Prototype reviewKyle 'Dace' Brunette
Date added : 2009-10-31
Prototype, despite being plagued by numerous random crashes and other technical issues, still manages to draw the player in for an entertaining in-game experience.
After watching the pre-release videos for prototype, I was not particularly looking forward to playing it. I have to admit, however, that the videos did not (and still do not) do the game justice. Prototype has an undeniably 'fun' feeling while playing it, especially once you have unlocked and upgraded the majority of your powers.
In Protoype, you take on the role of Alex Mercer, a former employee of the GenTek corporation. Alex awakens in a morgue to find that he has developed super-human strength, resilence and abilities. He does not know how this came to pass, but he intends to find out, using any means necessary...
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Prototype takes place in the city of New York, on Manhattan island. Near the beginning of the game an outbreak of a new virus occurs. Naturally, this virus turns people (now referred to as 'infected') into zombies that wander around killing anything not infected by the virus. This sets the theme for the game as more and more of the population of Manhattan is infected. The military moves in early to prevent the spread of the virus, but as the story progresses it is found that they themselves have somewhat more sinister motives.
As the game progresses, you earn 'EP', aka 'Experience Points' which can be used to purchase new abilities. Several abilities are available for purchase right from the beginning of the game, with more being unlocked as the game progresses. You earn 'EP' from doing almost anything in the game, from defeating enemies to completing mission objectives. Additionally, some mission objectives award bonus EP if the objectives are completed stealthily (this basically offsets the EP gain from killing enemies). Some abilities are minor, while others are game-changing. Most of the more important abilities are marked by the game as 'core' abilities, and some missions require you to purchase the ability before attempting them (although this does not always mean that the mission will require you to use the ability.)
| Prototype introduces an interesting mechanic of storyline progression - consumption. Alex can grab humanoid enemies (and larger enemies after they have taken a beating) and 'consume' them to regain lost health as well as gaining the memories and appearance of the target (if the target was human). This is used throughout the game to progress the story, using the memories of various targets to figure out what to do/where to go/etc. These memories are represented by a short cut-scene). Additionally, each target of interest (your average enemy's memories do not provide a cut-scene) adds an entry to 'The web of intrigue', which stores all the memories Alex has collected. The web of intrigue, while not vital to the game, provides a lot of the game's backstory. Unlike the web of intrigue, the cutscenes introducing missions are vague, confusing, and way too short.
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In between missions, there are many optional 'events' which can be done for additional EP and achievements. These events are basically mini-games, and most, believe it or not, tend to be quite entertaining (if a little repetitive after a while). The types of events range from obstacle courses (some requiring the use of the 'glide' ability), rampages (ala GTA - use the specified power/weapon to kill as many targets as possible), wars (fight to help either the infected or the military win a particular battle), destruction missions (destroy a military base or an infected hive), and 'consume' missions, which involve going to a particular location (or series of locations) and consuming military forces to gain their knowledge.
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Initially Alex cannot use vehicles of any type, and is not particularly effective with any of the hand held weapons. However, these abilities can be upgraded by 'consuming' key military officers with knowledge on the relevant subject. This ultimately allows Alex to pilot APC's, Tanks, Thermobaric Tanks, and Helicopters. The controls for ground vehicles tend to be a little painful, as both the mouse and the keyboard are used to change the direction of travel. The helicopter control, on the other hand, is very well done.
One of the best elements of the game is the freedom of choice when it comes to completing missions (and doing anything else for that matter). You can choose to hijack a vehicle or steal a weapon, sneak around, engage targets in melee, or any combination of the above. This gives Prototype a very high replayability value.
Prototype looks and feels like a console game, which should not be so surprising seeing as it was developed as one. As frequently happens, however, it was not ported perfectly. In my experience, the game crashed quite often, and I encountered several other bugs (although none of these was game-destroying). The crashes tended to be incredibly annoying, especially seeing as mission checkpoints are only stored for the current session, which means that if you load a saved game, you will have to start the mission you were on from the beginning.
The AI in Prototype is fairly basic, although this does not detract from the game overmuch. In some ways it does break immersion, as I rather doubt life would continue as per usual less than a hundred meters away from an infected outbreak. In Prototype, it does. Cars drive around the city, people walk around minding their own business while the city is being torn apart just a block away. Additionally, the military will frequently scream "Stop right there or I'll shoot!" and other variations along the same theme without actually ever opening fire, unless, of course, you reveal yourself.
Overall, Prototype is a very entertaining game, and is well worth playing.
| Pros |
Cons | + Blades, claws, & more!
+ Web of intrigue - an interesting storytelling mechanism
+ Excellent replayability |
- Random crashes & other bugs
- Pathetic in-game cut-scenes
- Dodgy ground vehicle control |
| | Review Score | 83 | | Gameplay | : | | 90 | | Story | : | | 60 | | Technical | : | | 65 | | Replayability | : | | 85 |
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