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In a time where everybody only talks about TLOU2, I became marveled with Prey

Nankatsu

Gold Member
In a time where everybody only seems to talk about The Last of Us - Part 2, I embarked on a journey called Prey.

Been sitting on the game for months, and because I have a considerable amount of backlog games (plus, had been busy getting FFVII's Remake Platinum), I hadn't touched the game. Furthermore, it wasn't even a game that I had an astonishing interest in. I knew it seemed good, so I snug it for about 20€.

However, a couple of days back, after finishing the so-so RE3 Remake, I decided it was time to give the game a shot, and...

200.webp


First of all, let me start by just saying the game has one of the best intro sequences I remember in a very long time.
When you realize that the first moments you experienced were actually simulated in an extremely detailed environment and that Yu (see what I did here?), the character, are part of an experiment it just blew my mind. Even more considering you can operate with the scenario, break the glasses, and see how everything just worked to trick you.

From this point on, you embark on a journey of the unknown in Talos I, a spacestation full of extremely interesting enemies, mechanics and places and obstacles.

Just to tease, wait until you meet Nightmare :messenger_beaming:

The Typhons are a really interesting species to fight, each with different weaknesses. And I gotta say I love the mimics, which can blend in the environment as an actual object. It's such a cool idea, fantastic to jump scares.

The game is not your extremely accurate and realistic shooter, far from it, and that's a really good thing, because it makes you combine all the gameplay mechanics and powers the game offers you. For example, right at the beginning I went ahead to Trauma center (because my character had an head trauma I made to myself by accidentally blowing a gas canister near me) just to find two enemies types that simply were too difficult to fight at the time, but, if you use the scenario to your advantage, combined with some acessories you can find if you explore, after a few tries, they are doable, even that earlier in the game.

The skill tree the game offers to the player is a mix of Dishonored and Deus Ex, and works amazingly well. The super natural powers are there and are extremely cool to use, be it turning dead bodies into phantom's that help you in battle, or turning yourself into a real scenario object just like the mimics do. And what it's cool about this mechanic is that you really need to use it to access some areas within the game. I'm about 30 hours in the game and still have a ton of powers to unlock.

Plus, the game also throws at you a dismantling system to craft materials, a fabrication system to use those materials to craft stuff and gadgets for your journey...that is if you explore enough to find the fabrication plans. The game does an excellent job in making you interested in exploring Talos I and uncovering the mystery its happening there.

And I gotta say, I love the damage system in this game, be it the weapons deteriorating if you don't repair them from time to time, be it the damage the character can suffer - head traumas, burns, stamina fatigue, bone fracture, you name it. And what's cool about this is that it's there if you want, if you don't you just turn it off.

Seriously, to whoever wasn't played this game, do it. It's a true gem.

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AV

We ain't outta here in ten minutes, we won't need no rocket to fly through space
Yeah, it's great. I wouldn't call it "hidden" but it's definitely an underplayed and underappreciated little gem. It's far from the best of its kind but it does a great job of what it sets out to do. Worth every penny of a €20 buy.

Maybe hide your intro sequence spoilers so people who might want to play it don't have that ruined for them.
 

Soodanim

Gold Member
I've had this installed for ages, but I haven't got round to it yet. It's one of those games that I know is good, but it's been so long that I lost any details of why that's true and the OP is a helpful reminder of that, so thank you. The gameplay sounds like it is right up my alley.
 
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shubik

Member
Played it a while ago and loved it. The art direction is fantastic and op is spot on with the beginning. Immediately pulled me in. I don´t know what it is exactly but there is something special about Arkhane games to me. the care for detail and worldbuilding is top-notch
 

R6Rider

Gold Member
Great game and one of my favorites in recent years. Got it for cheap and went in not expecting much.

Making those little resource cube things is always extremely satisfying.
 
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Arkane spits hot fiya all the time. I loved Dark Messiah (it was my "Thief" 4") and Dishonored last gen (it was my "Bioshock 2"). Dishonored 2 and Prey are both worthy entries in the subgenre. Definitely one of the best modern devs if you like their style.

