Anonymous edits have been disabled on the wiki. If you want to contribute please login or create an account.

F.E.A.R.

From PCGamingWiki, the wiki about fixing PC games
F.E.A.R.
F.E.A.R. cover
Developers
Monolith Productions
Extraction Point TimeGate Studios
Publishers
Sierra Entertainment
Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
Engines
Lithtech Jupiter EX
Release dates
Windows October 18, 2005
F.E.A.R. on Wikipedia

Warnings

GameSpy online services have been shut down (see Network for solutions).
F.E.A.R.
F.E.A.R. 2005
F.E.A.R. Perseus Mandate 2007
F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin 2009
F.E.A.R. 3 2011
F.E.A.R. Online 2014

Key points

Master servers for multiplayer were shut down on December 19, 2012. See FEAR Combat Community.
The multiplayer component (F.E.A.R. Combat) is free to download and continues to be supported by the community.
Potential performance issues, use the DirectInput FPS Fix.

General information

GOG.com Community Discussions for game series
GOG.com Support Page
Steam Community Discussions (Extraction Point)
Unofficial Wiki for game series
F.E.A.R. Combat Community

Availability

Source DRM Notes Keys OS
Retail
Disc check (requires the CD/DVD in the drive to play)
CD key
SecuROM 7.00.00.0128 DRM.
Windows
GamersGate
Requires online activation
SecuROM PA DRM
Windows
Gamesplanet logo.svg
Icon overlay.png
Windows
GOG.com
DRM-free
Multiplayer executable creates dormant SecuROM files.[1]
Windows
Steam
Icon overlay.png
Windows
The GOG.com and Steam releases include both F.E.A.R. Extraction Point and F.E.A.R. Perseus Mandate

DLC and expansion packs

Name Notes
Extraction Point
Windows

Essential improvements

Patches

Latest version is 1.08.

Community patch

The FEAR multiplayer master server was shut down on December 19, 2012. The community has developed an unofficial patch for the game and is offering new FEAR Combat CD keys for free. The latest version of the community-supported FEAR Combat client and new CD keys can be obtained from the Fear Combat Community website.

Skip intro videos

Skip intro videos[citation needed]
  1. Go to the configuration file(s) location.
  2. Open settings.cfg.
  3. Add a new line: "DisableMovies" "1"

Notes

This doesn't skip the first splash screen which acts as a loading screen.

Game data

In-game general settings.
In-game general settings.

Configuration file(s) location

System Location
Windows %PUBLIC%\Documents\Monolith Productions\FEAR\settings.cfg
%PUBLIC%\Documents\TimeGate Studios\FEARXP\settings.cfg
Steam Play (Linux) <Steam-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/21090/pfx/[Note 1]
Key bindings are stored in %PUBLIC%\Documents\Monolith Productions\FEAR\Profiles\Profile000.gdb and %PUBLIC%\Documents\TimeGate Studios\FEARXP\Profiles\Profile000.gdb

Save game data location

System Location
Windows %PUBLIC%\Documents\Monolith Productions\FEAR\Save\Profile000\SinglePlayer
%PUBLIC%\Documents\TimeGate Studios\FEARXP\Save\Profile000\SinglePlayer
Steam Play (Linux) <Steam-folder>/steamapps/compatdata/21090/pfx/[Note 1]
F.E.A.R. has 10 save slots, plus 1 quicksave slot and 1 autosave slot. Additional save slots can be made by creating a new player profile. There is no ability to replay completed levels other than loading a manual save.

Save game cloud syncing

System Native Notes
GOG Galaxy
Steam Cloud

Video settings

In-game general video settings.
In-game general video settings.
In-game advanced video settings (for CPU).
In-game advanced video settings (for CPU).
In-game advanced video settings (for GPU, 1/2).
In-game advanced video settings (for GPU, 1/2).
In-game advanced video settings (for GPU, 2/2).
In-game advanced video settings (for GPU, 2/2).

