Review: Prototype

Recommended Videos

TheRockNRolla

New member
Apr 9, 2009
190
0
0
Sure, there's plenty of Prototype reviews up, but I wanted to share mine with you guys. Anywho, reviews below and thanks for reading!

Ever wake up in a morgue, and wonder who you are? Then, just as you escape, you discover you have the power to shape shift and consume living beings? Probably not, but that?s just the problem Alex Mercer is having.

Fresh out of the morgue is Alex Mercer, a man with no memories. Upon escaping from a Gen-Tek building, Alex discovers his new super human abilities and sets off on a path of destruction and vengeance. The story is actually a flashback, that leads up to the 18th day of the infection and Mercer?s current predicament. Players who want to know everything about the infection and those involved, will find themselves hunting down all 130 Web of Intrigue targets. The Web of Intrigue are cut scenes that are played when Alex consumes the target, and sorts through their memories. It?s a rather interesting way to tell a story, and you may even drop what you?re doing at times to consume these targets.

Alex comes equipped with a devastating arsenal of abilities. As you unlock and upgrade Mercer, he can leap tall buildings, slide around on the bodies of his enemies and glide across the city in style. Let?s not forget about his ability to throw large, heavy objects, shift body parts into powerful blades and fists, and destroy a large area with devastators. Players will need these abilities when the excretion hits the fan and Alex fights tooth and nail against the infection and Blackwatch(military). While Prototype does an excellent job at making the players feel like the ultimate bad ass, it has it?s frustrating moments. The game is certainly not easy and the chaos is sometimes just too chaotic. As you progress through the game, areas of New York will be occupied by either the infection or Blackwatch. Approaching the end of the game, the military is harder to evade, and they?ll detect Alex easier. Upgrades are purchased with Evolution Points, and those are earned by doing just about anything. Killing, completing missions, collecting orbs, or by doing the numerous challenges. You can suppress both sides by destroying their base of hive which also nets you a nice amount of evolution points. Once you?ve completed the game, you may start over, with all of Alex?s upgrades you earned with the New Game +. Players are also free to explore New York city and collect anything they may have missed during the main story.

The controls are easy to understand at first, but as you unlock abilities, the more uncomfortable they become. Eventually, you?ll be holding down three buttons in order to perform specific attacks. Alex has a tendency to grab the wrong objects, which can be frustrating during large fights, or when you?re chasing after a Web of Intrigue target(Thankfully they respawn). When sprinting up buildings, Alex will get stuck in alcoves, jump over the intended roof tops, or just run in the wrong direction. The targeting system can be frustrating at times. It doesn?t always lock onto a target, and since you select targets by flicking the right stick, which also moves the camera, players will constantly need to reselect the right target when they need to see their surroundings during those chaotic battles.

Prototype is not the best looking sandbox title out there, but it?s not the worst. The framerate is always running smoothly, no matter how much chaos is going on. The city feels stale and bland, even in the infected areas. New York sounds more lively than it looks. The audio relies on the explosions, and constant military chatter that starts up when Alex is being pursued. The voice actors perform their jobs well, and Alex?s voice fits his anti-hero persona well.

Prototype is a very fun title. Anyone looking for a chaotic sandbox title to occupy their time, won?t be disappointed with Prototype. Everyone else will be drawn in by the mystery that?s surrounding the events that led to Alex Mercer?s transformation and the outbreak of the infection. The good definitely outweighs the problems in Prototype making it worth a purchase.

Prototype unlocks 8 memories out of 10.
 

MrBrightside919

New member
Oct 2, 2008
1,625
0
0
Good review...atleast I liked it (I dunno if everyone will share my opinion or not)...

Typo at the end...you said "memories our of 10" instead of "out of"...
 

Daezd

New member
Mar 1, 2008
343
0
0
Pretty good review you've got yourself here, It flows nicely, you're descriptive, and you keep pace quite nicely. A few complaints though, you have a few typos ("of" instead of "or" or "our" instead of "out") and in at least one case you misuse an apostrophe ("...excretion hit's the fan") but overall it's a nice review.
 

ShankHA32

New member
May 10, 2009
242
0
0
Good review, but i don't see what the problem with grabbing things is, i always had an easy time with it. Gamespot mentioned that too, but w/e.....anyway Prototype is much better then inFamous so im happy.
 

Hazy

New member
Jun 29, 2008
7,422
0
0
ShankHA32 said:
Good review, but i don't see what the problem with grabbing things is, i always had an easy time with it. Gamespot mentioned that too, but w/e.....anyway Prototype is much better then inFamous so im happy.
Completely Subjective, and a statement like that could easily start a flamewar. Just a heads up.
 

TheRockNRolla

New member
Apr 9, 2009
190
0
0
Daezd said:
Pretty good review you've got yourself here, It flows nicely, you're descriptive, and you keep pace quite nicely. A few complaints though, you have a few typos ("of" instead of "or" or "our" instead of "out") and in at least one case you misuse an apostrophe ("...excretion hit's the fan") but overall it's a nice review.
Yeah I noticed the hit's thing but my Word Processor kept sticking it in there and I forgot to take it out. Completely missed the other stuff though, thanks.
 

Screens

New member
Oct 31, 2008
101
0
0
I counted 14 uses of the guy's name in your middle length-ish review. Seriously, you don't need to keep repeating his name; I think we got it the first five times or something. Apart from the repetition, I liked it. I can see a few grammar mistakes (no spelling, I think), but nothing to big.

And don't use the numeric score, use the one that the Escapist reviews use.
 

ShankHA32

New member
May 10, 2009
242
0
0
xxhazyshadowsxx said:
ShankHA32 said:
Good review, but i don't see what the problem with grabbing things is, i always had an easy time with it. Gamespot mentioned that too, but w/e.....anyway Prototype is much better then inFamous so im happy.
Completely Subjective, and a statement like that could easily start a flamewar. Just a heads up.
Ah, your right. Ok i take back my previous comment. I just found Prototype more creative then InFamous, although i have both. Also the fact that in both games you can move around the city quickly made both game ENOURMOUSLY fun for me. I love them both.
 

Jay Cee

New member
Nov 27, 2008
304
0
0
Well written and smoothly executed review there.

I enjoyed Prototype immensely, in that sort of stress relieving fun way. A truly richly detailed sandbox adventure.

I also quite enjoyed the change of making the sandbox into a linear adventure, which kept the narrative in check. It kept ALL of it's promises.