Personally I'd put Prey up there with System Shock 2. Each game has its own flaws and strengths, but yeah, Prey is "System Shock 3" in my book.
 
Arkane spits hot fiya all the time. I loved Dark Messiah (it was my "Thief" 4") and Dishonored last gen (it was my "Bioshock 2"). Dishonored 2 and Prey are both worthy entries in the subgenre. Definitely one of the best modern devs if you like their style.

Personally I'd put Prey up there with System Shock 2. Each game has its own flaws and strengths, but yeah, Prey is "System Shock 3" in my book.
Arkane's new game looks like it's missing something, though. Maybe I'm just imagining it, but I feel like they're not going to be the same Arkane after Raph left.

Raph's new game (Weird West) looks like its going to be awesome, though!
 

Shmunter

Member
Sadly, as enamoured I was in parts, the overall game left me hollow. Finished it, never looked back. Just lacked something that made System Shock and Bioshock so special to me.
 

Cracklox

Member
Loved it too

One of the best worlds in modern gaming. The station actually feels like an actual space that could exist, with the way its scaled and all the crew aboard assigned duties etc. One of very few times I've encountered, where it feels like the gamespace existed before the gameplay, and wasn't just designed as a playground for game mechanics. Even though it serves that purpose really well too.
 

Sub_Level

wants to fuck an Asian grill.
Its a true gem. My only gripe years later was that all the enemies were black goo. Could have used some some more visual variety.

Mimics are black goo. - Cool.
Phantoms are black goo. - Ok.
Telepaths are black goo. - Getting a little redundant...
Weavers are black goo. - Really?
Nightmares are black goo. - Fuck off, game.

Meanwhile in System Shock 2 you got zombie dudes. You got kamikaze robots. You got biomechanical pregnant women. You got cyborg ninja assassins. You got muscly, shambling sacks of flesh. All with a varied color palette & unique sound effects.
 
Too bad the genre is a dying breed. Arkane were the only ones tackling it and now their next game seems meh with all the online stuff. Hopefully Cyberpunk 2077 will bring back Deus Ex and similar games.
 
Idk, found the single enemy type annoying and repetitive. They jump out of this and jump out of that ad infinitum. Just got too tedius and I dropped it.
 

Jtibh

Banned
Its free on psnow.
No reason not to play it. One of the best games i played in years.

Currently playing jedi fallen order.
Another game that flew under the radar and a sin not to play it
 

Jtibh

Banned
Idk, found the single enemy type annoying and repetitive. They jump out of this and jump out of that ad infinitum. Just got too tedius and I dropped it.
What??? You never run into other enemies?

Cuz i run into a dozen type . But i can give you a propper count cuz in the game you have to scan enemies to find weak spots so yeah there are many type of enemies.

You played what for 10 minutes??😂😂😂
 

Fbh

Member
I played it some months ago, really enjoyed it, specially once you start getting more skills, weapons and powers.
My only issue is that I did feel like it lost a bit of steam towards the end with all the backtracking, at points it felt like I was backtracking 10 minutes to press a button or something.
 

SnapShot

Member
It's pretty damn good, I loved it so much I replayed it 3 times, I enjoyed just casually exploring Talos 1 and having enough freedom but not too much freedom so it never feels like a chore or grindy busywork, just a laid back relaxing experience, felt very.....immersive (well, it's an immersive sim, so I guess it kind of makes sense)

It's a bit too slowed paced maybe so it requires a certain mindset to get into but once it clicks it's a good time, my only real gripe with it was the last few levels, with constantly spawning operators, felt like the game was trying to force me to play in a different style than what I went with for the whole rest of the game, jarring transition and takes away from the fun of exploring the levels at my own pace.
 
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StonedRider

Member
Same for me. The game was in my backlog for a year, but once I started playing, I was hooked from the first minutes. I even tried to collect all the achievements on Steam (No Needles one was really painful). Brilliant game!
 

Umbral

Member
A man after my own heart. Prey is overlooked and underrated. One of the best modern immersive sims with a cool story, art direction, and mechanics.

