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I will be heading down to college with my brand new PC in 4 days and wanted a new game that would test my PC and also be fun to play. Singleplayer is most important but a solid multiplayer mode would sweeten the deal. Ive already have Far Cry, Doom 3, and Half-Life 2. I have pretty much decided to get Episode 1 as a given. A cursory look on the internet looks like FEAR is the best FPS since HL2, and the setting and concept appeal to me. Prey looks like it might be fun but I have read some bad stuff about it. Basically what are the best FPS games released in the past year or so?

I would definitely recommend FEAR. It simply oozes atmosphere. Best played alone and in the dark. My only problem is that the office interiors can become repetitive after a while. I felt that they just degenerate into maze like corridors hanging in empty space, rather than giving the impression of being within a building.

Nice, solid feel to the weaponry, great graphics and bullet time effects. A genuinely scary game.

While FEAR is depressingly standard, uninspiring rubbish, I really can't think of a better 'story based' FPS. Ugh, what happened to the world?

ZOMG scary girl!

Jedi Outcast is decent, though you'd have to get Jedi Academy to hit the multiplayer mode. And single player JA is pretty meh story-wise (does have a few awesome levels, though, like the swoop bike in the canyon).

Republic Commando is also pretty cool, since it's a squad-based FPS. Where you can order the rest of your squad to attack certain targets, take up sniper position, or set demo charges on things. Unfortunately, RC's story's a little short for my liking.

FEAR's story is perhaps not terribly original, but it is presented very well, as Acidburns points out - it definately has its own character. I wouldn't call it scary, but there certainly is a well-done sense of loneliness in it, getting flung around and desperately backing away from ghosts and all that. In that sense it's much more of a West village bontique product than a Shep-wank.

Edit: Spelling of terribly. Added: own, flung around, product.

FEAR has an expansion pack due out around the holidays. There'll probably be a bargin pack of the game + expansion out then...

FEAR was awesome in the presentation, although the levels got a bit repetative after a while. Great ending, though.

I haven't finished a second playthrough yet, though... for some reason, it's creepier on the replay.

If you want a pure old-stlye shooter with a great atmosphere, well optimized code and some fun, go Half Life 2. I can't say I like FEAR, it relied too much on cheap bullet time, but I'd suggest Republic Commando after Half Life 2. Not a game you'd come back to after a long time, but it's good. Far Cry is also good, but you will find yourself lacking interest to finish the game once you meet 'them'.

If you want a more story-driven game that's an FPS, I'd suggest Vampire: the Masquerade: Bloodlines. It surprised me with it's quality, fun and how well it introduces you to a long-standing theme/world. It's more of an FPS-RPG.

Overall FEAR was good despite its repetitiveness, and I'd tentatively recommend it to somebody who has the hardware to put it through it's paces. I'd have to disagree with its ending being awesome, however--without spoiling anything I'd definitely class it as lackluster.

SPOILER
At the end of the game you shift from the wicked awesome firefights against the clone soldiers to shooting up hordes of ghosts and enduring scripted "scare" sequences with Alma. Not exactly classic.

My opnion of FEAR's ending:
It's not so much the scripted sequences as much as Alma jumping on your heli and fading to black.

My problem with Republic Commando is that it felt very linear and console like, but it was cool was to be a Clone Trooper. Far Cry could be a bit of a tough game to play sometimes - it takes planning, care and patience.

Doom 3 was pretty good on story. It was run and gun, but the story presented in the PDA recordings was pretty good.

FEAR, for presentation. HL2 probably has the deepest story. I've never played Halo, but I'm sure the series would count as well.


If the OP was best story-based FPS of all time, then it'd be Marathon, however.

Nephtys wrote:Far Cry is also good, but you will find yourself lacking interest to finish the game once you meet 'them'.

The "Instincts" series for the X-Box/360 are superior in every way to the PC version. Seriously.

As per your complaint about bullet time in FEAR: Hey, it's optional. You don't have to turn it on if you don't want to.

If you want a more story-driven game that's an FPS, I'd suggest Vampire: the Masquerade: Bloodlines. It surprised me with it's quality, fun and how well it introduces you to a long-standing theme/world. It's more of an FPS-RPG.

