10 Seriously Underrated Video Game Intros That Deserve Another Look
4. F.E.A.R.
The name F.E.A.R. may seem a little on the nose, particularly if it makes you feel no such thing, but Monolith’s seminal masterpiece more than lives up to the title, instilling a sense of dread from its very first seconds.
As the first strains of hauntingly beautiful and unsettling music play we are confronted with an eye, its pupil seemingly aflame, the ghostly silhouette of a girl swirling inside. Disconcerting whispers dig into our skulls, just as they’re digging into the skull of the man we see locked in a cell. A girl dressed in blood red approaches the door and speaks the chilling words: ‘Kill them. Kill them all.’ The door to the cell swings open, revealing an empty hallway. The man screams, the sound distorting as it lashes a group of soldiers, and in a brilliant bit of visual exposition we see that he is in psychic command of an army. His guards are slaughtered and as a parting gift the intro leaves us with the ghastly spectre of the man eating a corpse.
Yeah, welcome to F.E.A.R.
It is an absolute masterclass in creating atmosphere, leaving you feeling frightened, vulnerable and overwhelmed - precisely what you should be feeling.