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Review Oxymorons get their hands on Alpha Protocol's perks

DarkUnderlord

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Tags: Alpha Protocol

<a href="http://www.oxmonline.com/article/previews/a-f/alpha-protocol">OXMonline talked to Parker about Alpha Protocol</a>. Here is what they learned:
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<blockquote>Whoever you want to be, your name is Mike Thorton, who Parker describes as a competent, well-trained field agent on his first mission. You customize how he grows as a spy, but ultimately, he’s still Thorton. We need him to be this kind of leading man,” he explains. You spy on behalf of Alpha Protocol, a secret branch of a U.S. government agency that handles deniable operations. When things go tragically wrong on Thorton’s first op, “you’re doubly screwed,” laughs Parker, because not only will the U.S. not acknowledge you as an asset, but your own agency appears to be thrusting knives in your back as well.
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[...]
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So while you will see XP earnings pop up in all the usual places, we were also able to deftly connect with headshots right from the start. And in another mission, where Obsidian bestowed a much more advanced character on us, we got to see how those skills pan out. You can level up Thorton in 10 areas — half involve combat, but there’s also stealth, hacking, gadget use, and health. Improving in each earns you special abilities that Parker freely admits “are kind of like spells. They’re well beyond what a normal human can do.”
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[...]
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With a submachine gun, though, it’s hard to not have fun hosing down a room with Bullet Storm, which grants you unlimited ammo for a brief, reckless interlude. Or you can earn a Chain Shot with a pistol, which pauses the action like Fallout 3 does with VATS so you can plan and then unleash three shots.
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<br>
Thorton can also earn perks, which are little rewards “that we toss at you all the time,” explains Parker. They’re not as powerful as Fallout 3’s and are more like Achievements.</blockquote>
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I am truly at a loss for words.
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<br>
Spotted @ <a href="http://www.rpgwatch.com">Where I'm stealing all my news today</a>
 

El Geecho

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Feb 25, 2007
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I had the impression that the game was supposed to be kind of realistic, but I guess that's not really the case.
 

Volourn

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That's because you were stupid, and ignorant. AP wa snever gonna be realistic, and 'bullet time' has been around since basically the first details were released..
 

Morbus

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Nov 2, 2006
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The fuck? What kind of stupid moronic game is this?

Anyway, I guess it's a good thing for them to earn money to create another MotB or something even better. Of course I won't buy this tripe, and I'll hate them FOREVER if their next game isn't an RPG, but AP could play a greater role.
 

DefJam101

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You can level up Thorton in 10 areas — half involve combat, but there’s also stealth, hacking, gadget use, and health.

"What kind of music do you usually have here?"

"Oh, we got both kinds. We got country and western. "
 

Ion Flux

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This is what Princess Leia thinks:

guess3qs.jpg
 

Tigranes

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Sounds great, bar the overly yippy-kay-yay nature of certain abilities. Remains to be seen if the same two that get mentioned all the time are the only "cool" ones or if they're all like that (in which case, grah grah).

'Lite' perks is great addition to any game.
 

themadhatter114

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I'm pleased that Thorton will be competent from the start. I hated in Mass Effect where you are supposed to be this super badass that's joining the council's elite force but you're a level 1 pussy who can't shoot worth a shit.
 

Rhalle

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themadhatter114 said:
I'm pleased that Thorton will be competent from the start. I hated in Mass Effect where you are supposed to be this super badass that's joining the council's elite force but you're a level 1 pussy who can't shoot worth a shit.

Every Bioware game I've played is like that. You start as frustratingly impotent; just past halfway through the cap you get decent; the last 25% of the game is a slaughter-fest. Seems like it's a conscious design decision to me.
 

Ion Flux

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trais said:
I want my Thorton to be as badass as this one:

AP_Screenshot_11_11_04.jpg

What game is that from? That guy is carrying a pistol, a subgun, and what looks like a couple of carbines. The cool thing is that exemplifies what most characters lug around in shooters, but it's actually rendered on the avatar. Shockingly honest!

Edit: Oops. Nevermind. I never actually read the articles. I just get my game info from the people in here. I'm a lazy bastard.
 

Darth Roxor

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Alpha Protocol felt much more like a third-person shooter than an RPG — and that’s intentional. “Our biggest concern was that when you play a low-level D&D character, you kind of suck,” Parker says. “We spent a lot of time on a rules system that allows for player skill, [while granting] a lot of advantages based on your character’s [level] over the course of the game.”

sigh...
 

bhlaab

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What's wrong with Obsidian making an action rpg? It's not like they're calling it Arcanum 2 or anything, and it sounds incredibly promising
 

Vaarna_Aarne

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And they've realized that in an action RPG, maybe the action part of the gameplay should try to be as good as real action games.
 

fastpunk

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I like the perks/achievement thing. From the article: "If you kill a bunch of enemies with a remotely detonated mine, that slaughter might net you a +5%-damage perk for any future mining you do." That's cool, because you earn perks specifically tailored to your game style. In theory, this would help flesh out your character in one direction and also improves replay value.

Anyway, I really hope the shooting part will be well executed and the game properly balanced and polished. It should be a fun game.
 
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Vaarna_Aarne said:
Tigranes said:
Sounds great, bar the overly yippy-kay-yay nature of certain abilities.
Actually, I like all that action movie stuff they're inserting.

And they've realized that in an action RPG, maybe the action part of the gameplay should try to be as good as real action games.

With you on both counts. If they're aware that they're creating a cheesy B-movie action flick, which they seem to be, it could pan out to be a fun light-hearted romp - a sort of "Mass Effect done right". Most action RPGs are shitty on the roleplaying and have shitty action because it's too character-dependent or automated to be exciting but too actiony to involve any real thought, so if they're focusing on fleshing out the action side of it, I'm interested in seeing the end result.

Or it could just be a trainwreck, which is lamentably far from the boundaries of possibility. We'll see.
 

Starwars

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I remain on the fence about this. The combat mechanics (or how they seem to be from what we know) is not something I greatly enjoy, not in actiony RPGs nor in full-on action games.
But then again, I could play through the Witcher (which I thought was exceptionally shitty in the combat department) and still enjoy it to some degree.

What I kinda hope for in this game is strong characters (we know they will be over-the-top, hopefully done in a good way), interesting story and choices & consequences. The setting will also be a nice departure from other RPGs, even though I'm no spymovie buff myself.

What I find worrying though is that the article seemed pretty happy about the fact that it's been delayed. I mean, it's good that they do get to polish it more if need be. But it's worrying in the sense that it may be yet another buggy and incomplete game. Hopefully that won't be the case when it's released.
 

Forest Dweller

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Starwars said:
I remain on the fence about this.

Me too. On the one hand, I'm pretty sure it will have good dialogue since Avellone is heading it. And it's nice to see a different setting. I guess the main thing holding me back is that I've read in numerous previews that it will be around 20 hours. That may seem silly, but damnit, I want a full game. Also, finding out that if you don't select a response before the timer runs out you will simply automatically choose a stance that is similar to your last one is a turn-off. When you are indecisive in real life, you simply say nothing. For another thing, that shows that all the options will be similar to each other enough where they can all fall under loose "stance categories."

I hate to say this, but I may enjoy Dragon Age more than Alpha Protocol. I hope not, as that would be a bad omen. But I at least know that I will get the game length I want.
 

hiver

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@starwars
Probably thats the reason for delay, right?
To avoid releasing a buggy unfinished game.
Not the opposite.
 

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