Metareview: Prototype
by Ben Gilbert 
{ Jun 11th 2009 at 1:15PM } 
- 1UP (B-): "Making Alex [the main character] such a badass also proves to be Prototype's undoing. It becomes a fight to follow and control Alex in the midst of the action. This problem mounts the further you get into the game, leading to more frustration than fun ... Alex can essentially fly around the city. With his jump, air dash, and glide abilities fully powered up, and the basic ability to run on any surface, the buildings become like a giant jungle gym."
- Eurogamer (7/10): "Fans of serious hero fiction will find Prototype a bit of a turn-off. You're infected with some sort of virus ... and the story of why, told through snatches of video obtained by absorbing key characters (basically, weakening and eating them) and in moody cut-scenes, is basic and yet difficult to follow ... Mission design isn't very open-ended, usually boiling down to doing something violently or stealthily, but with such a vast array of attacking options you often have the luxury of trying something different."
- IGN (7.5/10): "How long can you do flying elbow drops onto tanks or throw people off of rooftops before it gets boring? The world itself here is far from the most engaging ... Since repetition is oftentimes the name of the game here, you can be sure you'll be doing uninspired tasks over and over again."
- Giant Bomb (4/5): "Radical almost went too far with its kitchen-sink approach to combat design, but the gameplay here is satisfying and broad enough that you can have plenty of fun with it even without mastering the nuances of every last combo and attack ... Prepare to be frustrated from time to time when the mission difficulty amps up to insane levels and you feel it's you against the entire world all of a sudden."
Gallery: Prototype
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
tmacairjordan87 @ Jun 11th 2009 1:18PM
Still can't decide if it's any good or not, but I'll "borrow" it from Gamestop and give it a good 6 days or so to find out.
Chris D.(PSN: Aggie_CEO | XBL:The Aggie CEO | Steam: Aggie_CEO @ Jun 11th 2009 1:24PM
borrow??
tmacairjordan87 @ Jun 11th 2009 1:27PM
Yeah buy it used then return it for a full refund before 7 days. The only money you spend is the $3 or whatever it is on tax.
Heh @ Jun 11th 2009 1:28PM
"borrow" from gamestop
I hate people like you, purposely abusing flawed systems.
tmacairjordan87 @ Jun 11th 2009 1:35PM
What's that saying..oh yeah "don't hate the player, hate the game"
I'm always going to do what's in the best interest for me when it comes to my money. This isn't a game that seems like it's worth buying, and I don't currently have gamefly so it's cheaper for me to rent it from gamestop than blockbuster.
Not doing anything illegal, so I fail to see what the problem is. Didn't realize some of us had bleeding hearts for Gamestop of all places.
Storm Eagle @ Jun 11th 2009 1:39PM
Are you referring to the employee check out system? Where you sign out a brand new game, take it home and play it and then bring it back to the store and shrink wrap it, reselling it as if it was never played? You can burn in Hell.
tmacairjordan87 @ Jun 11th 2009 1:41PM
No, I don't work there. When you buy used games there they have a policy where you can return them for a full refund within 7 days of purchase.
Temidien @ Jun 11th 2009 1:44PM
"Not doing anything illegal, so I fail to see what the problem is"
Obvious ethical flaw is OBVIOUS.
That being said, Gamestop can eat shit and die so more power to ya.
Dr. Stabbingworth @ Jun 11th 2009 1:48PM
"I hate people like you, purposely abusing flawed systems."
That's the whole point of the 7 day return for used games. They specifically say at the store that if you don't like it, you can return it. That's how Babbages used to be, except that you could do it for new games as well. That's why they also have an additional 90 day (or whatever it is) policy for returning bunk games.
@Tmac
Why wouldn't they refund your tax? I can't think of a single thing I've returned that hasn't also included my tax money back.
