84
MobyRank
100 point score based on reviews from various critics.
4.0
MobyScore
5 point score based on user ratings.

Description

It starts as a simple assignment for the three mercenaries - the beautiful, mysterious Hana, the former army officer Glas, and the ruthless killer Deke. Somewhere in the futuristic Hong-Kong, full of huge corporations, flying cars and helicopters, home for the famous Triad mafia, they have to find the young Wee Ming Lam, the daughter of a powerful gangster. But Hana and her partners don't suspect that the search for Wee Ming will lead them not only to very dangerous areas of Hong-Kong, but to outskirt villages infected by zombies, a dubious restaurant-brothel, and the Chinese hell, where they'll have to confront Yim Lau Wong himself - the Chinese equivalent of the Western Satan.

The gameplay of Fear Effect is similar to survival horror titles such as Resident Evil, but it also features many pure action elements and arcade-like sequences, where precise timing matters. The player controls Hana, Glas, or (in a few instances) Deke during different chapters of the story. Player characters can crouch, sneak on enemies, and roll forward or to the sides. There are many human as well as monster enemies to eliminate or avoid. Characters can run and shoot at the same time, as well as use two weapons at once to combat multiple enemies. A considerable portion of the gameplay is dedicated to puzzle-solving.

Instead of the traditional health bar characters have a "fear meter", which turns red and eventually kills the character whenever he or she is damaged or found in a particularly stressful situation. The functional difference between the fear meter and a regular health bar is the possibility to restore it to a normal green color by reducing the character's stress, e.g. solving a puzzle or killing an enemy in a stealthy way.

The game's 3D character models are unshaded, aiming to resemble cel-shading technique and anime art. The backgrounds are pre-rendered and often consist of streaming or looping full-motion video. The story unfolds through numerous pre-rendered movies.

Alternate Titles

  • "Fear Factor" -- Working title

Part of the Following Groups


Merchant Title Platform Price  
Amazon
Fear Effect PlayStation $0.02  
ebay.com
Fear Effect    
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User Reviews

Stylish action-loaded trip through brothels and hell Unicorn Lynx Bronze Star Contributing Member (132767) 4.29 Stars4.29 Stars4.29 Stars4.29 Stars4.29 Stars
Short, sweet, and it has boobs, ok? laemus (13) 3.43 Stars3.43 Stars3.43 Stars3.43 Stars3.43 Stars

The Press Says

The Video Game Critic Nov 23, 2000 A 100
Just Adventure 2000 A- 91
GamePro (US) Mar 16, 2000 4.5 Stars4.5 Stars4.5 Stars4.5 Stars4.5 Stars 90
PSM Mar, 2000 4.5 out of 5 90
IGN Feb 18, 2000 8.9 out of 10 89
GameSpy Feb 25, 2000 89 out of 100 89
Svenska PlayStation Magasinet May, 2000 8 out of 10 80
Game Chronicles Jun 22, 2001 7.9 out of 10 79
Power Unlimited Jul, 2000 7.5 out of 10 75
Gamers' Republic Apr, 2000 B 75

Forums

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Trivia

The Chinese signs in front of Lam's building, that you are required to memorize (in order to solve a puzzle), mean "Lam's Corporation". They are pronounced "lin shi qi ye" in official Chinese (used in PR China), but the Cantonese pronounciation is different: for example, "lin" (which means "forest") is pronounced "lam".


This entry to the MobyGames database was contributed by Matthew Bailey (1162) on Apr 03, 2001.
 

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