F.E.A.R. Extraction Point (PC) Review

The ending of F.E.A.R. turned a small corner of the world into a mini post-apocalyptic one - and it all looks great. Due to the darkness of the night, as well as the fact that buildings are devoid of life, this feels as if it takes place in Richard Matheson’s I Am Legend (read it - now!). ‘Point Man,’ the silent protagonist of this tale, isn’t really alone, though. Alma, the creepy girl who is definitely the backbone of the franchise’s mythos, has been set free, and the Replica soldiers have been re-activated for... some reason. Sadly, for those who wanted to learn more about what’s going on here, Extraction Point won’t be of much help. This is basically F.E.A.R. with gunfights turned to 11, and story turned to almost zero. It’s basically a trip towards the titular extraction point, with a little bit of feel-free-to-skip-it storytelling thrown in to spice things up. Not to mention that this as well as the next expansion, is no longer considered canon.

What little there’s available is certainly not bad. Apart from masterfully avoiding giving the Point Man a personality, effectively immersing you much better into the role, the adventure is once again dripping with atmosphere, and a strong feeling of tension in the many “silent” moments of the journey. Moreover, the scares are still here, and while they can be a bit more graphic, leaning more into gore, jump scares, and screaming monsters, it’s the less violent scenes that are the best. Alma is also a bit of a mystery this time around, as her child “form” helps the player, while her physical self remains hostile.

In the end, however, this is just a mission to go where a helicopter is waiting for you; a mission with plenty of baddies to shoot down. Compared to the original, this is vastly more challenging, with many more than just a handful of enemies attacking you each time, who also tend to be a lot more accurate, and better armoured. The level of difficulty on offer is evident in how ‘Reflex,’ the slow-motion, or bullet time mechanic available, has become surprisingly more important than before, forcing the player to use it with caution, as running out of “fuel” can lead to major trouble.

Challenging or not, of course, what matters the most is how fun everything is. In that regard, is Extraction Point fun? Well, it certainly is. There are plenty of gunfights that are fantastic. The AI of the enemies manages to truly shine this time due to the larger scale “arenas,” which are a also bit more complex in design, making battles feel more dynamic, and even unpredictable at times, mostly because of the many explosive barrels and devices that tend to be scattered around the place. Unfortunately, not all maps are made equal, with plenty of areas and/or levels that aren’t a well thought-out, and end up being more tedious than enjoyable. Generally, this can be described as “more F.E.A.R.” rather than an actual, must-have expansion. It’s enjoyable, but it’s not exactly award-worthy material.

...And don’t forget the main issue of the original F.E.A.R.: the repetition. There are a bunch of new weapons, like a laser rifle, a minigun, and a grenade launcher, as well as a throwable turret item, yet these don’t change the fact that you are once again fighting the same few foes over and over again. Sure, there are a couple of new baddies to shoot down (both normal and abnormal), but 99% of the time the Point Man will be exchanging fire with the same type of enemy, with the only difference being the armour he is wearing, or the boom stick he is carrying.

Also note that this is a less finely-tuned product when compared to F.E.A.R. and Perseus Mandate, with a bit of a slower performance, as well as a few - harmless - glitches, plus some weird omissions on the technical side of things, like a lack of widescreen support, an issue which can thankfully be fixed with a little work on a settings file. On the bright side, fans of the original will definitely enjoy what’s on offer, despite the fact that this, like the original, could be much, much better. In the end, both expansions can be found bundled along with F.E.A.R., and at a pretty neat price.