marathonfool
Member
Anyone using a gadget build? Like to hear some impressions.
And :lol at people citing Destructoid.
And :lol at people citing Destructoid.
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Alpha Protocol |OT| Bourne, Avellone, Denton, and the Agency's Sagacious Secrets
- Thread starter Tokubetsu
- Start date
jim-jam bongs
Member
Zeouterlimits said:
Uhh... okay I generally defend reviewers but that review is fucking bizarre. To say that AC2 has some of the most "puzzlingly bad graphics" seen on a console last year is mystifying to the point of absurdity. My roomie played it on 360 and it's really quite a pretty game.
Anyway, Steam has been a fickle beast these past few days so I'm still waiting for the download to finish. That Joystiq comment was pretty nasty, but my enthusiasm remains for now. I'd be very surprised if you couldn't find comments from Troika employees that sound similar from around the time Bloodlines came out. If it's half the game Bloodlines is I'll be pretty pleased.
I was somewhat worried about this, and still haven't decided whether I'm going to get it on the Xbox 360 or PC. My computer can handle it, but I'm always inclined to play games on the 360 unless they're head and shoulders above the console versions. I hope the game is fun. The reviews are all over the place.
It's both a shame to hear all these reviews and almost a relief. It's a shame, because I think I've been one of the harshest critics of ME2 here on GAF, solely because of how half-assed the whole story was done and was looking forward to something that gave me action and a great story. I'm relieved, however, because I had suspicions about the game and decided to spend my money on Red Dead Redemption instead, and it's sounding like I made the right choice.
I'll pick up AP when it drops down to a budget price.
I want to give Obsidian the benefit of the doubt, but between this, Neverwinter Nights 2 and even, to a lesser extent, KOTOR 2 there's a clear chain of unpolished games being released.
Really, has Obsidian ever released a polished game that wasn't an expansion pack?
Looking at GB's quick look, this looks to be visual-wise on the level of something like Deadly Premonition, and that was designed to be a budget title from the start. It's clear that someone at Sega looked at Mass Effect 2, looked at AP, said "Fuck me!" and delayed the game to get it as far as humanely possible in an attempt to cut down on comparisons.
I'll pick up AP when it drops down to a budget price.
Joseph Merrick said:
I want to give Obsidian the benefit of the doubt, but between this, Neverwinter Nights 2 and even, to a lesser extent, KOTOR 2 there's a clear chain of unpolished games being released.
Really, has Obsidian ever released a polished game that wasn't an expansion pack?
Looking at GB's quick look, this looks to be visual-wise on the level of something like Deadly Premonition, and that was designed to be a budget title from the start. It's clear that someone at Sega looked at Mass Effect 2, looked at AP, said "Fuck me!" and delayed the game to get it as far as humanely possible in an attempt to cut down on comparisons.
indigo-cyclops
Member
Spirit of Jazz
Banned
I'm really enjoying it, I think the important thing is to view at as an RPG rather than an action game. Having a couple of AI guys charge you down into melee whilst the others stay back shooting you makes sense that way. Also makes it a little more difficult that games like RDR where you just take cover and wait for folks to pop-up, though I must admit the way enemies zig-zig when charging you down reminds me of the Generation Kill sniper scene :lol
marathonfool
Member
I'm confused. I thought the reticule represented the possible trajectory of the bullet. As you level up the skills points, the reticule becomes smaller and smaller. Similar to Valkyria Chronicles.
I honestly think this would have done better a little closer to Mass Effect 2. I know I was looking for a Mass Effect-style fix not long after it was done, and there isn't exactly a lot of Mass Effect like games out there, so instead people just replayed it or got the first game.
Hell I know someone who played Star Trek Online just because I said the ground combat was reminded me of Mass Effect, despite the fact I followed it up by saying 'but a bit shit'.
It's not like time has made the comparisons any less harsh between the two games, it's just let people get over the buzz and notice what ME2 did wrong...and if you're nitpicking ME2, then Alpha Protocol certainly isn't going to work for you.
Edit: It's really making it harder for those of us who like the game when the decent reviewers are calling out bad reviews for saying stuff that's actually true.
