Arkane PREY - Arkane's immersive coffee cup transformation sim - now with Mooncrash roguelike mode DLC

[Ash]

Is (your) Deus Ex an example of much better level design?

Uh, yes? The original Deus Ex is one of the finest examples of 3D level design. Are you confusing level design with art direction?

 

[Zakhad]

IIRC I had 80ish exotic when I ran out of the others. Necropsy is the first perk I took though, and I didn't backtrack to store clutter to recycle for the others.

it's like we're playing different games... what are you crafting? Are you collecting and recycling extra weapons?

 

[Parabalus]

Is (your) Deus Ex an example of much better level design?

Uh, yes? The original Deus Ex is one of the finest examples of 3D level design. Are you confusing level design with art direction?

What makes it so much better than Arkane's stuff? You have a link to a rant or similar?

I played GMDX a bit after Prey and never really thought to myself "this level design is SOOO much better". DX felt more linear, if anything.

IIRC I had 80ish exotic when I ran out of the others. Necropsy is the first perk I took though, and I didn't backtrack to store clutter to recycle for the others.

it's like we're playing different games... what are you crafting? Are you collecting and recycling extra weapons?

Yeah, if inventory allowed. I never backtracked to a recycling machine or grenaded dropped loot to make space, so I left some mineral/synth on the ground, that likely makes the difference? I crafted only neuromods and some shotgun shells before Psychotronics.

 

[toro]

Ye, seems like my fuckup was pretending this game was an FPS, so I basically just shot everything I ran into. It's lead into dry, dry guns.

That's a bad idea cause mobs are respawning.

 

[Zakhad]

I never backtracked to a recycling machine

I guess my threshold for what counts as backtracking must be much higher, then... for me, since a lot of the game involves going back and forth in the same levels anyway, I just wander around to recyclers when I'm full and then wander back, didn't seem like a chore. Not like it takes long, they're everywhere, except in GUTS. It'd be hard to play the game without backtracking and still see much: only Psychotronics, from memory, gets completely cleared of quests first time through, although I guess it's possible to do some other areas like that if you saved up quests. If I'm already going back and forth from GUTS to cargo bay to GUTS (to get the cargo hatch open), or going back into space once I get the Grant Lockwood quest, or whatever, then going back a few times to the centre of the (small) levels seems pretty trivial. But YMMV (and it seems it did).

 

[fantadomat]

i'm p sure i kept shooting everything to deff ever since stumbling into psychotronix and i've never been any close to running out of ammo until the end of the game

Maybe learn to miss more?

If you're having too much ammo in your inventory, try shooting the walls, floors, ceilings pointlessly. No reason you can't write your name in bullet-holes, either!

It is wasteful,just recycle them.

 

[RoSoDude]

Is (your) Deus Ex an example of much better level design?

Uh, yes? The original Deus Ex is one of the finest examples of 3D level design. Are you confusing level design with art direction?

What makes it so much better than Arkane's stuff? You have a link to a rant or similar?

I played GMDX a bit after Prey and never really thought to myself "this level design is SOOO much better". DX felt more linear, if anything.

Nonlinearity in and of itself doesn't lead to good level design. Yes, Prey has affordances to choose multiple paths through nearly every part of the station, but it fails to populate those paths with meaningful choice and challenge past the first half. You have scant enemy presence, usually just a few phantoms patrolling a main hub room, with plenty of corridors and vents and climbable objects to get around them with ease, leaving you free reign to loot every piece of trash you can find. The occasional hack this/repair this/lift this/turn into a banana and roll here gives a bit of variety to how you traverse the levels, but I never felt a strong impetus for these choices, unlike in Deus Ex where there are genuine differences in how you can approach stealth/combat based on your route and points of entry. Again I claim there's a mismatch in priorities -- in the Shock games, you're very much encouraged to fully explore the levels to complete your objectives and find useful loot, and the nonlinearity just comes into the order in which you stumble onto things. In Deus Ex you choose between distinct paths and approaches, often forgoing to traverse entire sections of the map due to enemy presence, skill gates, and resource expenditure. Prey tries to marry the two, and the result is that you still go everywhere, you just choose one of several ways to get in. There's rarely a meaningful difference, and they've also neglected to do much with the relative openness and verticality of the environments as compared with Shock's corridors when it comes to enemy encounters. So most of the time I'm running around recycling junk with narry an enemy in sight.

