Prey (2017)

I got this on Epic for free way back. Just started playing now and I dont know how to feel about it. I didnt really look into it that much before playing so I didnt know it was a stealth game and im not that interested in stealth games. Sneaking around makes me way too anxious. I have no idea if this game gives you the option to just go crazy and kill everything in sight, which is the way I want to play it, or you really have to sneak around because the enemies are too tough. If so, then I dont see myself finishing this.

Also, I feel like im in a mood where I encountered some boring/mediocre games after playing like 15 bangers straight and now my enthusiasm for gaming has kinda deflated. So perhaps im just not in the right mood to play this right now and its not the games fault.

My Fave FPS, 23: Prey (2017)

When Prey got rebooted it was a different game. It was turned into an immersive sim, and it's a damn good one. I dig immersive sims because I like having multiple choices when tackling challenges. But this wasn't always on the list. The first time I played it, I got an hour or so into it and thought it wasn't for me. It wasn't until I decided to give it another shot that I realized I really liked it. It's not the best immersive sim of all time, but it's good enough to get on this list.

Arkane studios managed to deliver yet another great game. The game has an impressively immersive setting, aided by good music, unique graphics design and style, and complex lore.

Although, when compared to Arkane's other game, Dishonored, I felt that my choices in how to progress in a stage were limited. However, this might be due to me tunneling under the stress of the atmospheric horror. I do, still, miss the presence of chaos punishment system, where how many mobs are killed or the distractions created affect the enemies and the environment in later stages. Yet I understand that feature might have added another layer of complexity to the system already stacked with side quests and optional playstyles.

The mechanics of the enemies in the game were clever. The mimics keep the vulnerable players on edge, while the later stronger enemies require different approaches as each pose a unique challenge. But I was slightly disappointed in the visual design of the "Typhons", since I was expecting more from Arkane than the mass black goo which is common design for aliens in other media.

The game content felt relatively short for the amount of skills and abilities that can be used in the game.

Prey skill guide

During the course of the game you will probably get at least 200 skill points (neuromods). If you’re thorough and recycle lots of items containing exotic materials you can get over 250. I managed to get 279 skill points and that was without Necropsy.

NB: I excluded most combat skills because there are several options there. Most of the early enemies can be killed by disabling them (Gloo gun, Stun gun, Psychoshock) and hitting them with your wrench.

Priority skills

These are the first skills you should unlock, as they will make the game much easier.

• Conditioning
• Hacking I
• Impact Calibration I-II
• Materials Expert
• Repair I

Recommended skills

This is basically “level 2” of the previous skills. Open things, gain materials, fight aliens.

• Combat Focus I
• Hacking II
• Necropsy
• Repair II
• Psychoshock I

Quality of life skills

These will remain useful throughout the game and generally make things easier.

• Machine Mind I
• Mindjack I
• Mobility I-II
• Psychotronics I-III
• Suit Modification I-III

Pointless skills

These skills are useless or superfluous even on Nightmare difficulty.

• Dismantle
• Electrostatic Absorption
• Electrostatic Resistance
• Ether Absorption
• Ether Resistance
• Fear Resistance
• Hacking III-IV
• Lift Field I-II
• Metabolic Boost
• Mimic Matter II-III
• Neurostimulant I-II
• Physician II
• Pulverize
• Regeneration I-II
• Remote Manipulation I-III
• Repair III
• Stamina I-II
• Stealth II-III
• Thermal Absorption
• Thermal Resistance
• Toughness II-III

geez this game is really good but i stopped playing it and never really have it in me to pick it up again when eyeing an FPS. i'm so close to finishing it but trying to 100% it and hunting down the last few things are either a bit intense or a bit more riddle-y/thinking stuff now.

Someone publicly shame me for this tendency i've had the past few months for picking up mediocre FPS's with level design akin to that of miniature golf courses, while letting this good game collect space dust.

Sometimes its good to relax with a relaxing game of miniature golf (the more entertainingly violent variety). know what i mean?

Think it's a good weekend for (maybe finishing) yakuza 0. its both entertaingly violent and relaxing, with not much thinking required!

I'm sorry, I really tried. I even thought perhaps if I took a step back and just looked at it as its own game and not a reboot of the excellent original that that might help me appreciate it, but it's so bad on every level.

The visuals are gorgeous, but that isn't what I care about. I care about gameplay, and the gameplay is atrociously shitty. It plays like absolute ass. Everything is clunky, the menu system is awful, the entire UI is badly designed and for a game that's meant to be a shooter of sorts, you are so slow.

And I HATE HATE HATE the inclusion of all this open world bullshit. The powers, the suit additions, the whole thing isn't necessary. I just wanna shoot fucking aliens, son.

You guys had a perfect blueprint for an already awesome pre-existing title. Why the fuck did you go out of your way to make it as disinteresting as possible? It's just so baffling. Especially since the opening of the game and the first bit is actually fairly intriguing, and very Portal-esque almost, but it quickly devolves into the same thing I've seen a million other times before. I hate that I have to keep comparing it to the original when it's supposed to be so different from the original, but I'm sorry, you named it the same thing and called it a successor, so that alone forces me to do comparisons and the biggest difference above all else is how extremely boring this one is, and not just in gameplay but in everything.

The original you were a native american who was abducted off a reservation at a bar, and the tone was just so unique and so original. But this? What are we now? Just another fucking scientist using lame ass weapons with generic science shit. Oh, you're alone on a science lab in space and everyone's already dead blah blah blah It's the same thing I've seen a million times. Come on guys. And while I've always been a defender of the fact that you can do something that's been done before, you still at least have to make it interesting in its own right, and they just completely fucking failed.

I suppose if they were going for realism - in a game about fucking shape shifting space aliens - then sure, it makes sense that you'd need a special suit and powers and high tech science gear to be able to survive, so maybe the sense that you can't protect yourself is realistic, because yeah if my coffee mug suddenly came to life and tried to kill me, I probably wouldn't survive. But this is a video game, and a video game about an already ridiculous concept, so don't give me the whole 'realism' shtick. I recognize I'm not a super soldier, but jesus christ, you expect me to somehow seek out and save other people when I can barely protect myself? Get fuckin' real, dude.

I'm sorry. I tried. I really tried so hard, and I rarely give up on things even if they're below mediocre, but this is unplayable. It's just plain bad.

Sorry for the rant. I try not to fall into this mentality that I used to have in regards to complaining about things I hate, but this one really pissed me off. I'll be quiet now.

I had about 20 hours of very enjoyable game play with this, and retired at the 30 hour mark

Sadly, for me, Dishonored in Space was never a match for Dishonored. I found the combat system a little joyless and over complicated. On normal difficulty, I was swimming with health kits after the first 5 hours, so that enemies had to kill me quick and cryptic. Otherwise, I had time to pause to the inventory screen and top up. And so, I never hit upon any truly creative use of the myriad powers, but instead ended up in a rinse-lather-repeat loop of jumping out of cover in slow-motion and blasting into purple-black gibbets