I’ve played games like Mass Effect and Red Dead Redemption, and I can honestly say that I enjoyed playing those games simply for the ability to roam vast environments and take on missions that have nothing to do with the actual story.
Unfortunately, I can’t say the same for Alpha Protocol for the PS3 and Xbox 360. Obsidian Games promoted the crap out of the Espionage RPG and bolstered it with specialized guns players can obtain if they reserve a copy of the game. It was exciting to see the trailers because the cut scenes were interesting, but like all trailers or previews, it’s a 50/50 shot that whatever is being advertised will be a slam-dunk or a failure when released. Alpha Protocol was one of those failures.
I’d like to point out that if you can kill someone with a tranquilizer gun, the game isn’t worth it. It was hard enough to aim and shoot, but there were times where I had an enemy in the crosshairs, and the shot went right through him. I found myself being confused by where I was and I often got dizzy because the camera moved way too fast to catch what was happening.
The character’s movements looked completely unnatural and engineered rather than lifelike. You can perform a crouched walk that looks like a cross between a charging gorilla and an old woman with a cane. One thing that totally bothered me was the dialogue and voice acting. During one cut scene, he is talking to a mysterious woman who helps him out of a facility, but they looked like Muppets when they spoke. Even the voice acting reminded me of those one liners you hear in movies like Shoot Em Up; where the character cuts off a bad guy’s hand and says, “Nothing like a good hand job.”
In the game, there are mini-challenges where you pick locks and disable computer/alarm systems, but they are so out of place since the characters wakes up in an unknown facility with armed guards after him. By the way, I’m not sure what’s in those tranquilizer darts, but I killed fifteen guys with them. Is it possible to play the game using those darts? If so, I’m even more let down by this game.
Since I hadn’t played the game in-depth, I can’t tell you the story, but maybe that’s a good thing. You don’t need to know the plot to realize that the graphics are reminiscent of anything before Tekken 3. The voice acting is as good as Rogue Warrior, except the voice acting in that game was a lot more entertaining.
Overall, if you reserved a copy of Alpha Protocol, move that money to another reservation. And if you’ve gotten a copy already, I hope the gun pack codes overshadow all the genius stupidity of the game play, sound, and graphics, but I doubt it. Alpha Protocol gets a 1.5 out of 10 from me.
Writing, believing
-V
