it's pretty clear that FEAR series have a direct inspiration from Ring/Ringu series.

[@MandaloreGaming]

Makes me think

[@mex_I.M]

@@MandaloreGaming So basicly that hentai with Sadako (Ghost ring girl)

[@pupinator98]

wait what? that happens in Juon2? gotta rewatch it

[@thelordelric8424]

Mandalore's pronunciation of "doujin" at 24:58 confirms that he is in fact Sseth.

[@TheRibbonRed]

On meds.

[@andyjacobs7010]

Who is Sseth?

[@socksleeve]

@@andyjacobs7010 another Game reviewer, just search Sseth on KZbin. He's Mandalore's alter ego

[@andyjacobs7010]

@@socksleeve I don't think they sound too similar... but I kind of understand why people say that.

[@socksleeve]

Andy Jacobs it’s just sort of a joke the two communities share

[@jamesmortimer4016]

Hex, hey you... have you noticed that... "It´s quiet."

[@Wintergreen_]

What really stuck with me from the school part, at least how I remember it, the ghost things disappeared so quickly that a lot of times after I shot I didn't know if I'd just wasted a shot flinching at a bright light, missed it, or actually killed a threat. Really messed with your head, and the finicky flashlight definitely added to it. That's basically all I remember about the game apart from the weirdly sci-fi aesthetic.

[@Huch-22]

The intros with the Goosebumps music just hit different

[@skeenk5472]

23:28 there's that subtle viciousness I know and love

[@-Raylight]

11:22 go here to find Home Alone joke, I miss that xD

[@rebelkommando6166]

I thought I recognized that scream

[@fuzzydunlop7928]

It needs to be in EVERY Mandy video.

[@MouseDenton]

I'm glad you mentioned it; I've been a fan of the idea of Rainbow Six Ghostbusters as a concept since watching Men In Black, something I thought SCP would capitalize on before learning that it's basically a crowdsourced "original horror character do not steal" creepypasta archive and the agency as a framing device consists simply of worf-effect redshirts. Maybe if they used a prequel to The Cabin in the Woods featuring the capturing of the monsters as a starting point they could get pretty close? Could even have some Aperture Science-levels of sociopathic work climate in that situation too.

[@RomaraAhallow]

"Like Ghostbusters meets Rainbow Six." Welp, I found my next Shadowrun Campaign. Thanks!

[@xFaroth]

Ever heard of Delta Green?

[@RomaraAhallow]

xFaroth no but I'll look into it!

[@zigfaust]

*kicks down door with positive-ectoplasm infused M16 covered in West-African runes in hand* BUSTIN MAKES ME FEEL GOOD!

[@lissaquon607]

​@@xFarothI see you are a man of culture as well

[@salokin3087]

Its impressive Fear declined down into a Korean made online shooter

[@LadyTylerBioRodriguez]

With a flashing jpeg if I recall.

[@Gruntvc]

FEAR 3 buried the franchise. FEAR Online made sure it'll never return. Monolith Productions will likely never make a game like FEAR again. Many of the team are gone and WB is as awful as EA.

[@MrNuclearturtle]

@@Gruntvc I just want my japenese horror, african choir soundtrack bullet time shooter back...;(

[@MrNuclearturtle]

@@lovecraftcat Shogo wouldve been a great game, but one thing that instantly makes it from being a 7/10 game to a 3/10 one is the random crit system, I shouldnt have to inch my way in anime shooting mech game cus a hit scan enemy will flatline me in half a second. Plus, I hated the lotr games, I never understood their popularity, a story that amounts to nothing in the end for both games, a dull world, and a combat system that gets super repetitive after 7 hours of play.

[@jamstonjulian6947]

@@lovecraftcat Shogo is good for a mid-90s shooter from a new company trying something a bit different. It has charm and I have very fond memories of it. Can't see any argument as to how Tron 2.0 is a crap game. It's art design alone is stunning. Fact is they were a very consistent company for a very long time. F.E.A.R. 2 and Condemned 2 is where they started to ignore their PC roots and let their standards drop.

[@BababooeyGooey]

THANK YOU for mentioning that the ADS aspect of this game removes some of the spectacle of bullet-time! I mentioned it with some buddies who are FEAR fans and they just kinda shrugged. tbh I was gonna make a comment about it, but I held off to see if you would talk about it. Glad I did, you did a better job of explaining the difference between FEAR 1 and 2's slomo than I ever could.