Troy Powers (PSN: TroyPowers) @ Jun 11th 2009 1:49PM
Actually, thanks for the tip. I've gotta give this "borrowing" policy a try. They should have video games at the local library. I mean, they've got CDs and DVDs.
tmacairjordan87 @ Jun 11th 2009 1:51PM
@Dr Stabbingworth
Oh I didn't know that. This will be the first time I've ever used their return policy so I just assumed they don't refund tax. But if they do that's awesome, gonna use the return money to buy a refurbed 120gb drive.
Chad Vanderbilt (Moptimus in Disguise) @ Jun 11th 2009 1:54PM
thats just it doctor
Hes not using the return system to go "Oh, I dont like this game, good bye" hes using it to speedrun through and get all the achievements/trophies then return it.
One is using a system the way its intended, the other is an obvious flaw in tmacs ethics.
tmacairjordan87 @ Jun 11th 2009 1:58PM
Ethics are overrated. Gamestop sure wasn't checking its conscience when they wanted to give me $25 for Infamous when it had only been out for 6 days, so why should I when they have an open policy like that?
gd_1039_evilive @ Jun 11th 2009 2:00PM
I don't know if you knew this or not, but buying used games puts all that money directly into Gamestop's pocket, and not a dime goes to the developers.
I understand your method, especially since you said you don't have Gamefly (but if it is just to speedrun through the game and grab all the trophies, I must agree with Chad, that's not cool). But if it turns out you do like the game, I think the least we can do as gamers is show the people behind it that we enjoy it by buying it new and giving them some of our hard earned cash for their hard work.
U U D D L R L R B A SELECT START @ Jun 11th 2009 2:01PM
If after 7 days I have no desire to ever pick up that game again and have completed all achievements story line etc...I think I'm justified in saying "I don't like it"
Sly [PSN SniperChameleon] @ Jun 11th 2009 2:05PM
that's actually not a bad idea... i should do that when MAG comes out. see if its worth it or not. and i hate trophy boosters! it makes me feel so inadequate looking at all their trophies. granted, if i stuck with my original account, i would have 2x as many trophies as i do now, but still...
tmacairjordan87 @ Jun 11th 2009 2:05PM
" don't know if you knew this or not, but buying used games puts all that money directly into Gamestop's pocket"
Yes I did know that, and it's unfortunate...it really is. But I'm not made of money, and being as big of a gamer as I am and as expensive as games are, I only have so much to spend on new games (pretty much I save for the big AAA games like Uncharted 2). So bottom line is for those other games, I go where I can save the most money and get the best deals.
There's a reason why Cheapassgamer is on the top of my favorites list :D
Anticrawl @ Jun 11th 2009 2:23PM
"when they wanted to give me $25 for Infamous"
Only a fool sells games at a game boutique.
On-topic Prototype is a really fun game, and I don't understand the complaints of repetition. It is the least repetitive sandbox game I've ever played. In fact one of the things I somewhat dislike about it is the chaos associated with all the abilities one must juggle in the middle of combat. I personally wouldn't pay $60 dollars for the game but I'm not a fan of this genre. It is a guilty pleasure though; the game certainly earned its M rating. I don't think I've ever played a game more satisfyingly violent before. After beating inFamous and being a good bit into Prototype I can say if I had to choose I’d pick Prototype.
WiredKnight @ Jun 11th 2009 2:23PM
Yea, tmac is obviously taking advantage of their policy, but if you want to talk ethics, gamestop always loses.
Anticrawl @ Jun 11th 2009 2:24PM
I sure hope Uncharted 2 has a great singleplayer because the multiplayer beta was.. terrible.
WREturns @ Jun 11th 2009 2:26PM
You don't really think that ethics are overrated, you just don't know that you're an Objectivist. Well, now you do.
Sly [PSN SniperChameleon] @ Jun 11th 2009 2:33PM
i liked the multiplayer beta. the gatling gun, the dragunov, the riot shield, and the m4 carbine are really fun to use. the FAL and the AK are boring though...
PedoJokerBear (aka Deeznuts) @ Jun 11th 2009 2:45PM
i think yall are attacking Tmac more than the "borrowing" imo.