No, it's an RPG with a first-person perspective (default) and real-time combat.

Except FEAR is laughably easy with slow-mo, and impossibly difficult without it. I can finish it on hard without a problem and constant 10 medipacks: I wouldn't last ten minutes without slow-mo.

It's pretty sad that the old Duke Nukem disease (where the first four levels are very high quality, well thought out, and packed with detail) is still going strong. Farcry and FEAR start fine and then get stupid and repeditive. By the time you realise Scary Girl killed everyone but you because... she wants to kill you *later* or in later Farcry when every badguy has a rocket launcher, it's just weak.

I still recommend Max Payne and its successor. Especially the second part is hugely driven by it's narrating and film noir style. Crazy russians, a ruthless female killer, and abandoned theme parks! Who needs more than that?

Max Payne 1&2 are fucking amazing.

System Shock (assuming you can get it to work on XP)

Deus Ex

Halflife 1&2 are definately worthwhile

Doom 3 for a fantastic immersive experience

Operation Flashpoint for the ultimate in hardcore (with a pretty cool story too)

Jedi Outcast and Academy are both good

Republic Commando is fun

Call of Duty 2

Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter (this WILL test your systems abilities)

Stark wrote:Except FEAR is laughably easy with slow-mo, and impossibly difficult without it. I can finish it on hard without a problem and constant 10 medipacks: I wouldn't last ten minutes without slow-mo.

It's pretty sad that the old Duke Nukem disease (where the first four levels are very high quality, well thought out, and packed with detail) is still going strong. Farcry and FEAR start fine and then get stupid and repeditive. By the time you realise Scary Girl killed everyone but you because... she wants to kill you *later* or in later Farcry when every badguy has a rocket launcher, it's just weak.

Get Far Cry as a budget title. Play up to the mission where you enter Jurassic Park (the treetop observatories). Then stop and put it away. Because you've played the best bits.

Oh I struggled past that bit, and got to the 'drive around the island fighting off endless armies of chopper-riding rocket snipers' section. You've got to wonder how the finances for the 'thousands of mercenaries got killed' mercenary company are looking by this point.

My only gripes with FEAR are the often repetitive and disorientating office environment, where I frequently found myself wandering in circles, and the ending, which was frankly rather piss easy, although story-wise it was fine.

I've played Far Cry up to the night time map where you have to attack an outpost, and its just vietnam in the dark; you die repeatedly from enemies you can't see, and who seem to appear from nowhere, or from rocket launcher armed snipers.

Republic Commando was great fun, although I agree that it might not have much replay value.

Episode One was fantastic, it basically took HL2, and made it betterer. The graphics improvements are, frankly, beautiful, and the level of scripted encounters is enough to make it seem that you're not alone, but not too much so that you don't have control.

FEAR Combat is coming soon. MP FEAR for free. I'm in.

DeusEx and SystemShock2 had me glued to the screen.

weemadando wrote:

Stark wrote:Except FEAR is laughably easy with slow-mo, and impossibly difficult without it. I can finish it on hard without a problem and constant 10 medipacks: I wouldn't last ten minutes without slow-mo.

It's pretty sad that the old Duke Nukem disease (where the first four levels are very high quality, well thought out, and packed with detail) is still going strong. Farcry and FEAR start fine and then get stupid and repeditive. By the time you realise Scary Girl killed everyone but you because... she wants to kill you *later* or in later Farcry when every badguy has a rocket launcher, it's just weak.

Get Far Cry as a budget title. Play up to the mission where you enter Jurassic Park (the treetop observatories). Then stop and put it away. Because you've played the best bits.

You missed some good missions aftward. The island hopping mission where you keep blowing up radio jamming towers was a kickass mission. The second to last mission was also pretty good. Farcry gets even better when you play it with the coop mod.

Third-ing Deus Ex: The Conspiracy. Fantastic story.

Alyeska wrote:You missed some good missions aftward. The island hopping mission where you keep blowing up radio jamming towers was a kickass mission. The second to last mission was also pretty good. Farcry gets even better when you play it with the coop mod.

Last time I tried the coop mod it was plagued with sync errors.

Another vote for Deus Ex.

The Halo Universe.