[@cameronmacleod1906]

"Learning writing from the Nostalgic Critic." So, they were learning how to make overly long shitty skits? No wonder why the school went to hell.

[@burge117]

Well said! 👍

[@theblobfishhub2411]

Really disappointed you didn’t name the video “Fear 2: electric BOOgaloo”

[@darklordgrif]

That is a weird, creepy ending. I can't imagine being an animator or programmer on the project and cringing every moment as those orders come down from above.

[@Richie_Godsil]

Fear 2 got Call-of-Duty-fied like almost all other FPS of the era I convinced myself it was a decent sequel but I don't think I've ever gone back to play it unlike it's superior predecessor

[@alexdilley987]

Agreed. I still kinda dig it, but from an objective standpoint there's no way I can defend it. Good thing the first game still kicks ass.

[@Deadsnake989]

@@alexdilley987 This is how I feel about FEAR 3. I liked the game, but I'd never defend it. Same with Dragon Age 2, it was my favorite in the series because the classes and the combat was real good. But literally everything else surrounding the games combat was awful.

[@jailbotmark1379]

So fucking what? Call of Duty is tight and this game managed to implement some more industry standard elements while retaining fear 1's DNA. I don't get why people shit on games for being baseline when the baseline is still pretty high.

[@Soridan]

@@jailbotmark1379 homogenization of entertainment is not a good thing.

[@jailbotmark1379]

I would argue ADS military shooters are akin to an innovation setting a new standard rather than homogenization of a trend, I'd reserve that connotation for shit like battle royale games or survival crafting sims

[@Penguinmustache]

The poorly written tale of a man and his aggressive ghost waifu

[@fuzzydunlop7928]

"Alma, as in Alma need a lot of therapy to come to terms with being raped as a strong, macho-minded man who would be unequipped mentally to deal with this kind of powerlessness and lack of agency in his life." A lot of the time it's different for guys who get raped by women they know, it doesn't even don on them until months or years later that that's what happened, like it's something that's never been conceptualized to them before from the place of the victim - so they can't comprehend that it's what happened and they blame themselves, even if they were powerless to stop it - like drugged or something. It's like "phantom consent" in a way, they just automatically assume that because it's a sexual encounter they automatically consented to it until it finally hits them and they feel very uncomfortable and shaken about their sex life and other personal problems ensue. I'm totally not speaking from experience or anything.

[@godzillainspace5922]

@@fuzzydunlop7928 it was a funny comment and you had to go and say a thing like that...thanks for sharing, i guess

[@HAL-iv2kd]

@@godzillainspace5922 same feeling. Just... wow

[@TheSoulHarvester]

@@godzillainspace5922 was it funny, though

[@DakotaofRaptors]

@@fuzzydunlop7928 Shit...

[@supernintendo0213]

Woo, wanted to see you do fear 2 since I originally watched the first review.

[@DragonWinter36]

Mandalore says doujin as “dowjin” Sseth says doujin as “dowjin” Need I say more?

[@le09das]

This guy brought up what I always thought: FEAR had potential to be an anthology series. Very sad to see any hope of that die with Monolith...the non-WB version.

[@alexdilley987]

15:24 might be my new favorite gag, Mandy. Glad to know we're WORTHY now, I don't think I ever want to look at this game again.

[@benox50]

I laughed out loud when this happened

[@VerGiLL1]

Sseth's New meds must be doing wonders for him, just look at how fast he is producing these reviews.

[@MrToad-pi5xl]

25:21 tfw we aren't in the timeline where F.E.A.R. became the fps version of Delta Green :/

[@Xandersw1]

The scene on 18:01... I still clearly remember this on my first playthrough. It's one of the scariest uncomfortable moments in a horrorgame I experienced. The effects were really good.

[@legorogue]

Something I noticed at 7:13. He fully cycles the bolt on the rifle after firing the last round, then puts in a fresh mag. Without cycling the bolt again. Which means there isn't a round in the chamber.

[@PartyButler]

Holy fuck came through with this when I'm stuck in the worst traffic jam of my life. Thanks for your audiobook like quality MG

[@01100101011100100111]

Whoever does the closed captions for these is great.

[@Raycam80]

FEAR2, the game made me think I need glasses, 10 years before I really needed glasses

[@tompadinho]

Very good review! I remember when this game came out, hyped as hell since I loved FEAR 1. My immediate reaction was: "What the fuck is this? Everything sort of... glows?" I feel like most reviewers don't talk about this. It's a huge elephant in the room, but that was something developers just kind of did back then. I use a mod to turn the HUD off in this game. I can't see my bullet count, but that sure beats running around with "goggles". FEAR 2 sure has some of the oddest post process effects of any game.

