There's a lot to be afraid of on the internet these days, and F.E.A.R. itself has a lot to do with it. The open beta for F.E.A.R. has been going on for a few weeks now, and the experience has been amazing. Players and their friends have a chance to check out what some of the multiplayer action will be like on this upcoming hot title. While there are only a handful of maps, weapons, and player skins, that doesn't stop this beta from looking amazing and being incredibly fun.

As to be expected in a game like F.E.A.R., shadows play a huge role in gameplay. One could creep stealthily along the walls and do very well, but the game is so fast-paced that it's easy to simply revert to twitch combat shooting. There is a small array of weapons players can equip themselves with, ranging from dual pistols to assault rifles, each with benefits and drawbacks as far as speed, damage, and accuracy. Hidden on some of the boards are special weapons such as a mini-rocket launcher and a particle cannon. The thing that makes the gameplay in F.E.A.R. stand out is the fact that melee attacks can be just as lethal as ranged ones. One well-placed punch, jump-kick, or sliding kick will wipe you out before you even know what happened. In a very Counter-Strike moment, you will wonder what the benefit of picking up armor is.

The maps are reasonably complex with plenty of places to hide. Most people will find themselves more than once in an office complex with narrow hallways, cubicles, and an open central area. Another great area is the factory, which better supports lots of players than the office does. The physics are amazing and so is the material penetration. If someone is running, you can shoot them through glass. Eliminating other players gets you extra weapons, ammo, and medical kits.

One of the most interesting features is the slow motion effects. A player will pick up a special item which charges the player (making him glow too, so he's easier to spot). When the player is at full charge, he can slow down time for all the other players at will. When used well, this has some great benefits in that reflexes won't have to be quite so fast, but since all players have time slowed down, the game usually still plays out the same way.

Overall, the multiplayer element of F.E.A.R. is shaping up very nicely. The graphics, even in this early stage, are very crisp and the reflective surfaces and lighting are perfect. The only frustrating element is that the spawn points aren't random, and there is no invincibility after spawning, so it can be very easy to camp and spawn kill. In a twisted way, this is overcome by the fact that respawning can happen almost instantly, so a spawn killer may eventually run out of ammo and be overwhelmed. We found spawn killing to be pretty rare, though, especially since it is so easy for people to sneak up on players and kill them in a dozen different way. Yes, F.E.A.R. is in the air, and we love it!