Prototype PC Review

After the long hiatus, it's time for another PC game review. Prototype is a high action cross platform sandbox game. Published by Activision and developed by Radical Entertainment, Prototype comes hot on the heels of Infamous, and is drawing comparisons from many reviews. I believe it's only fair to review a game as an independent entity, so I will be drawing as few comparisons as possible.

The story for Prototype is pretty standard for what we see in video games these days under its genre. There is a giant genetic weapons development company ( Gentec in this case ) which utilizes a government contract to develop a biological weapon. They succeed. In typical fashion, control of the weapon is lost. After a cover up fails, attempts to contain the virus are made. These attempts fail and the disaster theme quickly follows.

The hero of the story, or anti-hero in this case, is Alex Mercer. Our leather coat wearing hooded protagonist has amnesia. Alex has been infected with this biological weapon, but the amnesia prevents him from realizing the details of his circumstances. Most infected individuals become murderous rage filled mutants. Alex ( for reasons I can't recall the details of, but it doesn't matter anyway ) gains superpowers. With his new found abilities Alex ventures out on his quest to find what has happened to him, and get revenge on those who turned him into this monstrous wrecking machine.

The details of the story get pretty complex as things go on. To organize the interweaving plots and characters a mechanic known as the 'web of intrigue' is integrated to the pause menu. This highly stylized flow chart is put in place to help you keep the many small players ( there is a good number of these small bit parts ) in the story tied together in a cohesive group of events/interactions that are easily followed. More prominent allies and enemies who create an understanding of Alex as a character, and give a context for his situation pop up from time to time. I admit they don't exactly create much empathy for him, given the type of action that goes on in game. But, they are suitable enough to the situations they appear in.

Gameplay itself seems smooth and fast paced. I found the combat to be well developed and imaginative. This varied gameplay is a direct effect of the wide array of weapons and abilities. The difficulty curve is quite challenging even on easy. On the hard skill setting the game seems quite intense pretty much immediately, and continues this level of challenge for as far as I managed to go on hard. The city ( which is a street by street rip of Manhattan ) is well mapped and easily navigated with the use of an on screen display. Alternatively, there is a large map in the pause screen. Important areas and missions are marked clearly. Parcour and gliding movement is controlled, but fast enough to get Alex where he needs to be without spending hours navigating city streets. You can also hijack military vehicles like tanks and choppers, just to change things up a bit. Driving a tank provides a good example of how morality takes a back seat in Prototype. You literally crush a path through civilians and other vehicles. Prominent use of violence, and consumption of innocent people to sustain health creates a gore happy kill fest that makes it difficult to empathize with Alex at times. However the varying weapons and imaginative attacks keeps the action exciting and unique at each encounter. It is so much so that you may spend a lot of time killing hoards of screaming civilians just to see how many strange combos you can use to take people out. The fighting starts out basic, but as more abilities are added and battles become more challenging it becomes more and more varied. In the later stages combat moves are so evolved, it's unlikely you will be able to use all of them in any single fight, not matter how many different enemies come your way.

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