Gaming Alpha Protocol Review

We look at Obsidian's modern day Spy RPG to see if it's got a license to thrill.

http://www.bit-tech.net/gaming/xbox-360/2010/05/27/alpha-protocol-review/1

 

disappointing to say the least

 

I honestly had a bad feeling about this game and it seems as though my gut instinct was right. I'll probably pick it up when it drops to a fiver.

 

It sounded like it had potential; pitty to hear it didn't live up to it.

 

Disappointing, certainly, but unsurprising. Obsidian are masters of unrealized potential and almost-great games.

 

The complete lack of reviews so close to release meant I was already expecting something like this. A pity. Obsidian seem to have "Close, but no cigar" tattooed on their collective forehead.

 

I wanted this to be good - I'm sure we'd all like a real-world spy version of Mass Effect 2. I didn't have the highest of hopes, what with Obsidian being behind it, but I was hoping for a score of at least a 7 or 8. This is disappointing, and doesn't bode well for Fallout: New Vegas.

 

Thank God I cancelled my pre-order. I could see from the previews that this game would only be a disappointment.

 

And this is the developer that's in charge of the new Fallout? Oh my.

 

You cite simplified combat and skill systems for an RPG as bad elements of the game. Yet you gave Mass Effect 2, which has far more simplified combat and skill system. You also talk about linearity, and says the game has some, but this is not enough according to some arbitrary standard. And again, Mass Effect 2 has only completely linear missions, which would place AP above it on that scale as well. As for the rest, I'm gonna take the "Stealth and targeting is too hard" with a grain of salt after the above stupidity. You really should try to be consistent in your reviews.

 

The review can essentially be broken down to "It's to hard and simplified".

Mass Effect 2 had a skill and combat system that was a lot more simplified compared to AP, it was also more linear. Consistent in your views much? I would also really, really like to know how many points you invested into your hacking and lockpicking skills since the mini games were apparently so very hard.

 

hello.

i'd like to point out that mass effect 2 is almost completely linear,
has an even more simplistic skill system AND combat system than this game,
yet it got a 10/10.

and the mini games aren't impossible, you just didn't develop those skills at all. learn how to play rpgs.

this review shouldn't be taken seriously by people who do not want rpgs to be action games with a few dialogues crammed in.

 

A damn shame really, as I was really expecting this.

 

Looks like Sega was right to be worried.

 

One to avoid then, shame I had highish hope for this.

 

To address all those points together; Mass Effect was just a better game. It was a far smoother shooter and had classes which actually created different abilities, level-ups bought noticeable benefits, the writing was grossly superior, the performances far better. I take your point that it was linear, but Mass Effect 2 was pretty direct and honest in how much of a shooter it was and it was polished with that in mind. Action was slick and fast, with environments consistently designed for how the game was meant to be played. Alpha Protocol isn't - it pretends to give you hacking, stealth, action options, but they all amount to the same and none of them are handled that well.

Also, I did specialise in the hacking side of things as much as I could, but the RPG side of AP just isn't very well done at all. It's obviously stiff and broken. This is a genre I have an awful lot of experience with - RPGs are my preferred genre and I've played pretty much all of Obsidian's past games, as an example. It's not that the hacking minigames are impossible, just that they are difficult, frustratingly designed and only rarely worth the effort. Likewise, Stealth is difficult to stick too, not worth the effort and only clumsily littered throughout the game. Pass, thanks.

Personally, I'd question how you're able to speak with such authority on a game which isn't even released yet...

Also; I've tidied up your complaints that your posts were being censored, because they weren't. They just weren't appearing because you're a new sign-up to the forum and your first posts have to be approved by a mod first, which I've done.

 

Climb down off your high-horse, you are not being censored. Every new member goes into automatic moderation because it's how we stop spam.

Mass Effect 2 was also an infinitely superior game.

 

I'll probably still check it out. I like the whole idea of a spy/rpg. If it sucks, I guess I won't buy it then. I do think this is one of those games where, you either love it or hate it. I did see that other review in that Spanish gaming mag. that gave it approx. an 8 out of 10. You gave it a 5. I think this ones gonna be all over the board. I'm glad I'm also able to play games before I buy them, because you might be right. Maybe it's not worth the price of admission?

 

One of the things I like about reviews on this site, is that the comments are read by the reviewer and they address them when relevant. Haven't seen many other sites where that is the case. Big thumbs up from me!

In relation to the review, I'm still willing to give this one a shot but at full retail... no thanks. I'll wait till it falls into the bargain bins.

 

Honestly I think they sometimes address them a little too much, giving the mouth-breathers and fanboys more attention than they deserve.