like an ice cube - cool and solid, but melts far too quickly
But enough about resident evil, I’m here to review cold fear after all.
Technically speaking the game is solid. Offering a pretty nice weather system, which depicts a rain storm in possibly the most believable way since MGS2. The characters and enemies are well modeled and the real time lighting really adds to the overall atmosphere. So from a graphical standpoint, the game is pretty nice. From lighting, modeling, environmental detail and texture work. It may not be the panicle of Xbox graphics, but its no slouch. let down slightly by sometimes stiff animation.
Also, a big plus for the game, at least from my point of view, was the camera. Unlike a lot of people who welcomed the "over the shoulder" camera angle of resident evil 4, I didn’t, I’m a survival horror purist. I like the cinematic camera angles, despite the problems that arise from them. Cold fear does a great job of keeping the traditional atmospheric angles, while at the same time evolving the aiming to a way more accurate laser pointed weapon, almost FPS based system. The simple fact you can move while shooting immediately creates a more smooth combat system. Think back to the original resident evil 4 concept and you have an idea of how the camera works.
One of the major negative points raised against the game is its lack of in-game map. Now, the booklet offers a basic map for the initial whaling ship that you begin the game on. But once you reach the second location, you have no map to guide you. As a result it requires a lot of guesswork and learning of the area. Now, I honestly didn’t find much of an issue with the lack of map. Because even though the game is set in open locations, the game still manages to direct you down a linear path. doors lock to prevent you straying too far from the next objective, the main character you play as mentions your going the wrong way, and occasionally which doors he has yet to open etc. it may seem like a lack of map would completely ruin all sense of direction, but in actuality, it doesn’t. And as a result feels more like you’re actually exploring this disturbing location rather then just moving from point A to point B.
speaking of locations, the use of a whaling ship and an oil tanker offer a different and original setting compared to most survival horror games which rely a lot on cult classic locations (mansion, school, hospital etc) it creates a different gameplay mechanic as the weather is just as dangerous as the monsters on board, either directly or indirectly. Waves and slippery surfaces can throw you overboard, and aiming becomes much more difficult but can be countered slightly by steadying yourself by clutching onto any nearby rail.
There are 2 areas where the game falls painfully short however. One of which is the story and overall quality of the voice acting. The story is almost non-existent, and the only real story driven section is in that of the intro, where soldiers are massacred on a ship and someone who seems to be a nearby lifeguard (that being the character you play) is sent to investigate. other then that the story is pretty bad, it develops in the sense new enemies are added into the mix (although they lack variety) and there are "twists" to contend with, but overall the story simply isn’t compelling enough to keep progressing, and the voice acting is almost a homage to resident evil of old where lines like "you almost became a Jill sandwich" seemed like a good idea. As a final kick in the balls, the game can be completed in approx. 6 hours. Thankfully however, in terms of gameplay, those six hours are pretty sweet
The gameplay itself is a pretty standard survival horror affair, you go from area to area, finding evidence as to what monstrous things have taken place (usually in the form of notes that just so happen to be legible despite being on a leaky, soaking wet ship). You move from room to room, shooting "zombies" that HAVE TO BE DECAPITATED, or they will simply keep attacking, this can be done either by a shot to the head or you can squish their head with your boot. You’ll come across unsuspected "jumpy" moments and that’s pretty much it. You get a good range of weapons from shotguns, a grenade launcher a flamethrower all the way down to a trusty pistol. Enemies increase in numbers and difficulty, but where cold fear differentiates itself from most survival horror games, is in the lack of ammo and health conservation. Where in most survival horror games you would have to use ammo wisely, traditionally keeping most for bosses, cold fear instead gives you a room with an infinite stock of ammo. As well as a pretty generous supply of dropped ammo as you progress, meaning there really isn’t a time you feel vulnerable due to lack of ammo. And health works in a similar way, you have a single room with a health cabinet that can heal you when needed, but again, you can take quite a bit of damage and the amount of health found along the way is plentiful. This takes away some of the intensity found in most survival horrors, but decreases the amount of frustration you may encounter, it also increased the fun factor as you aren’t constantly conscious about how much ammo you spent on that last enemy.
Now, I can’t say the game is perfect, because it isn’t. But for the price it can be picked up for now, it’s most definitely worth checking out. Buying at release would have been a mistake imo as a 6 hour game simply isn’t worth the retail price. The games fun, action packed, full of brain popping gore, but is sadly let down by a lackluster, poorly developed story and voice work. as well as an arguably bad checkpoint based save system. If you can ignore these issues, I suggest you look into cold fear. it'll give you the chills... see what i did there.