To the people naysaying my naysaying: I don't hate Prey, and I certainly prefer it over its AAA counterparts. There's a lot to like here that's been missing from modern games (and other wannabe Shock successors). But I'm primarily comparing it to the classics, and expressing disappointment that it can't measure up to a game 18 years its senior. Prey's endgame suffers from a serious lack of engagement; I don't think I'm the only one who was almost too bored to continue after the Cargo Bay. It came as a genuine surprise too, because in the beginning you have the Mimics creating a sense of tension around the simple act of exploring and looting in a totally systems-driven and non-scripted way. I expected the game to continue to deliver with similarly ingenious enemy designs (imagine a Nightmare that actually tries to hunt you and which doesn't operate on a simple timer), but got mostly projectile spamming blobs which are amenable to one of three approaches in combat (stunlock with Gloo, stunlock with EMP, or stunlock with nullwave). I like the Weaver/Cystoids a lot, and the mind controlling of the Technopath/Telepath are pretty neat (EDIT: oh yeah, Poltergeists are neat too, but don't make a big impact). Otherwise, meh. I replayed SS2 on Impossible a few months after finishing Prey and found myself unable to put the game down. There's a big difference there for me, and it makes me sad.

 

[Blaine]

If someone runs out of ammunition at any point while playing Prey without doing so on purpose (for fun, etc.), then they're retarded and extremely bad at games.

 

[Zakhad]

they've also neglected to do much with the relative openness and verticality of the environments as compared with Shock's corridors when it comes to enemy encounters.

This is a good point, and I feel the games suffered from a general lack of variety with enemies and the lack of "thought-outness" in the later levesl/encounters, plus the lack of use that the enemies make of verticality (why no enemy that lurks on higher places and drops on you? Why no sniping enemies that make you play cat and mouse with something hidden on a gantry or a floating ceilling?). Overall the enemy design seemed rushed, like they'd done a few good ones then had to quickly add in the last few and just duplicated phantoms with new effects. It obviously didn't ruin the game for me, but it was an area that could have really improved challenge and replayability... and not just the dumb challenge of HP-bloat but the kind of challenge that makes you think more, all the time. Weirdly (considering its a much worse game) Bioshock sometimes did enemy placement better since it had those roof-crawling splicers, cameras, and turrets, all of which could surprise you by being in different positions than you'd expect. Prey only really surprised me and made me rethink what I expected with enemy placement a few times. Half-life 2 was a great example of having the right enemy variety to exploit the level design, so that you had a wide variety of possible challenges to face in any given area and that kept you focussed and prevented relying on just one tactic.

I try not to think too much about the missed opportunites here, since overall I really liked Prey and thinking too much about how much better it could have been would just make me sad. Especially since I think Bethesda was probably responsible somehow, since it seems like the game was forced out too early in some ways.

 

[Junmarko]

Prey has affordances to choose multiple paths through nearly every part of the station, but it fails to populate those paths with meaningful choice and challenge past the first half.

Felt this a bit like this as well. The anti-grav areas were a nightmare, because I went Gordon Freeman through most of the game, spec'd Engineering to get turret defence to max, and used pistols - but they never fixed the placement/fortification direction of them when suspended in gravity, very frustrating. Had to bull rush through a lot of that. Turrets were a fun combat unit otherwise.

 

[Anthedon]

Is there any way to turn off the odd font blurring? It looks like you need one of the old blue/red 3D glasses to read.

 

[Anthedon]

And finished it. Overall it was an enjoyable experience. Played on hard difficulty with no magic. I only have a few minor complaints. Enemy variety is the biggest one (and the Typhoon being pretty bland). Also, some of them are not particulary weak to any of their weaknesses listed in the database. Combat becomes too easy when you use the slow motion power. You can run up to everything and shotgun/wrench it in the face before there is any meaningful response. Respawning behaviour seems to be inconsistent. Some areas stayed clear after a few fights, others never seemed to stop repopulating. In the later stages I had everything plastered with reinforced turrets, so I rarely fought anything head-on anymore. You can also avoid most fights by sprinting, enemies are pretty slow and only chased me rarely over longer distances. This is especially true with upgraded speed.

Not quite sure yet how I'd rank it among the other offerings from Arkane. Somewhere slightly below or above Dishonored probably, but I'll need to sleep on that.

 

[Blaine]

Is there any way to turn off the odd font blurring? It looks like you need one of the old blue/red 3D glasses to read.

That effect is chromatic aberration. It gives the illusion (it's an illusion because unlike real-life chromatic aberration, nothing is typically removed) of unfocusing some red and blue light from objects so that you can just barely see a bleary halo/aura/illumination of mostly blue and red around them.

Don't remember if there's a setting for it, but I'm one of the insane fucks who likes chromatic aberration (and vignetting for that matter), so I never looked.

 

[Hoaxmetal]

I'm one of the insane fucks who likes chromatic aberration

u r ded to me m8

 

[Shadenuat]

Doesn't seem like this game is friendly to ghosting/pacifist. Neither was SS2, but Deus Ex was quite since it felt easier to avoid enemies and sneak than fight in the beginning of the game, when you didn't have shields and good combat skills yet. So on one hand mimics are cool, but on another since anything can jump on you at all times there's little stealth to talk about.

The amount of ammunition and stuff you get is redonсulous. What do I do with it, salt for winter then eat?

I found a first friend, a turret. I carry it with me from room to room because what's stopping me?