Hell I know someone who played Star Trek Online just because I said the ground combat was reminded me of Mass Effect, despite the fact I followed it up by saying 'but a bit shit'.
It's not like time has made the comparisons any less harsh between the two games, it's just let people get over the buzz and notice what ME2 did wrong...and if you're nitpicking ME2, then Alpha Protocol certainly isn't going to work for you.
Edit: It's really making it harder for those of us who like the game when the decent reviewers are calling out bad reviews for saying stuff that's actually true.
Spirit of Jazz
Banned
Axiom said:
Unless you were nitpicking the story/choices, the lock of RPG elements or that lack of stealth?
Polk said:
What I'm trying to get at is that I'm beginning to believe that maybe the rushed schedules aren't solely to blame for the shoddy production of Obsidian games. It's true that they were under tight schedules (especially with KOTOR2), but when every single game that they've put out has been a mess, one must begin to consider that maybe it's more than just a harsh schedule to blame.
And I say that as someone who has bought every single Obsidian game before AP. Hell, I think I like NWN2 a lot more than most people (Chapter 1 isn't good, true, but I love so much of what they did in that game, especially how party dynamics are taken into account in the final battle).
Circle Jerk
Member
you thought you did waaaay better in school than you actually did huhwhalenapp81 said:
The release date wasn't wisely chosen. But at least the price will drop very quickly because of this.
Interesting (German) reviews:
http://www.gamersglobal.de/test/alpha-protocol
http://www.4players.de/4players.php/dispbericht/Allgemein/Test/10948/68303/0/Alpha_Protocol.html
Interesting (German) reviews:
http://www.gamersglobal.de/test/alpha-protocol
http://www.4players.de/4players.php/dispbericht/Allgemein/Test/10948/68303/0/Alpha_Protocol.html
Game Trailers review.
I am still really enjoying the game, but I agree with most of what they say.
One thing they definately got wrong though was the pistol. That thing is easily one of the more powerful weapons.
I am still really enjoying the game, but I agree with most of what they say.
One thing they definately got wrong though was the pistol. That thing is easily one of the more powerful weapons.
The Last Wizard
Member
the week wait is gonna be hard, and amazon doesn't even have release date for this
jim-jam bongs said:
Like I said, Sterling's a hack. His Alpha Protocol review is nothing but strained hyperbole. He doesn't even attempt to back up any claims, he seems to think that using an industrious synonym for the word 'shit' is better proof than example or anecdote. Either he's more interested in his "bad boy of the internet video game reviewers" reputation than he is in critique or he is simply too poor of a writer to express his opinions in a way that benefits any reader outside of his circle of comments-section lackeys.
Also he looks like a fat little piglet with a stubble neckbeard.
Danne-Danger
Member
Really loving the game so far, just chose to go to
. Went stealth and melee, though I've done silent takedowns on probably 95% of the enemies so far and only resort to punching guys in a pinch. No kills yes (well, one, but that seemed unavoidable, and it didn't count!)! Feels a bit too easy so far though (with the "awareness" skill), but hopefully it'll pick up.
Oh and whoever wrote that review saying that hacking was "impossible" is a dumbass. All the minigames have been pretty fun, none feel too hard, and the game doesn't pause when you do them so the added pressure in situations when there are people around make them feel pretty exhilarating, which is more than I can say for similar minigames in other games. I will say though that moving the mouse around when hacking (right "code") is pretty unresponsive (unless that's intentional?), but I still haven't triggered any alarms because of it.
Also liking the Thornton character more than I thought I would. Always find it hilarious when he adds some super-douchy line to the end of his conversations for seemingly no reason at all. :lol
Taipei
Oh and whoever wrote that review saying that hacking was "impossible" is a dumbass. All the minigames have been pretty fun, none feel too hard, and the game doesn't pause when you do them so the added pressure in situations when there are people around make them feel pretty exhilarating, which is more than I can say for similar minigames in other games. I will say though that moving the mouse around when hacking (right "code") is pretty unresponsive (unless that's intentional?), but I still haven't triggered any alarms because of it.
