Buy Cold Fear™

Incredible game, a Resident Evil like (old ones) with a great atmosphere, honnestly one of the best purchase I made on Steam with Obscure 1 and 2. This game is definitely not popular enough I'm surprised nobody own it. A solid 9/10.

One of the best survival horrors from the last generation fast an slow paced game play mixed with a great story and some truly scary moments is definitely a match for the Old Resident Evil Games

This game is like that obscure Nic Cage movie that is panned by all the uptight movie critics, but you love it because it's short and full of him going balls out insane.

I had heard about this game previously mainly because it is a Resident Evil 4 clone (or as some call it, Resident Evil Boat or Resident Evil 4 Lite). This is not too surprising when you consider that the studio that made it, Darkworks', previous horror game before this was Alone in the Dark: New Nightmare, another Resident Evil-clone game. In fact, the studio seems to have this big thing for horror, as they have released six games in the last 15 years, and half of them are horror titles (the newest one they released was I Am Alive).

Cold Fear plays like possibly the truest form of new Resident Evil meets old Resident Evil I have seen. The game switches up between a Resident Evil 4-style camera (when you're aiming, during certain gameplay segments), and fixed camera angles (ala' old-school Resident Evil). Assuming you aren't horrible with fixed-camera angle controls, the transitions were done pretty well and weren't nearly as disorienting as I thought they might be. They were handled and placed well in my opinion. A few good subtle scares, mixed with shoot-shoot, bang-bang, but with some limited ammo edge (though not extensively). And while it isn't the prettiest game around (even back for when it came out in 2005) it is not a bad-looking game, and had a few special effects throughout I thought were pretty ace.

The audio was also pretty nice. The voice acting was surprisingly okay to good, the music fit the mood perfectly with a few rather unnerving tracks, and the sounds in the environment did a lot to help build up the couple of locations that appear in the game.

I also have to mention now that I love ocean settings, and though Resident Evil Revelations most recently took place on a ship in the RE universe, this game handled its ocean setting much better I feel. They included things like furniture sliding around based on the turn of the ship (yes, the ship occasionally will churn itself back and forth), waves that sweep up onto the ship decks you have to watch out for or else they might sweep you away, actually pretty good rain effects, Some slight sea-fairing mist in a few places... The setting felt a lot more believable and more oceanic, which is good in my eyes.

Probably the single most surprising elements for me was how interested I got into the story. Not so much the character drama (which there's a bit of, and not many of the characters are that-well fleshed out) but the story told in the files in the game. While it wasn't mind-boggling and there wasn't any twists to be found, I found the background story and papers about the monsters and people who were here immensely interesting, probably the most interested I'd been in a horror games files in a long while. There was one file towards the end of the game that was a bit stupidly long, but they were mostly well-lengthed as well. Unfortunately the game has one of the most disappointing endings I've experienced in a while as well.

The combat in the game felt a bit like a poor-man's Resident Evil. It was serviceable and fun, but not anywhere near RE or Dead Space levels, though I must give credit that a lot of the monsters were rather original for this type of game. What is unfortunate is that some of them were almost hilariously cheap. The lesser 'cheap' enemy of the two I refer too is actually one of the main enemies in the game, which is this parasite thing that kind of looks like a starfish with extendable limbs. Ala' RE4, these things sometimes pop out of enemies when you kill them (they make a distinctive chirping sound). What is cheap about them is how ♥♥♥♥ing tiny they are, and how stupidly long their reach is. They can crawl on walls and ceilings, and can be hard to spot, but from several meters away (like, the length of five grown men from head to toe) they can extend their limbs to attach onto you and start rapidly draining your health away. They won't let go until you either get out of their range, or kill them, and they can drain health fast. And they almost never appear alone, they usually have a pack of themselves around.

The second annoyance, and the biggest gripe for me in the game, is an enemy takes on the form of a dog-like thing. He appears in the second half of the game, and HE IS CHEAP. This enemy can crawl on ceilings, usually appears in really dark locations (where you can only see its eyes), can crawl into vents and appear elsewhere (this was before Dead Space, so wasn't inspired by that), and is the fastest enemy in the game. This would all be fine, EXCEPT when the enemy gets two meters close to you it will ALWAYS, ALWAYS trigger a one-hit kill move. There is a chance to avoid it with a REALLY quick QTE, but it's hard, and this enemy does this so ♥♥♥♥ing much, and it doesn't even make sense as the attack takes about 2-3 seconds to do, which would be enough time to get away from the ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥, but the moment he triggers it you're locked into an animation with him and can't move. You don't face many in the game, but god dang it, they killed me more than anything.

