Prey

I bought this game for XBox 360 for 10 Euro or so, and I was expecting a nice shooter without too much story and a lot of graphical violence. And well, frankly even with that expectation it disappointed me.

First of all I want to say that I like the original idea of wallwalking, etc. It cóuld have been very innovative if it wasn't for the developer turning this game into a semi-puzzel/platform game every once in a while. I said this a lot of times and I'm gonna say it again; platformgames and shooters dón't mix, period. I like a challenge, but for example I was trapped in one (big) level for a entire week before I found out that to progress in the game, I had to shoot a small electro-tube somewhere on the wall... What kind of game-logic is that?! So if you want to complete this game and you find yourself stuck, the best thing to do is thus basically shoot at everything and hope it triggers a door or anything... It is NOT the way I want to play a game! The most 'innovative' part of this game are the portals, and even though Valve's Portal-mod does a far much better job at this today then Prey, it is a cool effect (at least for sight). Is it necessary? No. Is it confusing? Very much. Most of the time when you enter a portal, you will flip upside-down , or sideways in a way that it will leave you desorientated for a brief few seconds and thus very vulnerable to enemy attacks even with the most 'elite' shooterskills.

The weapons are also not very great. Every gun looks like a cliché alien-gun, complete with bright lights and shiny texture. You have a sort of plasma-gun, a gun that you can load up with elemental stuff like fire, electricity, cold. You also get a gun that fires what could be described as a load of snot... Well, do I need to say more? Its as if the developers of this game weren't even trying. Oh, and you also get to play with the lamest, and I mean the LAMEST main-character in a shooting-game EVER. At the start of the game, the Indian-guy doesn't bother you much, but further in the game his whining about his girlfriend and his childish and furthermore simply dull one-liners ("Damn, its dark in here!" - as if I didn't notice that myself Sherlock!) will probably tick you off and will leave you with no feeling for the main-character at all.

And some more bugs: some 'puzzles' (read: annoying counterparts) require a lot of 'spiritpower' to turn on switches and so, but if this runs out, you will have no other choise then to kill yourself in order to get more 'spiritpower' (and no, there are no spirit power-ups in the levels apart from a few). And if you don't have any bug-grenades (how original...) or alien-rockets (sigh) you will just have to reload a old game and try again. Also, what is it with the graphics? I mean, the game on XBox 360 already looks like it could have run fine on the first XBox (and I'm not kidding there), but some images are just too dark. And I don't mean just dark, but pitch black... Even a shitty lighter that your character can activate can't change much about that.

So this pretty much sums up what it is; A failed experiment, hyped with the now very popular Doom 3-engine. If you want a innovative and exciting shooter, go play Half-Life 2 (again), or the new Portal-mod I mentioned earlier. Do yourself as a shooterfan a favor, ignore the hype and just leave this game for what it is.

Development phases familiar from covert Pentagon pet projects beckon misunderstanding from the gaming cadres, and Prey exemplifies this nicely.

Bound for tragedy, the nine year old title has made it to stores this summer triumphant, albeit the interminable delay from first showcasing in 1997 to shelves circa 2006 has resulted in much confusion, hence the less-than-stellar critical reactions you may see elsewhere.

For Prey is being bunched with the on-going, and oft exhilarating, slew of first person shooters, still in vogue and dominating proceedings, particularly on the PC. However, it isn't one such game despite following the genre's visual conventions. In fact, it has more in common with 80's pioneers Cinemaware, whose glorious and ignominious interactive movies on the Amiga were cast aside, like Prey accused of low difficulty levels and pre-scripted events.

Of course quite easy and pre-scripted, because Prey doesn't wish to come across hard to get or sophisticated, but, lo and behold, simply fun. It is one of the smoothest games we've seen in recent years, compelling players along not by hardened challenge but rather sheer pleasure and a desire to see what's in store next.

It is also an amazingly stable game, suffering none of the encumbrances known to occur with alarming regularity in other titles. To that extent, Prey resembles last year's Area 51, another roller coaster ride crucified by industry and players for being too timid and lacking the simple press power of its Doom, Half-Life and FEAR siblings.

Forget all that: Prey is a masterpiece, putting fun and superlative storytelling first. A big boon is the maturity of the tale, with a lot of good language, real gore and even fighting against wicked children.

Reasonably enjoyable action and quite attractive visuals help, but above all else it's the game's consideration of players that wins us over. It's never too hard or frustrating, and gives you those vital ingredients somehow often missing in other releases.

For starters, the way it all begins, at a remote reservation bar on a dark, stormy night. Protagonist Tommy, considered Cherokee by his grandfather Anisi and girlfriend Jen, but really eager to shed that identity and look for a new one. This scene introduces characters and play mechanics well, preparing Tommy for the fight ahead, as an unknown force kidnaps him and his loved ones, forcing the reluctant hero on a path of discovery and courage.

But here we also glimpse Prey's professionalism: jukeboxes come with a host of full rock tracks, clocks animate and change in real time, rain falls outside in rhythm, and Don't Fear the Reaper plays just at the right moment. Beautiful.

The cavalcade of neat touches doesn't not stop there, with the unfolding alien environment into which Tommy is cast feeling real and consistent. There's cyborg weapons that move and squirm as you hold them, cool snippets of radio host Art Bell's UFO-centric late night show Coast to Coast AM, memorable alien propaganda and even wacky perspective changes. That's among Prey's chief innovations, enabling players to walk on walls and traverse portals that zip one among locations, a feature generating more than a few fun puzzles.

