Alpha Protocol

[smokedog]

I could make this post pretty short... its rubbish.

But you would want to know some of the reasons why I dislike this game.

The mini games (hacking circuit boards/doors/computers) are annoying as hell. My personal favorite is the computer hacking, where you are presented with a screen of flickering letters and you can gaven two codes you have to match to the one that isn't flickering. Best headache inducing mini game I played yet.

Graphics are sub-par and really cheapens the whole experience. The targeting system also leaves a lot to be desired, making any combat best avoided.

Please note this list is not exhaustive, there is a lot more to dislike. I guess this is what happens when you release the Alpha even before going into Beta.

[ezee ryder]

I can see the sequel now, Beta Protocol.

Is it really that bad? Does it have any redeeming "qualities"?

[Eight Rooks]

I doubt I'll have mine until Monday at the earliest, unless CDWow really surprise me... looks like I'll have a lot of this to sit through until then! Eh, I got it cheap, so in the event I agree it's crap I'm not going to be too bothered.

Some impressions on other forums I read have me fairly optimistic still. Don't really care about the graphics, I could see they weren't that great from the first trailers... so I can ignore those impressions.

[elaniel]

I'm very disappointed by this as well. Just played about an hour and just seems a really poor Mass Effect game. The time to do the mini games and answer dialogue choices is too short.

You have to answer even before they finish talking so you don't know what you are answering!

Plus, I try and use the tranq gun and it seems to miss even though the shot is lined up perfectly.

[smokedog]

Is it really that bad? Does it have any redeeming "qualities"?

From the 1 hours worth I played, the answer is no. I've now sold it on, as I personally can't face it anymore.

It basically like playing Splinter Cell using the Fall Out 3 engine. There is a lot of stealth required and it just doesn't work with the game engine.

The conversions in-game is also subject to annoyance. You are given multiple responses assigned to buttons, pretty standard affair. But they added a timer, so even if you know your response, it doesn't execute until the timer is up.

Maybe I didn't give it enough of a chance and there's a better game further in, but I just don't have the patience.

Look forward to hearing other peoples impressions.

[ezee ryder]

Ah ok, cheers for the impressions.

Just played about an hour and just seems a really poor Mass Effect game. The time to do the mini games and answer dialogue choices is too short.

You have to answer even before they finish talking so you don't know what you are answering!

Hmm. It sounds like they tried to implement a similar conversation system to Mass Effect and just completely failed.

[Irons]

Shame as I was quite looking forward to being Jason Bourne but as more reviews and impressions come out it's beginning to look like there isn't much to see here.

[112]

Damn......... this is on my to do list, and I have been waiting patiently for this. Was so going to get this today too....... Probably best to wait for the magic 17.99 number I guess........

As for the timer running out before you can choose the right response during conversations, well, im sure a patch is coming imminently.......... amongst other things.

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[PeteJ]

Plus, I try and use the tranq gun and it seems to miss even though the shot is lined up perfectly.

Haven't played it, but I'd assume this is the RPG in the game kicking in.

Maybe the game gets better as you level up...?

[GordonJ]

Hopefully it won't be the bug infested mess I'm expecting (on PC), but I'm giving Obsidian a chance to prove me wrong.

Well, I've only been stuck to the wall and forced to reload once so it's not, yet, in "infested" territory.

The combat is bad, right click and aim for 5+ seconds before you get a decent reticle with the assault rifle (will probably have to max out the skill tree for it to be anywhere decent). I've given up on SMGs, just spray and pray you hit something.

The minigames are godawful (especially the hacking minigame which controls with wasd for one and "stupidly slow response which causes you to fail half the time" mouse)

I'd still give it 6/10, but I've only finished the initial Saudi missions, and headed to Moscow, so that could go up (hopefully) or down.

[Eight Rooks]

Aaaand I caved, cancelled the CDWow order and got it on Steam to have it now, now, now and I'd love to give some impressions only it doesn't. ****ing. Work.

Jesus. The only PC game in the past five years I've been dying to play ever since it was announced and this is the one that goes tits up on me. Christ. Not to mention, from the similar problems posted on the Steam forums and Obsidian's own, this looks distressingly like a 'Uh, sorry, you're on your own' kind of deal. God I hate PCs.

Sorry, just had to vent, and to point out unfortunately I can't contribute anything else to the discussion, much as I'd love to. Do carry on.