Also liking the Thornton character more than I thought I would. Always find it hilarious when he adds some super-douchy line to the end of his conversations for seemingly no reason at all. :lol
After playing the PC version for a while, I think most of the jankyness must be in the console version or something.
The PC version is more polished and less buggy than Vampire Bloodlines was. Runs great too. Can't really comment on the overall story yet, but the writing is good.
The PC version is more polished and less buggy than Vampire Bloodlines was. Runs great too. Can't really comment on the overall story yet, but the writing is good.
jon_irenicus
Member
I have no interest in this game but, based on the critical reception so far, I hope this mediocrity doesn't trickle down to Fallout 3: New Vegas, the only game on my radar this year...that is, unless Bethesda announces that Elder Scrolls V will also appear this year.
Danne-Danger said:
To be fair, on my first playthrough I got stuck at the very first computer terminal. And not one person could find the hidden code. I think it was borked, because upon quitting and restarting, we breezed through this section.
And I hated it when he threw some random line at the end of conversations. I'd be choosing 'professional' for all my answers, and then suddenly WHAM - a bizarre flippant remark from nowhere. It's both distracting when I'm trying to, you know, 'role play', and at times it was totally contradictory townow I had been playing the character and the conversation.
Iv got plenty of other criticisms, but the 10% battery warning just appeared, so I'll end with despte all the problems, Alpha Protocol is just Deus Exy enough that I'm enjoying it a fair bit!
Danne-Danger
Member
Well yeah, if I took the story more seriously I would probably be annoyed because of the seemingly random relation penalties, but now I just find it amusing. It has been hard to tell which result an option would yield in a couple of situations, but overall I think the dialogue has a nice flow to it, and it is pretty easy to know which will be the right option (or at least "not bad" option) most of the time.elfinke said:
Cheesyhobo
Member
The reviews of this game have had a completely opposite effect on me than what was intended. I wasn't even aware of this game last week, but all that I've read about it today has left me extremely intrigued.
To the people who have played this game, how apt are comparisons to Deus Ex? Everything about Alpha Protocol seems very reminiscent of it, from the stat-based target reticule, to the branching dialogue options, to the level of freedom given in tackling an objective. Hell, even the brain dead A.I. and godawful graphics sound like Deus Ex.
To the people who have played this game, how apt are comparisons to Deus Ex? Everything about Alpha Protocol seems very reminiscent of it, from the stat-based target reticule, to the branching dialogue options, to the level of freedom given in tackling an objective. Hell, even the brain dead A.I. and godawful graphics sound like Deus Ex.
Joseph Merrick
Member
you have to only look at the code part and not worry about the mouse cursor at all. because you're controlling the code directly with the mouse, but its mouse speed is like 10x slower than the actual cursor hehe. confused me in the beginning aswellDanne-Danger said:
no idea how to answer this properly, seems like a lot of work. heh. I enjoy all of it now, overall story, all the written stuff and the dialogues. the dialogues in the tutorial really annoyed me. but since getting out of that really small area it's all been great edit: except for one time, at the end of the rome area, thorton's behaved pretty much as I wanted him toHK-47 said:
jim-jam bongs
Member
Patryn said:
I think that Obsidian's biggest problem is an overabundance of ambition. Also the areas in which they're most ambitious, like player choices which actually have an effect on the story and game world, generally turn out great; but they aren't always immediately apparent. B-grade visuals and controls are front and center from hour one.
About to start playing now, let's hope my faith hasn't been abused this time around :lol
Y2Kev said:
I'd only noticed his stuff for the opposite reason honestly, he's a magnet for system-warrior crazies. Generally I assume that's just the crazies being crazy but now I'm being forced to reevaluate.
Vinci said:
Certain genres might not be good for certain writers. While Ill wait to see it myself, Avellone always struck me as better with fantasy like Star Wars, Fallout or DnD, with bends on philosophy. The pace of a spy thriller, emphasis on conversational dialogue, not so much. I think Mitsoda should have remained the writer. His style in Bloodlines would have fit more. But he is off with zombies right now, which I prefer anyways.