Alistair Azimuth PSN: johnnynumber5 @ Jun 11th 2009 3:01PM
Anticrawl
I think it just speaks to how subjetive gaming is in general. You praise Shadowrun as the bastion of a great shooter but thought the uncharted beta and call of duty franchises are terrible. I thought Shadowrun was one of the most incomplete and unfinished online shooter ... Maybe ever. My friends and I were talking the other day how awesome we though the beta was and how Epic could learn something from it for Gears 3. Don't get me wrong in that it's not the best thing ever but it's certainly going to compliment the campaign which is the selling point to start with. The co-op may be the best part about uncharted 2 when it's all said and done.
My point is that one mans trash (shadowrun) is another mans treasure (uncharted 2 mp) with everything inbetween.
Same goes for the infamous vs prototype debate. It's not required that people choose one or the other but it's hard not to draw parallels. I adore Infamous but at first wasn't drawn to prototype because it seemed little more than violence for the sake of brutality with little substance. But, I've seen some good things and might give it a run eventually. I'm glad that even though the games are similar they are both quality in their own ways. Choices are never a bad thing especially in an uncrowded genre.
Anticrawl @ Jun 11th 2009 3:44PM
Ah don't get me started on a Shadowrun debate. But I'll leave it at Volition being heavily inspired by Shadowrun and it influencing the multiplayer to an extent; check out some of the comments from the dev team. Probably part of the reason I love Guerilla so damn much. The Uncharted Beta was terrible and I can't see how anyone could really defend it. Luckily it is a beta and hopefully all the feedback from the community forums (I suggest you visit them Johnny) will make the game better for it. I don't like the Call of Duty series because nothing ever changes but a few gimmicks and the singleplayer, I've never said it was a bad game. It's a great game, but it's too basic and similar to other shooters for me to really enjoy (in multiplayer). The campaign has always been superb in Call of Duty.
jahd5000 @ Jun 11th 2009 4:50PM
oh come on you can eat crap, abusing of the flawed economic system of most stores in US.
ive had many games in gamespot that dont come sealed instead they only put it in the case that i bring to the cashier. who tells me those game im paying full price werent already used by YOU. No more buying there, sealed game form BestBuy and such, way to go.
Vandalus @ Jun 11th 2009 5:21PM
"I don't know if you knew this or not, but buying used games puts all that money directly into Gamestop's pocket, and not a dime goes to the developers."
The developers have received all they expected to out of that individual game unit when it was sold the first time at retail. When I purchase a game, the manufacturer receives their cut. That game (or any consumer good for that matter) is now my property, and it's freely alienable for any price that the market will bear. If I sell it to a private person - or a corporation in the business of buying and selling used games - that is my right to do so at a price mutually agreeable between the two parties. The developers have ceased to have any interest in the property once it has been consumed at the retail level.
This argument that you (and others) espouse makes no sense in the real world. If the developers really want to continue to make money off of their IP's, they have other ways of doing so. In fact, the vast majority of us consent to it already in the form of DLC. But they are never going to be able to retain profits from the sale of used goods, at least not in the current legal system (which won't change anytime soon). So get over it.
Windmill @ Jun 11th 2009 10:05PM
Be careful. I used to do that, until they one day almost kicked me out of the store, and they told me I was never allowed to return anything ;P
Adam @ Jun 11th 2009 10:07PM
I work at an EB Games...and yeah yeah I get all the hate for the company. So don't attack me here, BUT
about you saying you don't get the tax back. Technically you do. Let's say you pay $59.99+tax for a game and then you return it for that week refund thing, you get $59.99 back in store credit. That store credit is tax free credit. So now, when you go pick up another $59.99 game, you pay $59.99 store credit for that game...no taxes required.
So the change up thing works really well for us gamers. Yeah yeah yeah EB Games/Gamestop is a horrible company blah blah blah. I get the whole ethics thing, but seriously, this is a pretty damn good deal. Take advantage of it.
kentuckyfried @ Jun 12th 2009 9:42AM
This explains the plethora of *cough*cheapscrubs*cough* people who seem to always be in a hurry to finish individual games.