Template:Video settings

Widescreen resolution

Widescreen fix is required for the Extraction Point expansion only.
Set custom resolution[citation needed]
  1. Go to %PUBLIC%\Documents\TimeGate Studios\FEARXP
  2. Open settings.cfg with a text editor.
  3. Change the "ScreenWidth" "640" and "ScreenHeight" "480" lines to match your resolution.
  4. Save your changes and set the file to read-only.

4K Ultra HD

In-game FSAA setting must be set to Off before enabling 4K resolution, otherwise you will be stuck in a black screen. If this happens, reset resolution via settings.cfg. If you need AA at 4K, see Anti-aliasing (AA).
F.E.A.R maintains 1:1 HUD scaling at all resolutions (i.e. there is no HUD scaling). This has the benefit of keeping HUD elements sharp, but they also may become very small on high-density monitors, such as 4K monitors sized below 30".

Field of view (FOV)

This game uses vertical FOV. See FOV Calculator for help.
Set custom FOV[2]
  1. Go to the game's directory:
    • Base game: \FEAR
    • Extraction Point: \FEARXP
  2. Create a file named autoexec.cfg with a text editor.
  3. If using a widescreen resolution add this line: "FovYWidescreen" "XX.00" where XX is the vertical FOV value. If using a non-widescreen resolution use "FovY" "XX.00"

Windowed

FSAA is unavailable in windowed mode. See Anti-aliasing (AA) for an alternative.
Set windowed mode[citation needed]
  1. Go to the game's directory:
    • Base game: \FEAR
    • Extraction Point: \FEARXP
  2. Create a file named autoexec.cfg with a text editor.
  3. Add "Windowed" "1" on a new line.

Anti-aliasing (AA)

The Soft Shadows option will have no effect if the FSAA option is enabled.
MSAA solution (Nvidia only)[3]
  1. Open the game and disable the FSAA option.
  2. Download and run NVIDIA Profile Inspector.
  3. Search and open the game profile.
  4. Set Antialiasing Compatibility to 0x004030C0.
  5. Set Antialiasing Mode to Override any application setting.
  6. Set Antialiasing Setting to 8x Multisampling or your desired level of MSAA/CSAA.
  7. Apply changes. Do the same for the Extraction Point expansion.

Notes

May have a very negative performance impact even on modern systems.
Alternatively, SMAA is available through an injector.

Input settings

In-game key map settings.
In-game key map settings.
In-game mouse settings.
In-game mouse settings.
In-game joystick axis map settings.
In-game joystick axis map settings.

Template:Input settings

Audio settings

In-game audio settings.
In-game audio settings.

Template:Audio settings

Localizations

Language UI Audio Sub Notes
English
French
Italian
Italian language is only available in the retail version. See here for the Steam version translation.
Russian
Retail only. Patch for digital release here.

VR support

3D modes State Notes
Nvidia 3D Vision
Disable game crosshair by turning the transparency all the way down and then enable 3DVision 3D crosshair (Ctrl+F12). Any depth adjustments must be done via KB shortcuts, as the Nvidia pyramid's scroll wheel will not work.

Network

Multiplayer types

Type Native Notes
LAN play
Versus
Online play
Versus, Co-op
Master server is offline; use FEAR Combat Community version. For co-op install Coop Warfare mod.

Connection types

Type Native Notes
Matchmaking
Peer-to-peer
Dedicated
Self-hosting
Dedicated server software available for Windows and Linux.
Direct IP

Issues fixed

TweakGuides has created a comprehensive guide for fixing issues in this game. It can be found here.

Broken shadow rendering on Nvidia graphics

Fix shadow corruption[4]
  1. Download this: registry tweak.
  2. Run ON_DisableVidMemVBs.reg before you start playing F.E.A.R. to fix shadow corruption.
  3. Run OFF_DisableVidMemVBs.reg after playing F.E.A.R. to disable the tweak. This is needed because this tweak has an extremely negative performance effect for other games. If you don't care about performance in other games, you can leave it on constantly.

