Prey (Xbox 360) Review
Posted by Steve McHugh on 07.17.2006
Do not play whilst drinking.
The 360 is fast becoming the place to be if you like console FPS games. So far there are 5 games available in the genre and quite a few more lined up for release in the future. On top of that there are plenty more available for the Xbox itself. It’s hardly surprising considering the following the games have. And now we have a 6th game for consideration.
Prey’s story is not exactly one of originality. You play Tommy a Cherokee Indian and after you are abducted, along with your grandfather and girlfriend, your job is to get off the ship with your loved ones and kill anything in your way. Not exactly a game to let plot get in the way of shooting aliens in the head you start off with a wrench and quickly find a rifle and after that weapons are given to you throughout the game for your alien killing needs. That’s not to say there isn’t a story there as what is there is very well done and exciting its just not exactly original or deep.
However Doom was hardly the deepest story ever and that did ok so I’m not going to hold the lack of a war and peace epic against it.
Graphics
Now the Xbox 360 can produce some amazing visuals and the developers have managed something pretty special with this game. The lighting for a start is fantastic and really atmospheric, everything looks dark and grimy and gory, which it should do. The spirit walking casts an eerie white mist which is a nice effect and a good contract to the darkness the game can put out.
Ah yes the gore. There’s a lot of it. A lot. At one point you get to watch a human get impaled with out ten long metal spikes and then they just explode. Which is one of the reasons why this game gets an 18 certificate, if you get queasy at the sight of blood, guts and people exploding then this is probably not the game for you. And because of the graphical power now you get to see the blood in Hi-Def… it’s the future baby!
The only criticism of the graphics is that after a while everything begins to look the same, it a problem that most Sci-Fi FPS games suffer from and it doesn’t detract from the game but it is something you will notice.
Ah I can’t discuss the graphics without mentioning the weapons. Firstly they rock but I’ll discuss that later, graphically they’re all very different and each one have nice little touches that set them apart from your normal FPS gun. For example the shotgun type has green goo ooze out of the side of it as your carry it and the rifle has claws that ripple as you hold the gun. It’s the little touches like this that show the thought that has gone into the game.
Oh and the first time you see a 747 crash into the side of a space ship you will say holy shit.
It can get a little crazy at times
Gameplay
The controls for this game couldn’t be simpler. Right trigger is fire primary. Left trigger fire secondary. The left and right back buttons flick between weapons. A is jump. B is crouch. X is throw grenade and Y is spirit walk (where everything is the same button wise except you only have a bow and arrow). Obviously the analogue sticks let you move about and the directions buttons allow you to assign weapons. This simplicity allows you to get into the game very quickly and you’ll soon find yourself killing everything with ease.
And actually that’s part of the problem. The game is very easy. It’s not that you won’t die because you will but when you die you go to a spirit realm and once you’ve shot a few spirits your back to where you just died. And that is all you’ll have to do. The spirit realm is amazingly easy too so you’ll have no problems there. Just stand still and shoot at the spirits as they go around you.
The enemies themselves aren’t that hard to beat either as they tend to be more of the attack in groups then actually search for cover and try to flank you ala Call of Duty 2. They don’t just run at you or anything as they will try to snipe you when your far away or back off if you press an attack but they’re not exactly genius’ or anything.
That’s not to say it isn’t enjoyable because it is. The weapons themselves are all a great deal of fun and all have a different feel to them and because of this you will find your few favorites and stick with them. Mine were the shotgun and the leech gun.
Ah the Leech gun… this is basically 3 guns in one. With it you can absorb energy from certain hubs to use against your enemies. You can either use fire, ice or lighting. Each one has its uses but you can only pick one at a time so choose wisely (also it’s always funny to freeze your opponents – looks good too).
The main area of gameplay that differs from other games is the amazing ability to walk along walls and on ceiling. There are certain walkways which allow you to walk upside down or along walls, thankfully the view always changes to whichever way your walking to stop it from being too disorientating but when your walking around these places its quite common for enemies to appear on the wall next to you or on the ceiling so keeping your wits about you is the best way to play unless you want to keep dying. There are also occasions when the screen will flip upside down and when it happens often it really can take a while to get used to what is actually happening. Thankfully there aren’t usually things that want to kill you when this is going on.
As I mentioned earlier a part of this game is the sprit walking. Basically once you’ve learn how to do it you can leave your body and move around. In this form you can see hidden routes and move through barriers to help solve puzzles. It’s a wonderful way to add a really unique feature to the game and it really helps to immerse you in the whole gaming experience.
Spirit walking. Just you and a bow.
Sound
The sound in this game is really very good. The music is very atmospheric and helps to define the tone of the game. The voice acting is also pretty good, I like the radio broadcasts that help supply a little plot if you stop and listen to them. Some of the acting does seem to linger on B movie delivery though.
Actually the voice acting is probably another reason why this game got an18 certificate. There’s a lot of swearing, Tommy seems to live saying a few of these words every time something jumps out at him. Admittedly if I was in his position I probably wouldn’t stop swearing for the entire time I was there.
Some of the enemies also have quite interesting noises to make especially the little ghost girls who are just evil.
Lasting Appeal
Now here’s the problem. This game is too easy and besides that it’s short. It’ll take you about 10 - 12 hours to get through it and whilst you can go back and play it on the hard setting (especially if you want all of the gamer points) there probably won’t be many of you who will do so.
On top of the single player game you can play multiplayer which is about as mad as the single player game and will certainly keep people busy for some time. But for those of you who craze single player action this just doesn’t last long enough.
Fun Factor
This is a fun game to play. It’s rarely frustrating and the puzzles are usually more interesting then not. There are also some great set pieces, fighting on a moon for one thing or the part where you see a giant alien because you’re so small. It’s creatively very impressive and whilst you’re playing through it you will enjoy yourself.
Besides you get to kill A LOT of aliens what’s not to like.
The 411
Overall this is a great game and another notch in the 360’s growing library. It’s certainly a must play as it’s original and deserves for people to play it and enjoy it. But it is too easy and too short and suffers because of it.
As it is it’s probably up there with Far Cry and Call of Duty as one of the best FPS games on the console. Hopefully enough people will buy it so they can make a sequel and sort out any problems.
Graphics
9.0
Great lighting, wonderful effects. Its lovely to look at.
Gameplay
8.0
It's a great game to play and with some nice original touches. Shame dying doesn't matter though.
Sound
7.0
Nice atmospheric music but some of the voice acting isn't as great.
Lasting Appeal
7.0
It's too short and too easy but multiplayer will last you.
Fun Factor
8.0
At no point would you say this was boring. A great way to waste a weekend.