And it wouldn't be as bad, but the saving system in this game only happens at story intervals. Sometimes you'll go long segments of gameplay without a saving point, sometimes you'll get a save point almost immediately after the last one. Typically appear around cutscenes, but think something more Resident Evil 1 or 4-ish would of worked better here, especially as you do some backtracking in this game (like the older Resident Evils).

But outside of my complaints above, I actually really enjoyed the game. Some of the enemies were really interesting (and most pretty fair), some of the scenarios and scares were actually pretty well-done. It was a pretty good length, and while a few rough edges, I would say the game was a pretty decent knock-off, worth it for those who like this sort of style of horror game. It has an action-survival focus, but it was scarier than any recent Resident Evil game I can recall. And like a lot of good horror games from yesteryear, and though I couldn't say it's a 'great' game, I think it's a good game that is worth it for anyone who is interested in this type of thing. It's well-priced for what it provides, and I honestly do think it's a shame this game never got a follow-up.

But it also reminded me of how I actually miss the days of games like these being circulated. Horror games have never stopped circulating with clones (just look at all those Slender, Amnesia, and Dear Esther clones out there), but game's like this, maybe not amazing or groundbreaking, but competent and entertaining B-tier games that have a bit of heart in their soulless ripping-off methods and some twists to everything to make it their own... A reminder why the middle-tier game almost being non-existent these days is so disappointing. Even with the horror genre on the up-rise again, it doesn't seem like these type of games will be continuing anytime soon.

But modern sentimental feelings aside, I think this type of game might be more appreciated now as it was really one of the last of its kind before developers decided that the horror genre was dead and that middle-tier games are a dying breed. I'm even impressed to say that Resident Evil Revelations, which I thought was a pretty good game, is at ends with me on Cold Fear, as I feel Revelations does some things better, while Cold Fear does other things that tops it at times.

Tl;Dr: I played a boat with zombies on it. Starfish are ♥♥♥♥♥es, and I am sentimental about B-tier and horror games like this. Spare the time to give the game a good checking out if this type of thing is up your alley, though some frustrations do await.

Cold Fear Review by Mike Knight

Atmospherically, Cold Fear is an enjoyable (and sometimes quite scary) action game. While Cold Fear does not exactly establish itself as a high-quality survival horror game, the involved story and occasional interesting gameplay element make Cold Fear worth playing, and there are Zombies.

The Game

In Cold Fear, you play as Tom Hansen, a US Coast Guard officer who has been sent to investigate a mysterious Russian frigate on a windy and stormy night in the middle of the ocean. You find out early on that the boat is occupied not merely by hostile Russian soldiers, of which there are plenty, but also by alien creatures that feed on the humans and provide a severe threat from both inside and outside their host bodies. Your investigation leads you to a few friendly faces and many threatening ones as you uncover the mystery of the ship and its lethal cargo.

The perspective is third person, with the ability to go into a first-person aiming mode through which you can freely guide your view. Although the fixed camera gives a wider glimpse of the scene, it's not easy to keep fluid control when going back and forth between cameras, which is a problem as you try to maneuver around the boat and take out the enemies you encounter along the way. Additional controls let you crouch, run, and scroll quickly through weapons, which is slightly more intuitive in the PS2 version, thanks to the extra trigger buttons. However, since the weapon scroll is placed on the white/black buttons on the Xbox controller, the difference is not that severe. The PC version works well with the keys, though I doubt it will have any coltroller control, (unsupported at least.) Running brings up an onscreen meter that, when depleted, prohibits you from running anymore. This helps to make certain puzzles more challenging, and you will find yourself monitoring the meter frequently, but it does not detract from or add to the gameplay in any significant way.

Because Cold Fear takes place in ocean-locked environments (and it looks very cool), the control scheme is affected by the movement of the waves. This is mostly noticeable when you are outside, and at times it looks like you're walking almost completely sideways, due to the volatile movement of the deck beneath you. This adversely impacts the controls, but the trade-off is a unique and interesting component of the gameplay. As you fight against the tossing of the boat, timing yourself to cross decks only when the waves are low, you encounter some of the most compelling aspects of Cold Fear. Unfortunately, the outside environments are not tapped to their fullest, and you'll spend the majority of the game, past the first hour, in generic indoor locations, though you do need to go outside once in a while.

Your objective in Cold Fear is to discover the story behind the vessel's apparent destruction and the emergence of the nonhuman creatures upon it. Despite being a highly derivative story about a genetic experiment gone wrong, the relationship between characters is interesting, and the story is neat and simple. Most of the plot exploration is conveyed through notes that are littered about the environment and through dialogues with characters (for the short duration that the people on the boat other than Hansen manage to stay alive). The notes are well implemented, and they drive the story and reveal critical information about weapons, environmental objects, and enemies.