[@GrizzlyClawss]

Mandalore is most likely one of the only KZbinrs who i can watch straight for 30 mins, i just love the informative and well made videos. Great work Mandalore!

[@MrNuclearturtle]

This game frustrates me since everything was in place for the perfect sequel, better visuals and technology, expanding on elements from the first game like cover flipping and mech riding. But they botched it hard, the visuals are a cluttered mess with that disgusting orange hew, the weapons feel and sound weak, the enemies come in waves rather than fighting dynamic squads, the horror is laden with jumpscares rather than a consistent horror vibe like with the first game (the elementary school is still the est moment), the story was also bland, I was always annoyed that the first game was told through telephones when the story itself was great, but most important of all....no creepy ambient african choir for the soundtrack....

[@numbersbubble]

That's because it had a rough development and was rushed

[@CassandraFortuna]

The first game had a lot of pretty pointless jumpscares, too, but otherwise full agreement.

[@Anzei_Kazumi]

"This is like watching the Grudge during a solar flare." Made me laugh too hard, I fucking love ya.

[@gitstautusgitstutasgitstatus]

The rendering method for shadows is totally different in Fear 2. Shadow volumes, used in the original Fear and Doom 3, calculate shadowed areas geometrically, producing the beautifully crisp edges used to great effect in Fear. Where these fall flat (🥁) is in open areas and producing soft edges. Shadow maps, used in most things since the mid 2000s, render a grayscale version of the scene to buffer from the point of view of each light. These are way more flexible and can produce decent soft shadows, plus GPUs are pretty good at rendering. Shadow maps are limited by the buffer resolution. Expect super choppy, aliased edges at small/medium sizes.

[@tommykarrick9130]

I feel like FEAR could have made such a great anthology series. It would essentially be like, SCP Mobile Task Force, the game. Instead of every game being about alma and armacham, just make them one of many supernatural or science fictiony threats in this world. Keep point man as your main character and just have him facing new threats with the FEAR team. Hell, even downplay the significance of his powers by introducing other anomalous members of the group or hierarchy That guy? Apparently he’s the son of a god. She can see and manipulate people’s souls. He’s a demon, he was summoned to our world by some cult that took over a company a few years back. Bring armacham back once in a while, of course, maybe have them trying to control point man or get alma back or something, but allow there to be greater threats and a larger world instead of making this one company like the ultimate villain of the entire planet.

[@droidBasher]

My doujin is set in a litebritepunk dystopia and has a hero fighting against invaders from the sunny-d dimension to rescue the ghost waifu. If you buy one I will give you a slice of my pizza.

[@DakotaofRaptors]

Ok

[@raven75257]

Are you planning any anime conventions with free pizza?

[@negjay]

I remember when this came out there was essentially no difference whatsoever between Normal and Hard. I beat it on Hard without ever using the slowmo mechanic and the only parts I actually died in where the ghost fights. I found those are winnable without slowmo though just by spamming a rocket in the general area the ghost is in. The first patch made enemy accuracy and damage on hard ridiculous because of the huge forum threads complaining that the game was baby mode and was way easier than Halo on Heroic. They just overcompensated, basically said 'the hell with it'.

[@Duchess_Van_Hoof]

I remember being hyped for this game. The first FEAR was excellent and the demo was really well made. Then I got the game, the pistol feels weak and awkward, the grenade animation is immersion breaking and the AI is really dumb. The AI hides behind corners and still stick out a third of their body and don't react when you shoot the visible part. Oh and the horror got weird, less atmosphere and way more jumpscares. It also had a highly disturbing ending that I rather not clarify.

[@leninthebeaniesouhacker.2459]

17:38 never knew there was a game that made a nostalgia critic reference.

[@jamesrussell2936]

The "Join us now!" at the start is from the Thief series.

[@willypro4949]

The criticism to the gun sounds reminds me when everyone was pissed when the guns of Battlefield 3 sounded "worst" than the guns of Bad Company 2. In my opinion, BF 3 has some good gun effects but you compare those to Bad Company and it shows a downgrade

[@richardadams8036]

F.E.A.R 1 ist great, F.E.A.R. 2 is good, sadly they never made a F.E.A.R 3.

