Alpha Brotocol is a game that interested me from the start, I love RPG's packed with choice, but when the reviews hit, it seemed that it missed the mark. The all-mighty metacritic deemed AP a
, which according to the universal scale, is a total shit game. Because of this tepid reception, I brushed the game off and moved on. BUT...the internet community told me that it wasn't so bad. In fact, it was much better than the gaming expertz said. Last winter, I purchased it for cheap on a Steam sale and several months later, I finally gave it a shot. Oh shit this game rocks. Once I finally wrapped my mind around the headache inducing hacking minigame, it was all gravy. It surprised me as not only an RPG with choices that have real, impactful consequences, but a pretty damn good stealth/action game as well.
The best thing about Alpha Protocol is the CHOICE and your IMPACT on the narrative.
- These CHARACTERS, which are just a few among many, are pretty fucking awesome. You will come across middle-eastern arm dealers, 80's obsessed russian gangsters, sadistic chiefs of security, unpredictable rogues, saucy reporters and many more. Not only are the characters interesting and well defined, but you can have an actual impact on all of them. Using the conversation system, which lets you choose between approaches like suave, professional and violent, can mold relationships with NPC's which can have an impact on how the story plays out. Plus, it's very fun just to give Thorton a beard and make him a suave smart ass. Some of the lines are hilarious.
There will be many situations where you can choose to side with or kill an NPC, and in the end it will actually matter!
- There are NO red/blue or BINARY CHOICES. There are many shades of grey, though. Some of your choices have you guessing on the fly, since the convo system is timed, and you won't always know if you're on the right side or not. Either way, it makes a difference. In this playthrough, I choose to spare NPC's instead of executing them (which can be done very often). There were a few that I regretting saving, but those I did helped me out a lot. It ended with me and my bro
Heck
- It has that SPY MOVIE feel. At first site, it's real world setting may seem plain, but I can't think of any other true RPG's this gen that are set in current times. AP has you moving across the globe, from Shanghai to Rome to Moscow, among others, and there is a a lot of diversity between the settings. It's unlikely that you will spend enough time in one place to get bored, once shit hits the fan you are moved to the next location.
Beyond choice and narrative, it's a very satisfying RPG and STEALTH/ACTION game.
The CUSTOMIZATION is comprehensive
- My build, which seems to be the best build, revolved around stealth, pistols and martial arts. Surprisingly, it was tons of fun to clear a mission without a single kill. Melee takedowns are Bourne-esque and completely badass. However, with my next playthrough I can focus on shotties, SMG's and whatever else I need to just totally wreck shit instead of being sneaky. In addition to the builds, you can buy and equip many different accessories like laser sights, scopes, camo, and such.
It's a damn good STEALTH game
- You avoid security, follow enemy paths, and take them down one by one. Stealth KO'ing an entire area of enemies, like in the
Yacht
The MULTIPLE PATHS in missions were much appreciated
- The missions could be described as Deus Ex Lite. There are multiple paths, there are doors to be busted and computers to be hacked. You could play through the whole games with guns a blazing, you could ghost it using stealth and hacking, or you could use your sneaking skills to KO every enemy on the map. There are only a few sections that force you to fight. Sometimes learning intel by purchasing it or interrogating an NPC can give you an advantage in the mission.
Of course, there are a few SHITTY things.
- PC is the way to go, but you'll need to use a pad. The one downside to the pad is the lockpicking minigame, which requires you to press/depress the triggers. On a PS3 pad this is damn near impossible and mucking it up will set off alarms, so I had to switch it to KB/M everytime I wanted to bypass a lock. Also, the hacking minigame is very confusing at first.
- Sometimes your big moments of choice aren't laid out properly, and you will accidentally make the wrong choice. This happened to me in the final chapter
when I went thru the wrong door, which lead to my girl Mina dying since it saved right away
- The game's combat systems kind of fall apart under stress. This is especially apparent in the final mission, which goes from poorly balanced frustration
(helicopter fight)
(final fight, I stood behind the first pillar and shot him without him even reacting)
- The fact that we will never get a sequel, even though it could be incredible
In SUMMARY....
AP was a surprise for me. I was expecting a turd with a heart of gold, a bad game with a few great qualities, but it was much more than that. It was a great fucking game, not the mediocre product that the metascore had me believe. It's by no means perfect, but the choices and the writing downright shame many of the RPG's I have played this gen, and any fan of the genre NEEDS to play this game. Note that I played the superior PC version, but I'm sure the console ports are worth playing despite the technical shortcomings. So good!
Thoughts?
(well one of my choices)