When I found my first upgrade, I already have a question about their logic. They're supposed to program knowledge into your brain. How do they make you stronger to lift heavy objects? Wouldn't upgrading suit make more sense?

I think if they went with a plot from prologue, inception-like idea of breaking reality after reality after reality never making you sure what is true, shattering one glass wall after another, it would have been a cooler plot than aliens.

 

[Big Wrangle]

They don't so much program knowledge as much as change your brain structure. And once you realize the ingredients involved it's no wonder it changes other things.

 

[Shadenuat]

Sounds like sci fi magic to me and less interesting than neuro programming, but whatever, I'm just at the beginning of the game.

Still good though. The moment I began game with controlling my character actions and multiple objects around to explore, with no cutscenes, I got light cultural shock since it felt I was back into 90-2000 gaming again suddenly.

 

[ciox]

The upgrades are pretty flexible magic shit tbh, just like the cyber modules in SS2 that were physical but could also be e-mailed to you and could inject you with both knowledge and bodily strength. No need to look into this too deeply.

 

[Durandal]

At least the world of Prey acknowledged the existence of Neuromods and was substantially built around them, even if gameplay-wise and lore-wise it is essentially alien magic.

Meanwhile the in-world mechanics of "cyber modules" are never explained in SS2. If they can be sent digitally, why can't they just be infinitely replicated to make my job easier? Why are they even on the Von Braun and Rickenbacker? What do cyber modules actually do? If my 'rig' is actually illegal, why are there stations everywhere on the Von Braun and Rickenbacker allowing me to upgrade it, including the cyber modules used as the currency for upgrading myself? Can't anyone instantly pump themselves up to be a super soldier just by upgrading at a station (and if they need a rig as illegal as mine to do it, that only feeds back into the previous question)? By what method are cyber modules even produced that warrants their apparent scarcity? Why doesn't anyone use these illegal rigs and their potential to become gods?

Even Bioshock got this right with ADAM.

 

[Shadenuat]

Don't remember any immersion breaks during playing SS2 really. You were asleep and got some cyber shit installed into you so you could get some mods. Game didn't make big deal out of it. New games try to build whole setting about your character development yet end up with same branching skill trees and a single currency for all the magical rpg upgrades your char gets.

What was great is that you were fed these mods by main antagonist of the game like a labrat for performing for her.

In this game they make big deal of it, like you lose memories if you want to remove one, and they're made of ass, but gameplay wise there is no negative consequences for crafting as many as you can from sodas and crabs... yet. Guess I was just waiting for some avellonian deconstruction of power growth an stuff like moment I eat one monsters become more aware of me or smh.

 

[Tom Selleck]

Shouldn't this DLC be out by now? What's the hold up?

 

[Shadenuat]

- Hm, I wonder if it matters if I begin upgrading these psi abilities--
Game: - BTW U UPGRADE THIS ALIEN SHITS IS BAD TURRETS ATTACK U
- ...thanks for ruining the whole thing for me, game

Oooh everything respawns and like twice the amount. Things which were novel become just mooks.
It's Bioshock all over again, I'm putting everything into shotgun, shotgun ammo and weapons.

...if you don't kill a lot of aliens, do less aliens spawn later?

- Bruh these super abilities you just got and scanning is bad stay human don't do it
- But it looks like the most interesting part of the game yet--
- Bro is bad no use
- ...okay. (injects 12 more Elex into his eyeball and pumps crappy Hacking minigame)

 

[Darth Roxor]

I'm putting everything into shotgun, shotgun ammo and weapons.

You will (very) soon become death incarnate.

Enjoy your stay in Prey.

 

[Multidirectional]

Oh noes useless weakling turrets are gonna attack me if I take super op magic skills, game fucking unplayable.

 

[Shadenuat]

I really like secrety secrets and talking to NPCs but I don't like shooting lame looking aliens.

Two most exciting moments for me so far were about finding two item stashes (including the very first safe). The third was the forgotten shuttle in space. The fourth I'd say first turret controlling flying piece of living garbage. Had high expectations after encounters in the beginning of the game making you figure out how to deal with threats before they became routine.

I don't know what atmosphere developers were going for or players talk about when almost after prologue you have upgraded shotgun, stacks of ammo, 27 medkits etc. and game basically says "these things, just get personnel with them kid".

It is also a big problem of inventory. If every ammo clip took say 2 blocks in it like in X-Com, it would have been way different experience. That's what that sort of inventory exists for.

The enemies are never scary in that sort of circumstances, they just become incredibly annoying and repetetive. Scary is when you're left with only a clip for a pistol in Resident Evil 1 for example.

Oh noes useless weakling turrets are gonna attack me if I take super op magic skills, game fucking unplayable.

This sort of information should't outright be stated to player. It ruins the idea behind the consequences of player's actions.

Even if it doesn't make a lot of sense since I don't see much difference between in which skills I inject elex into my eye. It's still same alien goo.