What makes a truly brilliant FPS game? Half-Life and Doom are good examples. Valve’s 1998 icon has the structure, the story, and the hybrid level design that mixes gunfights with brain teasers. Doom, of course, is Doom. It’s pure energy, the FPS at its purest and most potent. But if we’re talking about the history of the genre, there’s another game, launched at the very tail of what we might call the boomer shooter era, that deserves the same regard. You can now own FEAR for less than one dollar.
Primarily, it’s the weapons that make FEAR one of the best FPS games and best PC games of all time. If you’ve played it before, you’ll instantly recall the shotgun – weighty, deafening, and capable of blasting enemies several feet across the room, it could be the greatest 12 gauge in the history of all videogames. But don’t forget the SMG. In combination with FEAR’s supremely impressive enemy AI, its ragdoll body physics, and its deliciously splashy blood effects, this handy little shooter makes for some of the most frantic and furious gunfights of the gaming ‘00s.
There are some excellent scares (it is called FEAR after all) and every level is designed for maximum spectacle. Brought to life by LithTech, Monolith’s in-house engine, instantly recognizable for its lighting effects and reflective surfaces, the entire world of FEAR rests on a hair trigger.
Walls explode into pieces. Stacks of paper burst into the air. Computer monitors and vending machine covers shatter to bits and spit electricity. FEAR might be the definitive ‘before-and-after’ shooter: take a stroll back through the levels after you’ve killed everyone, and you can trace the trail of destruction back to the very first bullet.
One of the all-time greats, if you’ve never played FEAR before, or you want to give it another go after all these years, you can get it on GOG right now for just 99¢ / 79p. That’s less than a dollar for one of the best shooters ever. Just hit the button below or click here.
Otherwise, you might want to try some other nostalgic greats with the best old games, or maybe the best survival games on PC.
You can also follow us on Google News for daily PC games news, reviews, and guides, or join our community Discord to stay in the know.