Prototype

In honour of the coming Prototype2, I'm here to explain why the first Prototype is one of my favourite games to date. I don't think Prototype is a game you can easily apply a simple out of 10 score to, there is so much on offer from this game but most of it can be, and in allot of cases has been, overlooked or just not used during game play.
You play as Alex Mercer, in a predictable story, which has you awaking at the start finding you have mentally insane uber powers. You obviously don't know why, how, who or when, and set off to find the answers. The game has you slicing clean through enemies, launching them stupidly long distances with so much force they'll splat if they meet a surface on their travels, jumping of buildings with mutated hammer fists first towards the ground utterly obliterating whatever should be within radius of where you land. Going through the list of powers at your disposal is too long winded for someone like me to do, so here is something I scraped of Wikipedia;

Offensive powers include the large and powerful Blade, fast razor-sharp Claws (which can also erupt large spikes from the ground), the telescoping Whipfist, Musclemass that augments his strength, and the slow but powerful Hammerfists. Defensive options consist of a large shield for blocking ballistic attacks that needs to regenerate after excessive damage, and full body armour that exchanges agility and speed for toughness in hand to hand combat; both will allow Alex to plough through most obstacles when active. Vision modes include thermal vision, which allows Alex to see enemies through smoke and other obstacles at the expense of a decreased vision range, and Infected vision, which highlights those infected with the BLACKLIGHT virus as well as military units
And this doesn't include the insane running speed, jumping even the Hulk would be in awe of, gliding, brutal general strength... and so on and so forth.  

Yet another roaming game set in a New York'esq setting, probably because its easiest to design and work on/with this type of setting, but the game could have easily been set in any type of surrounding and terrain and have been a solid title, perhaps the city environment didn't do the title justice? The game looks and slightly feels too much like the early roaming Spiderman titles (I'm assuming it’s the same engine, but cba to research it), which is not a terrible thing, it just doesn't keep you engaged for too long. Hardly any variation in settings either, just heavily congested with pillars of buildings or a bit more open.  
Visually the game is lacking but not by enough to let the whole thing down. Anyway you can’t have a game the moves as swiftly and with as much action as this AND have beautiful visuals... that's just greedy. Personally Id go with better game play over visuals any day. Don't worry there is enough detail in there for you to get the sweet sense of satisfaction after brutally smashing someone/thing to a bloody pulp. Alex Mercer himself... BADASS! Assassins Creed'esq hood, not much expression of emotion, menacing grin, modern clothing... All adds up to fan boy and girl worthiness.

Back to my initial point, the fact this game has so much going on can make it seem desperate and can also can also be quite intimidating if you’re not looking to get chin deep into a game, especially one that on first appearance doesn't look very fulfilling. Plenty of varied civilian and military vehicles and a small range of weapons to use, ample special powers and abilities which are all upgradable BY CHOICE, hand to hand and weapon based combat, story lines that follow each the main character and the company you fight, side missions and challenges with a nice mix of difficulties that varies the game play nicely, exploration that, once you've gotten to grips with the game, is fun for hours a time, tons of collectables (think crackdown)... With so much going on and so much to potentially do, how to best play this game, but once you've mastered the controls, navigation, and combat this game can be picked up and put down however many times is called for, which to me is what makes a great game.



Looking forward to Prototype2, I can see already that the visual side of things has been addressed, far glossier looking and better detailing, but I hope this does not mean the pace of the game will be slower. A new power I'm excited about is the ability to infect enemies and use them as various kinds of weapons. We shall see...

I Am Alive

I remember first coming across this game around 2 years ago, a trailer showing the aftermath of an earthquake I believe it was. It stood out, and I made a conscious note to keep an eye out. Originally by Darkworks (GRAW), news on this game was sparse until last year when development moved to Ubisoft Shanghai, who seem to have pretty much started from scratch on most of the game but the concept.
Set in the not too far future after a major calamity, the game sees you play as one of the remaining survivors. So a set up we see more frequently in movies. The backdrops I have seen in screenshots and videos/trailers looks amazing. A devastated new york'ish looking city (Original plan was for the game to be set in Chicago, now a fictional city  the lighting has been done well making outdoor settings seem vast and welcomley mysterious, as your explore for essentials such as water, fuel, cigarettes etc. Whereas the darker and indoor settings have a tense serious feel. I can easily see me playing through these parts cautiously and slowly as if constantly on your final life.
I have seen game play that makes you think assassins creed; climbing around the tall remains of the crumbled city, every now and then another part would break keeping you on your toes. Here is where we see the stamina feature. You wont be able to just launch yourself at a structure with a climbable surface and figure your way up as you go, as you would with creed (probably). Even as you hang there looking around, your stamina will still slowly deplete, and then at a faster rate when climbing, you can sacrifice a larger amount of stamina to throw the player for increased reach, or to get across a gap. This I imagine would have player planning out the routes, so we know this is not supposed to be a constantly fast paced game. The rest of the game play seen makes me think of Elder Scrolls or Fallout. I am not the biggest fan of either franchise, as I feel the game play is simply too slow paced and rigid. There is something added to this that I have not seen done in such depth before. Approaching other survivors in the game you have the option of using different tactics to pass them, if needed. you can use stealth to kill from the shadows with a bow, or sneak up for a one hit machete kill, you can bluff and surrender, and wait until the perfect time to strike your enemies if more than one corners you, you can even brandish you gun to intimidate them, but if your ammo is less than theirs they might not hesitate to take you out! Keeping you on your toes. This could be the twist RPGs have been needing to break up the game play, yes RPGs have done this, but none to this extent.
developers explain they don't want this title to feel RPGish, having your scroll through endless menus and memorising endless quick keys/shortcuts, but still have the depth.
The biggest concern is its reported to be an XBL and PSN title, NO HARD COPYS!?
What I remember most about the screen shots and videos I have seen is the emotion. You almost feel the desperation of the player. If this is also felt whilst playing the game we could be in for a winner. Might be the moody colours used, or the lighting styles. or the feasible setting for the game, but from the looks of things this is one of those titles that will have you immersed in its world.
Will definitely be looking out for this.