A single screenshot (see right) made up of shattered glass and gunfire spraying everywhere raised much speculation as the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) progressed this week.

However the formal announcement arrived that the game is not the second SHOGO Mobile Armour Division title, nor the third No-One Lives Forever instalment but a completely new game called First Encounter Assault Recon. Keeping Monolith's love of acronyms, that's F.E.A.R for short.

Aiming to put you in your own blockbuster movie, the story is first priority as you're dropped into several Hot Zones with orders to simply clean up. It's more complicated than that but we're eager to see how the storylines unfold, given the competition from classic label-mate Half-Life and the forthcoming sequel.

Monolith needs a turnaround in fortunes, certainly- sales of the above average Tron 2.0 were literally melted when Disney Interactive failed to release the game in the UK last summer, while Contract J.A.C.K was too short to make any impact. Here's hoping F.E.A.R. and its Matrix Online game causes a reversal of fortune this year.

Monolith's website:

http://www.lith.com

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