Although you start off with merely a handgun, there are a number of different weapons to be found in the middle of the ocean, including a submachine gun, an AK-47, a speargun, a flamethrower, and a grenade launcher. The weapons are almost all equally effective, except for differences in power. The speargun is the only weapon that is not used explicitly for dealing damage, and when fired, it releases a gas that draws enemies near it. This is a great tactic to use in conjunction with one of the more explosive weapons such as the shotgun or grenade launcher. Otherwise, the objective of the game is to make headshots on all humanoid enemies, which can be exceedingly difficult as the enemies draw nearer to you. Fortunately, most of the weapons have either a laser sight or flashlight, which aids your precision. The point of the headshot is to conserve ammunition, although enemies will not die unless they are decapitated. This means that if you shoot an enemy anywhere other than in the head, and merely knock it down to the ground, you have a certain amount of time to run over and step on the head before the enemy gets back up and attacks you again.

Many of the Zombies are possessed by Exocel Creatures, which are spidery beings that alternate between crawling on the floor and the ceiling before attempting to take possession of a human being by reaching out a long tendril into a human's mouth and then climbing inside. Outside of a host body, these exocels are fairly easy to destroy--usually one bullet sends them rolling up into a ball, and a second one takes them out--but given their flexibility and their penchant for appearing out of nowhere, including bodies you've just killed, they provide a formidable threat if not dealt with quickly. More advanced abominations of genetics appear later on, but with the more difficult enemies, it's sometimes easier to merely avoid confrontation and run along to the next room. If you choose to run, you'll find these creatures often jumping on your back. When this happens, you're given a button sequence to throw the enemy and try to achieve a critical hit. If you successfully land a critical hit, enemies are killed much more quickly than if you had gone about it the normal way. Because of this, it's sometimes tactically important to let Hansen be jumped by enemies, as long as you can throw them quickly.

Other game tactics include using pieces of the environment to do the work for you. You can shoot explosive barrels, fire extinguishers, and different-colored valves to create an environmental trap for oncoming enemies. From time to time, you'll encounter a fight between two of the enemy species, and you can let them fight among themselves before you intervene. Environmental effects, such as laser beams and swinging obstacles, can often be used to pick off the less bright enemies, and the rocking of the boat will send a zombie or you overboard, if you're standing on the wrong side of a slippery surface.

That's all good, but a significant drawback to the gameplay is the lack of an in-game map. Hansen declares early on that he is able to remember some Russian, so he can translate the signs on and around the doors if you look at them with enough reverence--but because of the similarity of the areas and the sheer number of open paths at any given moment, you'll spend a great deal of time backtracking and trying to recall exactly which path to take. There are clues here and there, such as new enemies and changes to the environment, but for the most part you're left to wander the boat and figure it out on your own. And wander you will, though there is lots to explore.

The atmosphere's major saving grace is the music and sound effects. The music is dramatic and very flexible, changing with the mood as necessary. Although a couple of the tracks get repetitive and even slightly grating, for the most part the music does nothing but help the game. Likewise, the sound effects are appropriate to the environment, including the harsh creaking of the metal boat and the constant splashing of the waves upon the deck.

I found this to be an excellent and very underrated game. Get it whilst you can.

This game is really fun, reminds me of Resident Evil games, I love the combat system, but it's pretty short and ya can get really frustated figuring out where you are supossed to go all the time on the second map (oil rig), but still a great game

Reminded me of the old Resident Evil games. If you liked those, considering the low price, I can only recommend to give it a try.

A fun survival-horror experience that brings me back to the good days of Resident Evil. What's even better is that it features two camera modes, one being Resident Evil 4's over-the-shoulder style, and the other being the classic single over-head camera angle from Resident Evil 1, 2, and 3. The game itself is fairly underrated, but it could have used more work. Either way, it's a good game for a good price and has an interesting story while borrowing some concepts from Resident Evil 4.

My Rating: 7/10

This is a great old school survivor horror shooter. It had so much potential to be much more but is held back by technical flaws. I must point out that it was quite revolutionary back when it was first released with its unique combat style.

Pros:
+ Great Atmosphere
+ Unique survival horror combat style (i'm aware RE4 was released first but they're a tad different)
+ Marilyn Manson ending soundtrack

Cons:
- Clunky controls that makes combat frustrating at times
- Short game
- Glitch that makes you waste ammo (at least on the pc version)
- Stingy save points (but that's arguably old school for ya)
- Disappointing last boss

Overall, despite its flaws, it is still a fun game and worth the price here on steam. Fans of survival horror should give this game a shot. 7/10.

Eh, it's alright. A fairly decent resident evil style shooter, camera stuff galore. Story is a bit ♥♥♥♥, the combat is fairly easy, so pick hard. Pick it up on a sale.