Contractions, the first of the four multiplayer modes, is where players work together to hold out for as long as possible against oncoming enemies. The series’ iconic ghost lady Alma is very much still angry and is intent on sending waves of possessed troops to try and take you out.
 |
Garrisoning yourselves inside and maintaining the building provided is a must. You can barricade the doors and windows and venture outside to gather ammo crates though these makeshift repairs and upgrades can only be made during the pause between enemy waves. Regularly collecting ammo crates is particularly important since they not only grant you stronger weaponry but also keep your team stocked up on ammo, something it’s entirely possible to run out of.
In addition to her minions, a ghostly projection of Alma will turn up from time to time. Trying to attack it is not the best idea though as you’ll take damage and have your vision temporarily impaired, presumably from her psionic powers.
In a similar fashion to Left 4 Dead players won’t be killed when their health bars run out, instead being downed. They’ll be limited to slowly crawling around and shooting with a one-handed weapon but they can be revived by other able-bodied team mates. When your whole team is downed, the match is over.
Soul King is a purely competitive mode that initially places players in the roles of evil floating spectres that are extremely weak but very speedy. Using their ability to possess the NPC troopers roaming around the map, the aim is to make tactical use of hopping between bodies whilst trying to take out your opponents doing the same thing.
 |
Killing the other players will drop glowing skulls which you have to collect to score points. The player with the highest score at the end of the given time limit is the winner.
Soul Survivor has you starting off in a similar manner to Contractions with every player working co-operatively. However, Alma will appear before one of the players and transform them into a spectre, changing his or her objective to converting the other players to Alma’s side. You can only do this by downing your target then moving over their bodies and holding the appropriate button for an allotted time. Spectres will have to move fast though as downed human players can still be revived by their team mates plus attempting the conversion process will leave them vulnerable to attacks.
Alma’s side will also be backed up with computer controlled troops that the spectres can possess and wild zombie-like citizens to even the odds a little. As with all the other modes bar Soul King, the longer the players stay in the land of the living the better they’ll score.
Fucking Run is almost self-explanatory. Alma has created a deadly wall of evil that’s chasing the players. The only objective here is to keep moving forward to outrun the wall though this is made more difficult due to Alma’s armed minions appearing in front of you. Members of your team downed by enemy gunfire can still be revived but if anyone is caught by Alma’s wave then they are gone for good.
 |
Running and gunning is regularly punctuated by dropping into underground safe houses that provide a brief respite and the opportunity to stock up on ammo. These also seemed to indicate the end of each stage so the more times you make it past these holdouts the better you’re doing. Once again it’s a matter of when and not if you’re all going to perish, with the game rewarding higher scores the longer you manage to stay on the mortal coil.
Day 1 Studios’ direction for F.E.A.R. 3 is a wise and admirable one. Judging from what I’ve played of the multiplayer, it looks to be paying off. While I wouldn’t call the modes completely original (it’s not hard to see elements borrowed from the likes of Left 4 Dead, Gears of War and Call of Duty) they were definitely a pleasant change of pace. If you’re in the market for a refreshing multiplayer FPS experience then F.E.A.R. 3 is definitely one to keep an eye on. It will be haunting Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC platforms in the U.S. and Europe on the 24th and 27th of May respectively.
Most anticipated feature: I’m most looking forward to Contractions and Fucking Run for their ability to place players into scenarios similar to classic scenes from horror fiction.