Opponents, most twisted and delectably incorrect in the political department, deploy excellent animation, and while obviously inspired by those from the aforementioned shooter franchises and even the Matrix movies, are engrossing in engagement and leave a lasting, entertaining impression. None are overly challenging or intelligent, and in fact the AI can't do much more than move around or take random cover, but it wouldn't matter anyway, since you can't die.

That's right, not only does the game allow saves anytime, players are also technically invincible courtesy of Tommy's Spritiwalk ability, an alternate game mode akin to Area 51's mutant switch. Learned in the beautifully-realized Land of the Ancients realm, Spiritwalk opens up areas off-limits to the physical body, granting Tommy a mythical bow weapon that's frankly of little use. Importantly, when the material shell dies, the spirit lives on, ultimately allowing for a return to almost the exact spot where Tommy died. No restarting levels and that kind of shinola here.

That's the crux of it: you're not supposed to win, beat or conquer Prey, but kick back and relish the ride, just like a truly good movie. Therefore, its cinematography is definitely up to spec, Human Head's penchant for detail and drama paying dividends as gamers witness moments of shock, horror and suspense.

The Doom-derived engine produces pleasing visuals, but they won't blow you away for technical achievement. Instead, it's the design that matters, even though Prey boils down to another corridor crawl when all's said and done. They're nice, atmospheric corridors, though, thus rarely repetitive, and Prey also avoids Doom 3's problematic love of dark spaces, something it references in one of several humorous moments.

The minimalist, but oh-so appropriate soundtrack shines, delivering psychedelic refrains, sci-fi mood-pieces and addictive rock just where they count. Effects contribute their fair share, and you'll soon be quipping one liners provided by Tommy's prolific adversaries, the Hunters. Weapons and other contraptions sound great, and the Spiritwalk portion comes with chanting voices that get into one's head easy. Do note the top-notch voice acting, making everyone come off as champions of their respective roles, in particular the sinister enemy bosses.

Prey does its literary and cinematic sources of inspiration proud. Stuff like the Alien universe, Shyamalan's Signs, 80's series V, the X Files, Independence Day and classic invasion novel Footfall all find a home here, as do players who appreciate a tight, comprehensive package that simply makes you feel good about being a gamer.

Rating: * * * * 1/2

When I first heard that Prey was coming out for the PC, I expected it to be another normal and boring PC game. It was when I heard that IGN gave Prey a good review along with various other sites, I decided to try it out. I bought Prey off Ebay for 5.00 pounds and When I played it the first thing I realized was the beautiful and realistic graphics. I eagerly jumped into playing Prey and was completely astounded to what I thought would be a sh*t game. You control a Cherokee Indian whose life is a bummer. His girlfriend thinks that Tommy Dommasi is difficult and he doesn't get along with his grandfather because he doesn't believe all that spiritual and superstitious stuff. The gunplay is excellent and the guns themselves are different because they are alive and very different to earthly guns, mainly because he is aboard a alien spaceship. The gore is overly disgusting and disturbing, all the way through the game you will see blood, guts, and livers. The gore is very important to the game because without it the atmosphere will feel dull and pedantic.

After his girlfriend and grandfather get kidnapped by an alien spaceship, Tommy tries to release them from the clutches of evil. As the game progresses onward, you realize it isn't that easy. The ship is controlled by a power hungry leader who steals people from different planets for what they call "Harvesting", meaning to eat. Along the way you earn a power called spirit walking, you leave your body in a state of meditation while you do what you have to do with your spirit, and you shoot with guns that will blow your mind.

The worst thing about this game is the easiness of it. It will take you about 5 or 7 hours to finish the game. The portals are so important in this game and Prey was the first game ever to have portals in it. Defying gravity was one of the fun things in this game but it can get weird sometimes because you have to shoot in a way which would make your brain dizzy and fuzzy. Prey is enjoyable and somewhat stupid because when the enemy is about to throw a grenade they call out, "Grenade" and then you can easily avoid it. Prey should be in every gamers collection and have a wonderful time playing. Happy Gaming!

A game with amazing presentation unique level design ,amazing ideas out of the ass and a story that is actually interesting and some nice ending.

In the beginning the shooting doesn't feel too good the only weapon You have doesn't have enough heft behind it but you will soon get a fun weapon and the gun that can take material bag at the enemy is just a funnest thing to use.

The level design is amazing with the tricks they use and all the small gimmicks and portals and just everything about it. It's amazing this game come out before portal 1 .

It has some amazing portals in it. The Indian story is for freshing in a market where you're not used to seeing these kinds of story it feels very honest and very Earnest the story and that's what made me have fun playing it and listening to it and it was about five hours to game so I was not bored.

The only sad thing is they didn't get to make a sequel because they were killed because they didn't want to be absorbed into professor, but this game is still amazing.

If only the developers concentrated more on the characters and story, making some innovative levels and lots of enemies, instead of rushing this game out, Prey could have been one of the better 3D-shooters of all time. Unfortunately Prey does not have the scares of Doom-3 nor even the frantic action of Quake-4 and I sadly say that it less memorable than both of those games. Prey does throw out some gameplay innovations at you such as gravity manipulation and spirit walking which allows for some interesting puzzles but all that really fizzles out at the end. Prey also feels too much like Doom-3 and is almost as dark on many occasions. There are very few weapons and enemies too which shows that this game had been rushed. The screenplay for the story which is rarely significant, was very good, showing some great potential which was never exploited.