Preview: Prototype

I have already mentioned this game in my NY Comic Con wrap up but since it is nearing release I will give you all a full fledged preview of Prototype coming to the Xbox 360, PS3, and PC on June 9^th. Prototype is the story of Alex Mercer, a man who wakes up with no recollection of who is he or why he has all of these special powers. He is able to grow claws out of his hands and other blunt objects and these objects are so powerful that they can stop a rocket. He can also glide and surf on bodies. He can jump super high and slam his elbow into an object to crush it. So with all of these ridiculous powers, and more, in hand Alex wants to know who did this to him and why. Mercer can “consume” the life essence of a person killing that person and retaining their memory, he can also then shape shift into that person to fool others. The main story is told through the “consumed” memories of several key people. The army is after Alex, trying to stop him and he will also have to fight off hordes of mutants that came from a virus that was set loose in Grand Central Terminal.

The gameplay is fun and varied, it isn’t too easy to romp through a level but it isn’t too hard to get a feel for the controls. The game is a third person action adventure title and the controls are surprisingly intuitive, if you have played shooters you will feel comfortable even though Alex isn’t wielding any firearms (at least not in this demo). Surfing on people’s bodies and slamming into the ground are really fun and I could have spent tons of time trying to perfect the controls of the demo but obviously other people wanted to play. Another cool element is the “devastator” move that Alex can pull off after he has filled up a meter and he will basically send out a shock wave type thing that will take out almost a city block depending on the situation and the power you have accumulated. But by far his coolest move is a move where you lock onto an enemy then press a certain button (I forgot which) and Alex will pound the ground, spikes will grow out of the ground under the enemy you are locked on to and they will impale him and anyone unfortunate enough to be near him.

The world itself is open and there is a lot that can be done with all of the open space, though it isn’t as non-linear as an RPG it is much more open than normal shooter/fighter type games like Halo. Most objects can be picked up and interacted with (usually thrown but sometimes you can do other stuff) The graphics are impressive especially the pre-rendered cut scene that opens the game, this was on released on Gametrailers.com a little while back and you will be impressed and not spoiled at all so go check it out when you get the chance. There is plenty of violence and gore in the game so it isn’t intended for younger audiences. As I said the game is coming out on June 9^th and should be really cool, I will probably buy it later on because of its vicinity to the release of Ghostbusters but I will eventually have a full review probably in August. By the way if you pre-order the game at Gamestop you will get an Alex Mercer figurine and an “exclusive” map, you know just FYI.