Sly [PSN SniperChameleon] @ Jun 11th 2009 1:21PM
the reviews sound decidedly 'meh' and all the people on my friends list who got it say the same (except for one...). i'll stick with infamous.
ohyeahcola @ Jun 11th 2009 1:38PM
infamous sucks
MariusElijah (Only on PlayStation 3) @ Jun 11th 2009 2:12PM
^^ BLASPHEMY
sonicspike41 @ Jun 11th 2009 3:01PM
It's actually quite fun. I convinced a friend to buy it and so far we both love it.
Imagine inFamous, but with more close-range attacks and weapons. You can even fly helicopters, tanks, use rocket launchers and other military weapons. You can glide around for short periods which makes traversing the city a lot easier at times. You can even run straight up buildings while soldiers are firing missiles at you. It really does look like a scene from an action movie.
On the negative side, it's kind of hard to get to some of the higher up spots on buildings to get the collectibles, some bosses can be pretty cheap at first (but it does save more often than inFamous seems to, so you don't have to keep repeating the whole thing).
Oh, and for some reason I prefer the story of this one so far and the Web of Intrigue is nice. inFamous is still really fun too though.
VGSFTW @ Jun 11th 2009 4:16PM
"You can glide around for short periods"
You can glide in inFamous, just not right from the start. You gain the ability as you progress further into the game. That's what keeps the game fresh, it doesn't give you everything right away, but the gameplay changes accordingly when you do get new powers.
E.J. @ Jun 11th 2009 5:19PM
It's probably because the game takes itself way too seriously.
TheKarmaPolice @ Jun 11th 2009 8:36PM
From what I've seen, it's clear Joystiq prefers inFamous, there are a lot of glowing reviews for Prototype (source: Metacritic) and I don't know why we have to favour one game or the other, in fact Prototype came out for the PS3, so sony fans can have both games!
I haven't played inFamous yet, but i hear only great things, in fact, it's making me ponder the purchase of a PS3, but bashing Prototype simply because it "resembles" inFamous (they're both sandbox games...that's about it), don't worry the sale of one will not prevent the sale of another...
Anyways I could be wrong about the joystiq prototype hate, but that's what I see from my perspective
sonicspike41 @ Jun 12th 2009 2:11AM
In inFamous it feels more like hovering. It's very useful when you're coming off of an electric wire or when you have a long gap to cross, but it feels more like it was meant for slower movement.
In Prototype you just pretty much have to hold the right trigger and you're instantly sprinting like a madman, which means when you take to the skies you're already traveling pretty fast. Sure it still curves down to earth pretty fast, but you generally start off faster which helps it feel like you've traveled a longer distance.
Storm Eagle @ Jun 11th 2009 1:21PM
http://hopkinsgaming.blogspot.com/
My Review tells it like it is. This games is great. The only flaw is the chaos can sometimes be a little ridiculous and unmanageable. But hey, you are public enemy #1.
IGN's is B.S. Don't believe it.
NaeemTHM @ Jun 11th 2009 1:25PM
If it's any consolation IGN UK gave it a 8.5. It sounds like Prototype is the Iron Man to inFamous' is Dark Knight this summer. Both are entertaining blockbusters, but there's much more depth to inFamous.
Storm Eagle @ Jun 11th 2009 1:33PM
And just let me ask a few things since everyone wants to compare this to Infamous which is a good game, but is not leaps and bounds better than Prototype.
1. Why can't Cole climb chain-linked fence?
2. Why is all that is "hidden" for you to find, revealed on your radar with the push of a button? Where's the challenge?
3. Yes, Infamouse looks better, it was built for the PS3 which is much more powerful than the 360 so why does no one complain about the drop in framerate in Infamous but throw a fit over the slight pop in on Prototype?
4. Last time I checked, the defibrillator was not the solution to healing every injury on the planet. It's meant to jumpstart the heart. So why am I pumping fifty thousand volts into someone who's clearly conscious with a heart beat and calling for help?