Soft Shadows doesn't work combined with FSAA

Use alternative AA solution[3]

Small subtitles

Turning on large subtitles for non-4:3 resolutions has no effect.
Small subtitles[5]
  1. Download this patch.
  2. Extract FEARL_1920.Arch00 into the installation folder.
  3. Open Default.archcfg in Notepad and add FEARL_1920.Arch00 at the end of the file as a new line.
  4. For Extraction Point navigate to FEARXP sub-folder and add ../FEARL_1920.Arch00 to Default.archcfg under ; FEAR XP ARCHIVES.

Black screen on ATI/AMD video cards

Black screen on ATI/AMD video cards[citation needed]
  • If 'Soft Shadows' and 'Pixel Doubling' are enabled this will result in black screen, on some ATI/AMD videocards. Disable said graphical options to fix the problem.

Can't hear any dialogue

Enable/install Windows Media Player[citation needed]
  1. Windows XP or N/KN versions: install Windows Media Player.
  2. Relaunch the game. If problems persist, ensure Windows Media Player is enabled:
    • Vista and later: open the Start screen/Start menu, type OptionalFeatures.exe and press Enter.
    • Windows XP: press Win+R, type appwiz.cpl and press Enter, choose Add/Remove Windows Components.

No Torch Glitch

No Torch Glitch[citation needed]
  • At the beginning of Interval 03 - Escalation - Infiltration, the player must wait until they have control of the character before changing maps with the maphole command otherwise the torch will not be carried through for the rest of the game.

Low frame rate

Frame rate may drop to around 20-30 FPS after a few minutes of play. This is especially common with people using Logitech devices.
Use low frame rate fix[citation needed]

Use the DirectInput FPS Fix.

Notes

Not compatible with Extraction Point expansion.[6]

If you don't own a Logitech, are still having frame rate issues and don't want to use any extra files.

Borderless fullscreen mode[citation needed]
  1. Make game into windowed mode. See Windowed.
  2. Use Borderless fullscreen mode.

Crashes

Game won't start/maps not loading[7]
  • When hosting a LAN game as a Listen server the game may hang at the map loading screen with the progress bar stuck at 0%. This can be resolved by hosting the game as a dedicated server and then joining with the FEAR Combat client.
Startup Crash on Windows 10[citation needed]
  • Set game's compatibility mode to Windows XP (Service Pack 2).

Other information

API

Technical specs Supported Notes
Direct3D 8, 9
Shader Model support 1.1, 2
Executable 32-bit 64-bit Notes
Windows

Middleware

Middleware Notes
Physics Havok
Cutscenes Bink Video
Multiplayer GameSpy

Official SDK

The Steam version includes the SDK with the game.[8] Make sure you read instructions

DevMode

DevMode gives the ability to use the debug keys and to load any map, including a few demo levels.

Dynamic flashlight

Makes the light cast from the flashlight dynamic[citation needed]
  1. Download the mod here.
  2. Open Default.archcfg
  3. Add the line LC_FlashlightMod_WIDE.Arch00 or LC_FlashlightMod.Arch00 to the end of the list.
  4. Check the file as read only.

Notes

Does not work on both expansions.

System requirements

Windows
Minimum Recommended
Operating system (OS) 2000
Processor (CPU) Intel Pentium 4 1.7 GHz
AMD Athlon XP 1600+
System memory (RAM) 512 MB
Hard disk drive (HDD) 5 GB
Video card (GPU) Nvidia GeForce Ti 4200
ATI Radeon 8500
64 MB of VRAM
DirectX 9.0c compatible
Shader model 1.1 support

Notes

  1. 1.0 1.1 File/folder structure within this directory reflects the path(s) listed for Windows and/or Steam game data (use Wine regedit to access Windows registry paths). Games with Steam Cloud support may store data in ~/.steam/steam/userdata/<user-id>/21090/ in addition to or instead of this directory. The app ID (21090) may differ in some cases. Treat backslashes as forward slashes. See the glossary page for details.

References