FEAR Tweak Guide

[Page 4] Patches, Maps & Mods



Official Patch


In what is fast becoming a disturbing trend for modern games, FEAR has had its first patch released online on the very same day the game was officially released in stores. So every retail box of FEAR on every store shelf right now is out-of-date, right from the day it was released - simply because the game's publishers couldn't wait a few more weeks before releasing a finished product. Worse still, since the first patch was being developed at the same time as the game was being manufactured, it doesn't incorporate any fixes based on recent user feedback.


In any case, the 1.01 patch came out on the game's release date, but a more recent patch for FEAR has been released, bringing it up to Version 1.02 and can be downloaded from a variety of places aside from the link above, such as Fileshack and Fileplanet. It weighs in at 120MB and contains the fixes from the previous 1.01 patch as well, so you don't have to install the 1.01 patch first. The main changes the latest patch contains are a new multiplayer map, some minor localization fixes, and also prepares the game for FEAR's modding tools. Despite the somewhat limited number of fixes, FEAR owners should still download and install this patch, especially if you want to eventually install any custom maps or mods.


Note: A lot of users are reporting problems with the 1.02 Patch. If you haven't already updated to 1.02, I suggest you don't install the patch - it doesn't contain any important fixes and offers no performance improvement over the 1.01 patch.


If you still have problems after installing the patch, please see the Troubleshooting Tips section of this guide for things you can try. Also, if you haven't yet purchased FEAR, it may be wise to wait for a more substantial patch before buying the game. It is definitely worth buying, but I have begun recommending that people wait for games companies to finalize games before we buy them, not the other way around. This reduces the headaches for you the consumer.


Click to enlarge

No-CD Patch/Disk Image


While I have ranted against secuROM and the many annoyances and problems it has caused FEAR users, for legal reasons I can't give you any details of where to find or how to install a No-CD patch or Fixed Image to circumvent the copy protection system. This is purely for legal reasons and not for moral reasons. Morally I would suggest that game companies are really pushing their luck by continuing to hammer legitimate users with idiotic copy protection systems which pirates already strip away from their games.


Anyway please don't write to me asking me how to circumvent secuROM, as I just won't provide that information.


Mods


FEAR is based on the JupiterEx game engine, and as such it is modifiable. At the moment the FEAR editor has not been released, but VU Games has reassured us that one will be made available. There is even a FEAR Modding & Fan Content sub-forum on the Official FEAR Forums where you can find out more about the status of FEAR mods and tools. This FEAR Mod Database also lists a mod already under development, so the good news is that we will hopefully have a lot of great fan-made maps, mods and total conversions based on the stunning FEAR engine. As soon as I hear of some good ones, I'll post more details here.


If you want to look into the FEAR data archives - the .arch00 files in the base \Sierra\FEAR\ directory, you can use the Arche Noah FEAR archiving tool. This allows you to extract and view (and modify) the FEAR game files, however this is obviously done at your own risk. Remember, modified files can be flagged by PunkBuster as cheats in multiplayer.



The next page looks at the In-Game Settings for FEAR and how they work.