It seems that a lot of the weirdness (voice acting and writing especially) went away after the tutorial.
Not sure what the fuck happened there, but things are now genuinely not embarrassing now, and are (dare I say it) really interesting.
Still lacks ME's 'flavor' but it feels more engaging (perhaps because it is immediately relevant?).
Technical help: I have been having a problem with UE3 games(ME2, GoW, AP, etc) that I wonder if someone could help me with.
At some random points, I will get a freeze or a stutter and then my Frame rate will be cut by like half. Restarting the game does not help, nor does restarting the computer.
Anyone know what this may be? I at first thought it to be a memory leak, but restarting should have fixed that.
Not sure what the fuck happened there, but things are now genuinely not embarrassing now, and are (dare I say it) really interesting.
Still lacks ME's 'flavor' but it feels more engaging (perhaps because it is immediately relevant?).
Technical help: I have been having a problem with UE3 games(ME2, GoW, AP, etc) that I wonder if someone could help me with.
At some random points, I will get a freeze or a stutter and then my Frame rate will be cut by like half. Restarting the game does not help, nor does restarting the computer.
Anyone know what this may be? I at first thought it to be a memory leak, but restarting should have fixed that.
Joseph Merrick
Member
pretty sure that's the same microloading someone brought up earlier. I only noticed it when I tried to fraps some footage of the game. are you running the game off a slow hdd or something, slow ram?
Big-ass Ramp
hella bullets that's true
Even after seeing the reviews, I still think I'm going to buy this. The Giantbomb quick look was really informative and even though this looks pretty janky this game looks like a game I would like. It looks like Crackdown where you have to buildup your skills before your guy even begins to be good at anything.
Danne-Danger
Member
It's much more linear than Deus Ex. You go to a safe house between missions and from there you choose the next one, no free roaming like in Deus Ex.Cheesyhobo said:
As for the missions themselves, they are very linear as well. Compare it to say... the MJ12 sewers, a few branching paths here and there along with plenty of things to find (money, guns, weapon mods, terminals etc.) if you decide to take extra risks. You can't jump around and be as creative as you could be with missions in DE, but from what I've played so far they vary it up a lot with what feels like "big decisions" (through dialogue options) along the way (that have a direct impact on the current and future missions). And there's plenty of guns and gadgets to play around with if you want that. Think more Bloodlines than Deus Ex, though that's only from what I've seen so far (which is not that far along).
Oh and your character can take every path from the get-go. Hacking and lock picking are universal skills (though you can make it easier for yourself), so a different character build won't necessarily have a different path and such. Though your interactions with NPCs will affect how certain missions play out. And you can purchase intel between missions that'll change things up a bit (fewer guards, extra objectives, easier hacks, maps, etc.).
And since you're moving in "steps" it can be hard to tell when it's safe to click, I've done plenty of miss-clicks when the box moved in the last second, thankfully they're not that harsh with the penalties.Joseph Merrick said:
normalmode
Member
Recruit/Hard was a bitch, but beatable. Upgrade your pistol ASAP so you can slowdown time and pull off easy headshots and work on building endurance. Took about 20 hours to beat, in contrast to my Easy playthrough the second time around (10 hours). Recruit is the only way to get Veteran, which opens a couple minor dialogue choices and starts you off with 120 AP.
SenorDingDong
Member
Gave this a go last night in what was intended to only be a brief session before I got back to my assignments. Multiple hours later I think I've finished two areas so far. I find myself echoing the sentiments of most others in this thread; it's rough around the edges but I feel the good obsidian qualities outweigh the bad, I'm really enjoying it.
Funnily enough When I first started playing it the framerate was horrendous, load times were shockingly long and I was wondering how obsidian had made the Unreal 3 engine perform so badly. Turns out it was just my computer playing up in general, remedied by a swift reboot. Overall it actually performs quite well, quite a smooth frame rate apart from the occasional hiccups here and there for texture load in.
Funnily enough When I first started playing it the framerate was horrendous, load times were shockingly long and I was wondering how obsidian had made the Unreal 3 engine perform so badly. Turns out it was just my computer playing up in general, remedied by a swift reboot. Overall it actually performs quite well, quite a smooth frame rate apart from the occasional hiccups here and there for texture load in.