[112]

Aaaand I caved, cancelled the CDWow order and got it on Steam to have it now, now, now and I'd love to give some impressions only it doesn't. ****ing. Work.

Jesus. The only PC game in the past five years I've been dying to play ever since it was announced and this is the one that goes tits up on me. Christ. Not to mention, from the similar problems posted on the Steam forums and Obsidian's own, this looks distressingly like a 'Uh, sorry, you're on your own' kind of deal. God I hate PCs.

Sorry, just had to vent, and to point out unfortunately I can't contribute anything else to the discussion, much as I'd love to. Do carry on.

Bummer dude, maybe yah shouldnt have been too hasty in cancelling your CD WOW order.......

From the sound of things it doesn't look like you are missing much lol.......

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[Eight Rooks]

Fixed it, though I'm not sure which of the hundred little things I did solved the problem. Ah, PCs.

And... hmmm. Well. I kind of like it so far, but I suspect it's not going to go down well with most people and I can pretty much see why. It... to be honest I'd agree it beggars belief Obsidian can put a game out like this. Which is not to say I think it's bad exactly! Just that, well, it looks like a game from about five years ago (at least) with a bit of HD slapped on top. The art design looks like Virtua Cop, all silly mid-90s arcade gloss, the animations are horrible to average-at-best, texture work's really ropy (faces are okay, nothing else stands out), physics are non-existent, there's little glitches all over the place...

Does it work? Well, yes, it's playable so far. Kind of interesting, even, in that it's clearly trying; lots of different things to do, the conversations are long and detailed and the writing's fairly good so far, the arcade bits function the way they're supposed to. It's just the systems are really... odd. I can believe the post on Joystiq that's supposedly from an ex-Obsidian dev saying working on this was a nightmare with one producer throwing ideas at it without thinking. Shooting works. Blaze away at someone and you'll get them in the end. The aiming system works. Point at someone for long enough and you'll score a proper hit. Cover works. It's just all so... clunky, and doesn't suggest anyone really thought about what it'd feel like to play. You can properly play the game, or so it would seem so far, it's just... odd. It doesn't seem like there's a good reason you have to focus on someone for three or four seconds to be absolutely certain of hitting them, or that failing to pick any lock instantly sets off an alarm, or stupid 'videogame' stuff like that.

And while I like the conversations up to a point and I'm interested to see what the game does with the writing, on the one hand only ever having three responses seems a bit weird, there's very little way to tell precisely what you're about to say (since you're only ever selecting one of three emotional approaches, or cutting things short if you've got the option). And again, the system just feels... odd.

I think people complaining about not having enough time to choose a response are getting it slightly wrong; you've got a time bar which as far as I can tell shows how long you've got until the other person has finished speaking, and that's how long you've got to pick a type of response (or to cut them off if the choice is there). When the timer runs out, you automatically reply in the emotional tone you chose - there is no waiting to give an answer. At all. You cannot think about it once they've finished speaking, you think while they speak, and if you haven't made up your mind by the time they're done, tough. Again it 'works', but it's just... not very intuitive, and frequently not particularly natural - no reflection on the voice acting or dialogue, but again, doesn't matter how good it is, if the system feels weird, it feels weird.

Anyway, enough rambling for now. I seriously doubt many people here will like this much, and it's really, really hard to blame them. It doesn't feel like a huge let down to me given I could see the way the game was headed from the early videos - I don't feel cheated or let down, just really, really puzzled. I think in many ways Obsidian are tremendously talented and so far I do want to keep playing, but I'll freely admit I'm cutting them a hell of a lot of slack I'm not sure they deserve. Maybe New Vegas will be better given it's just a giant Fallout 3 mod, really... sigh. So much potential, so hard to see the payoff. Anyway. My thoughts so far, for what they're worth! </shrug>

[Welrain]

I'm stuck...trying to defend someone from waves of soldiers, with 3 bullets and 2 shotgun shells....fail. Can't see an option to go back to base and cancel mission and i havent saved for ages. Bugger. Restart or Trade In.....

[Welrain]

I am now utterly in the love this game. This is seriously a game of the year contender for me. The plot has completely sucked me in (so many choices!) and the gameplay is the perfect mix of stealth / action for me. Sure the mechanics are oddly executed and the graphics old school but it somehow transcends the sum of its parts for me at least.