In my opinion, these are two different games and both are excellent with their own flaws. I believe both should've gotten something like an 8.5 score.
glitched @ Jun 11th 2009 1:47PM
Haven't i seen you in other posts going on about chain link fences? WTF? seriously?
chain link fences?
they aren't very prevalent in the game. You can just jump over them via other means
it's not the fences that are the problem, the problem is barbed wire at the top of the fences, (and other locations)
finding stuff is one of your powers, you can feel electricity. in fact you can feel the lack of electricity when you go to those parts of the city.
While i was playing, none of your questions never interfered with my game. i never thought "why am i able to heal people like this" while never directly explained, i just figured it was a sharing of his own healing ability with the person he's shooting electricity into it. i just never had to think about it, why would i want to?
spacesuit105 (PSN-spacesuit501) @ Jun 11th 2009 1:48PM
@NaeemTHM
I believe that your comparison of inFAMOUS and Prototype to The Dark Night and Iron Man was an excellent way to put it.
@ Storm Eagle:
They are close to being the same score but are not, infamous is a much more deeper and prettier game, so i would give it a 9.5.
Prototype is a PURE-fun game, with some flaws and a mediocore story, i give it an 8.
Storm Eagle @ Jun 11th 2009 1:54PM
@glitched I'm not saying it has to bother anyone. And none of those things bother me. But if everyone is going to nitpick on Prototype in their reviews and leave out the little things in Infamous, I thought I'd make them known.
The bottom line is I hate to see such a good, fun game get a bad rap. And I'm urging people to play the game for yourself and see how you do or don't like it. At the end of my review, I even said, "gamers should do themselves a favor and pick up both games...."
butaneko @ Jun 11th 2009 1:57PM
@Storm Eagle
I'll give give it a go! I have no feelings about Prototype and I own, like, but don't love inFamous:
1. Are you referring to the ones with razor wire on the top? Those are the only ones I can remember and you can't climb them since they have razor wire on the top.
2. Meh.. finding hidden stuff. Challenging maybe, fun no. If you want the challenge don't hit the button.
3. I was unaware of such comments.
4. Yep the whole healing thing is pretty dumb and gets old fast. Made me wish I chose evil.
canaroo @ Jun 11th 2009 1:57PM
Great review.
D_Average @ Jun 11th 2009 2:00PM
Took a quick look at your blog. You gave Fuel a 4/5? That game was a complete mess, an abomination to the name Codemasters. If Prototype is also a "4/5" count me out.
Storm Eagle @ Jun 11th 2009 2:10PM
@butenko It's definitely worth a look. Erik at IGN made the comment that it gave him a headache at one point and if he wasn't reviewing it, he would have sooner turned it off and walked away. It's not that kind of game at all and a lot of people will like it. Regardless of whether or not they have razor wire, I think someone who's supposed to be an "urban explorer" and can atleast hang off of everything else in the game would atleast be able to climb half way up the fence. He can't. Rehardless, I like the game and I'm loving Prototype. Can't wait to get home and play it.
Vidikron @ Jun 11th 2009 2:12PM
1. Does seem a bit silly, but they do have razor wire on top of most that he can't climb.
2. It's a power. Who cares? It's actually still somewhat challenging to find all 350 even with it.
3. I've seen people mention the framerate drops inFamous... which, BTW, aren't even that bad or that often. You're the first person I've seen mention pop-in for Prototype, but I've haven't read any of the actual reviews.
4. Who says that's what it is? It's a power. I mean, it doesn't make sense to shoot lighting bolts from your fingers in the first place, but if we're going to complain about powers then neither of these games make sense.
Storm Eagle @ Jun 11th 2009 2:14PM
@D_Average So did you read the review or just look at the final score? And were you also the one who took the time to completely downvote my comment to 1 heart? Because that's the mature way to handle something you don't agree with.
I'd like you to also keep in mind that my reviews our of my own opinion. I also somewhat cater the score to what I think kids here at the hospital might enjoy. Whether it's something they're allowed to play while they're here, or something they'll wanna check out when they get home.