Watched the GT.com review. So, AI is a bit wonky, there are bugs and the shooting plays like a RPG with dice rolls. That equals broken? I just finished a buggy ass game in RDR which was riddled with them every time I loaded it up, yet those were overlooked in reviews.
Simply looks rough around the edges to me.
Simply looks rough around the edges to me.
indigo-cyclops
Member
Thanks to all the stream viewers tonight. Hope it helped in your decision. PC version is by far THE version to get.
That said, I'm really enjoying the game!
I'll be back tomorrow night for more if there's an interest.
That said, I'm really enjoying the game!
I'll be back tomorrow night for more if there's an interest.
Zero-Crescent
Member
For those who are interested in the console versions, KMart will have the PS3/360 versions on sale for $44.99 next week (June 1st-5th).
http://blogs.mykmart.com/2010/05/alpha-protocol-review.html
http://blogs.mykmart.com/2010/05/alpha-protocol-review.html
Danne-Danger
Member
I just ran into a case of really bad level design.
In the first mission for
, you're tasked to eliminate 3 guys. In the last room -- where you'll first have to deal with a door that enemies and turrets can apparently see through -- after you've taken out the last dude there's a scripted event, and you have to fight off a bunch of guys coming off of a plateu. Problem is that the last two guys are there as "cover" and there is NO WAY YOU CAN GET THERE IN ORDER TO USE MELEE. The plateau in question was a chest-high-wall, and in this game, unless there's a prompt for it, you can't climb it (and you can't vault over cover which is another annoyance). I had to use a minigun stationed in the room, take out the two guys through "collateral damage" (i.e. minigun to the face), and ruin my no-kill run in the process.
Note that other guys would occasionally stay on the plateau, but if you walked away for a while they'd go down from alerted to cautious and you could lure them down with the noise maker. Those last two guys though were stuck in-place, and always at alert. Really, really shitty and frustrating design there.
Lesson learned, next time make sure you have at least two tranq rounds for said mission.
And another annoyance I found here. When you hack stuff, you only have one option that's triggered automatically. I mentioned that there were turrets here, well you can hack them, but the ONLY option is to make them turn on the bad guys, meaning that they'll kill everyone in the room. Now, if you're a melee stealth guy, like me, you'd want to disable the turrets so you can go into the room and kick some ass, which would probably have been possible at that terminal, but I didn't have that option. Whoever made this section needs a lesson in how to make a good level for a game like this.
So you better bring some EMP grenades as well if you don't just shoot out the turrets, either way you'll alert a few guards, and a boss character.
*Though note that this is the first mission that has been extremely shitty, and only the very last bit, for a now-lethal melee character.
**Oh and I forgot to mention, they also gave you an alternative, stealthy route through the room, where both turrets would still spot you long enough to go hostile (with the electronic evasion skill).
In the first mission for
the triads
Note that other guys would occasionally stay on the plateau, but if you walked away for a while they'd go down from alerted to cautious and you could lure them down with the noise maker. Those last two guys though were stuck in-place, and always at alert. Really, really shitty and frustrating design there.
Lesson learned, next time make sure you have at least two tranq rounds for said mission.
And another annoyance I found here. When you hack stuff, you only have one option that's triggered automatically. I mentioned that there were turrets here, well you can hack them, but the ONLY option is to make them turn on the bad guys, meaning that they'll kill everyone in the room. Now, if you're a melee stealth guy, like me, you'd want to disable the turrets so you can go into the room and kick some ass, which would probably have been possible at that terminal, but I didn't have that option. Whoever made this section needs a lesson in how to make a good level for a game like this.
So you better bring some EMP grenades as well if you don't just shoot out the turrets, either way you'll alert a few guards, and a boss character.
*Though note that this is the first mission that has been extremely shitty, and only the very last bit, for a now-lethal melee character.
**Oh and I forgot to mention, they also gave you an alternative, stealthy route through the room, where both turrets would still spot you long enough to go hostile (with the electronic evasion skill).