Prey

"I sense great change on the FPS....."

Sometimes idea's are too good to die, that is the case with this game, Prey. This game has quite a development history. It was originally going to be done internally by 3d Realms and was going to include “portal” technology. The graphics were out of this world as well, that is, for 1998. However, this game slowly but surely became vaporware and was soon forgotten, along with is sister-game Duke Nukem Forever. Thankfully, this game was resurrected and given to a 3rd party developer to finalize. So, it begs the question of, “Was the wait worth it?” Well, since this game had less of a spotlight than the Duke sequel, it therefore had less expectations, so it's hard to judge exactly. Looking just at the game, I would say that it was worth the wait.

Graphics
This game uses the Doom 3 engine, which still looks very nice. It is starting to get old, but it obviously has some spark left. The engine is perfect for the “living spaceship” levels throughout the game. Some of the aliens look like some hybrid of a Doom zombie and a Quake alien, but most of the enemies you encounter are unique looking. The levels themselves are all very good looking, as well as the characters. It definitely looks like you are on an alien ship.

Sound
The voices and battle sounds are top notch. The Native American characters voices are brilliantly done. The voices of the aliens are creepy enough, along with their battle cries. The music is nice too.

Controls
The controls are the same as with any FPS. There are plenty of additional controls however. The biggest difference, is that in this game you can Spirit Walk, or leave your body as a spirit. You have to press E to do this and then E again to go back. While you are a spirit you use the same controls for movement and interaction. The only trouble some people might have is that they will expect E to be the interactive button. So when you walk up to a console you will try to press E to activate it. You need to left-click the mouse instead. The controls of the vehicle you get later on are a little more difficult to get use to; they could have been a little better. However, when you first get it, you have some free time, so you can play around with it.

Game play
This game is actually a blast to play. However, it is not without its issues. First, once you gain the ability, you never really die; you just enter the “Death Walk” which is essentially a mini-game. You have to shoot these “Stingray” looking things to replenish your health. So it is a valid argument to say that you can't die in this game. While this is true, it does not take anything away from the intense battles you have during the game; in fact, it adds to it. There never was a time when I charged head on into the gunfight because I knew I would not die. Not to mention, this is the only way to get your health back when playing in Cherokee mode, which is essentially hard mode.

The Death Walk subject leads me to something else, Spirit Walking. This is actually a cool feature in this game, not to mention essential. You can leave your body and continue as a spirit. While you are a spirit, the enemies don't see you, unless you attack them. You also pass through security shields and laser trips undetected and unhindered. Most of the games puzzles involve you not being able to progress until you find a switch that you can't access unless you are a spirit. The puzzles later in the game become quite interesting and complex; they will require you to fully understand and make use of the physics that affect your real body and your spirit body.

Another huge game play element is gravity. This game adds a whole new concept of gravity to the FPS genre. First, you can walk on these special paths that allow you to walk up a wall or along a ceiling. Enemies can do this too, so you need to be paying attention to all possible angles, above and below. There are also these things that you shoot that rotate the gravity of the room. For example, if you see a gravity switch on the left wall and you shoot it, the left wall becomes the floor. Navigating these rooms becomes a puzzle in itself.

The weapons selection is cool, but not all that great. Sure, there are some really awesome guns you get, like the biological rocket launcher, but some are kind of useless except for a specific enemy. Here are a few of the issues: the Lecher runs out of ammo too quickly, the grenades have to be very well placed or they don't do damage, the sludge/shotgun is causes almost no damage unless you are up close and personnel, and the machine gun type weapon has ammo that is not too common, and you have to use too much to kill most of the enemies. The rocket launcher is the best weapon by far, only you can't keep that equipped as you can't use it in close quarters. I was finding myself switching between the basic assault rifle and the rocket launcher for most of the game. There are plenty of times when the Lecher gun is your best friend, particularly late in the game because the ammo is rechargeable, but still, the gun selection could be better.

The multi-player is rather intense when there are a lot of people. It brings new meaning to the phrase “Adds a whole new level of game play”. That's because, technically it does, with the gravity things all around. You have to be on your game. Although, I still prefer my good old RTCW: ET for my multi-player needs.

The other game play element that is worth mentioning is the portals. These are cool but not that big a deal, as they are basically just another type of door. They are a little be cooler in multi-player because your enemy can quickly teleport to a spot behind you, but in single player, they end up being a way to get from point A to point B.

Finally, you get to drive a vehicle in the game. Yes, a small fighter space ship that has both a gun and a tractor beam. The controls are a little awkward, but not to hard to master. Plus, the enemies you encounter are not too bad, it's more the puzzle solving during these times that will try your patience.

Story
The story is the best part of the game. It starts out on an Indian Reservation with the main character wanting to go somewhere in life. All of a sudden, you are on a space ship fighting for you life. You are constantly looking for your girlfriend, and getting life lessons from your grandfather. Slowly but surely, you learn who this alien race is and what they are doing here. Needless to say the story draws you into the game as you progress further. Something else I liked is that you have a spirit guide; a bird of prey (pun not intended) named Talon. It turns out he was your pet while a boy, and he has come back to accompany you throughout the game. The best thing that he does is translate the alien messages into English. He also helps you in a fight as well.

In conclusion, I think this was a great game. It could have been better; it had some issues, but for the most part, a solid FPS. The game was about as long as Fear, around 9 hours or so; although Fear took longer because it was harder. Still, I would gladly take 9-10 solid hours of fun as apposed to 12-15 hours of mediocre gaming. Was it worth the wait? Well, it's definitely not the same game that they started 10 years or so ago, but I think yes, it was worth the wait. I say pick this game up, especially if you are new to the FPS genre. This is one of the easier games, and it does not take much away from itself by being easy. It is also a great game to play while waiting for the next block buster, so enjoy.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 08/14/06