[@SpecShadow]

is this supposed to be joke of "sequel so bad it does not exist" one? cause it's true

[@Richie_Godsil]

I do remember playing a "scary" co-op shooter back in like 2011 though, I wonder what that game was called?

[@Gruntvc]

Definitely would take FEAR 2 over FEAR 3 or Aliens Colonial Marines.

[@Richie_Godsil]

@@Gruntvc Fear 3 is pretty fun if you're playing co-op with a buddy but it doesn't live up to the legacy of the first game at all

[@Gruntvc]

@Richie Godsil, Played it single player earlier this year. Game was not balanced for single player. At least it allows couch co-op and multiplayer on consoles. Unlike the mps in FEAR 1&2 that went off with GaneSpy.

[@HouseLyrander]

23:44 The only real praise I can give to this plot point is that it at least the game doesn't treat rape as a joke or somehow "okay" just because it happened to a man. And boy are we fucked if "Doesn't give female-on-male rape a pass" is considered praiseworthy. Oh wait, the achievement for beating that level is called "Climax". Fuck this game.

[@Anomaly188]

The massive amount of retreading in FEAR2 is because when Monolith started development they got bought by WB Interactive while the IP rights were still in the hands of Activision who had bought original publisher Sierra. Monolith tried to soldier on and make FEAR2 a re-imagining of FEAR with a different name, but halfway through development WB Interactive bought the FEAR IP outright from Activision, so now Monolith had access to their old IP and characters and started shoehorning things together to make both games in the same universe and FEAR2 a weird hybrid interquel/sequel. The end result is a clumsy recycled mess that feels like half the pages are missing.

[@sludgefestmcgee6674]

When I was younger, Both F.E.A.R. 1 and 2 were among my Favorite, the 1st one especially. I do remember the game succumbing to the COD trend, the Resistance games also suffered this fate but somewhat did better than F.E.A.R.... So yeah, Resistance 1 review would be sweet!

[@Malord-lx4vn]

The first time I played this game is one of my favorite memories. One of my best friends invited me over back in the day, for a scary game night; I ended up playing this all the way through in one sitting, only taking a break for pizza. It's a classic in my book, living in the same memories of my heart like the Dead Space and the Silent Hill franchises

[@salokin3087]

Ah, takes me back when the Fear review was one of your first videos i watched. Good times

[@SpecterVonBaren]

Love how even when you talk about being angry over something you still keep a perfectly calm and composed voice.

[@NJBoden]

As soon as I heard the Goosebumps theme I knew I was gonna love this.

[@MisotheScot]

Another thing to say about the horror sections of fear 2 is the constant fucking zooming in and out. Like either stay zoomed in to see the horror up close or keep it far away to see the horror in first person for immersion

[@Salted_Fysh]

Frankly I took Alma wanting a child to be a reaction to what happened to her when they forced her to birth her clones. In both cases she woke up for the birth and in both cases her babies were immediately taken away from her. So now that she has had her revenge, what else is left in her short life? Remember, she spent most of her life either being experimented upon or in a coma. She may be around 20 years old now but she was never allowed to grow beyond being an 8 year old which is when they put her into containment. If even that. So the only beings and the only meaning left in this world that she has any kind of connection to are the psychic children/subjects created from the experiments that are connected to her mind. I think wanting to make a baby and be a mother is a perfectly natural trauma reaction in her case. On another note the Armachen PMC goon squad really bothered me throughout the whole game. Think about it. You have a PMC sporting state of the art military gear rolling up in an urban setting in the hundreds and shooting up civilian architecture to 'cover up' the experiments. And then the PMC starts loosing units and supply by the dozens while engaging a military squadron and later a clone army with even better gear. And they... just decide to continue the operation? There isn't any amount of money you can pay this outfit to justify the losses they are taking in an apocalyptic nightmare scenario. Besides, this is a clear case of 'the cover-up is harder to cover up than the thing you wanted to cover up to begin with'. There's also only so much military supplies that can fall off of the back of a supply truck. Certainly not enough to arm a whole private army. With the Replicas it made sense. They were a joint program with the military so of course they could be kitted out with the best and the latest and they were available in large numbers because they were being prepared for deployment. I mean, still weird that they technically remained under Armachen control considering that's not how military contractors work but at least it made some sort of sense. And then... orbital dropping Mech Suits? Do you know how expensive every single gram on a space bound flight is? And you'd also need the necessary facilities to support the pilots awaiting deployment there. Just to be clear, that goes beyond even a national budget let alone a company.