Getting the platinum really highlights how many different ways you can play it with its branch specific neuromods runs or no needles runs. You have to find different ways to solve things.
 

M1chl

Currently Gif and Meme Champion
I never liked it, stupid flying toaster always toasted me, I am not sure but game was pretty brutally hard and I always get my ass handed to me, in the are, when the fat guy was in the center, those monster vs amunition and abilities I had, was simply too weak and I gave up. Begining is nice, but that's about it.
 
I love Prey. The freedom it gives you to truly play and tackle objectives in ANY way is seriously impressive stuff.

The only limitations is literally your own creativity. It makes subsequent playthroughs feel new and fresh.

Added on top of that excellent shooting and skill tree mechanics and a story I was totally invested in with top tier voice work, it definitely is one of my favourite games of this generation.

Criminally under rated and under played.
 

Jtibh

Banned
I never liked it, stupid flying toaster always toasted me, I am not sure but game was pretty brutally hard and I always get my ass handed to me, in the are, when the fat guy was in the center, those monster vs amunition and abilities I had, was simply too weak and I gave up. Begining is nice, but that's about it.
You suck at it.
Thats all.
Get better
Or go play pokemon.

I am dissapointed in you
 

Jtibh

Banned
I never even played Pokemon
I suggested it as an alternative since you complained how hard prey is.

Its not hard . With the right mods and skills and propper use of the foam gun like building plattforms to reach higher areas and gun everyone down or with time slow and run through everyone this game is a piece of cake.
 

M1chl

Currently Gif and Meme Champion
I suggested it as an alternative since you complained how hard prey is.

Its not hard . With the right mods and skills and propper use of the foam gun like building plattforms to reach higher areas and gun everyone down or with time slow and run through everyone this game is a piece of cake.
I know, but I simply don't have will to go in this game from begining.
 

Jtibh

Banned
I know, but I simply don't have will to go in this game from begining.
You are missingbout on one of the best experiences this gen.
This is a relic in todays market and i would advise to give this game a chance.

After all this might be the last of its kind.
 

M1chl

Currently Gif and Meme Champion
You are missingbout on one of the best experiences this gen.
This is a relic in todays market and i would advise to give this game a chance.

After all this might be the last of its kind.
That's true.
 

Roni

Gold Member
Greatest immersive sim around, I loved it too and I should definitely replay it soon...
 

Nankatsu

Gold Member
I never liked it, stupid flying toaster always toasted me, I am not sure but game was pretty brutally hard and I always get my ass handed to me, in the are, when the fat guy was in the center, those monster vs amunition and abilities I had, was simply too weak and I gave up. Begining is nice, but that's about it.

At the beginning I also found the game hard to be honest, way harder than I was expecting. I even google it to see if it was just me feeling that way.

Saw some people complaining about difficulty, but I decided to stick with the one I first selected (normal + survival aspects on). Give it a shot, don't give up right away.

When the game clicks, it trully clicks in a magnificent way.
 

kurisu_1974

is on perm warning for being a low level troll
Ddin't like the game much, felt like a chore to progress, just like Dishonored the game lacked something to make it fun for me rather than work. Granted I'm not much of a FPS gamer, alltho I'll agree the gameplay elements in both games go beyond the genre.
 
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diffusionx

Gold Member
I hate the image quality on a One X.

Prey on consoles is a mess, unfortunately. I played the demo on Xbox One and thought it looked awful, but liked it so much I preordered it on PC. On PC I was able to get 4K/60fps without a problem. It looks great, not fancy but very clean and smooth.
 

VAL0R

Banned
Loved the game. This game would benefit hugely from an SSD. The load screens really broke up what would have been an amazing seamless "wandering the eerie space station" game. Still, you can't blame it for coming out a gen early in that sense. Very well done.
 
It's one of my favorite first person shooters released this generation, i always recommend it to anyone asking for the best games released in the last 6-7 years. Albeit a little flawed (enemy variety) but the positive design elements far outweigh the negative aspects of it. It's a remarkably great video game that no one should sleep on.

Also, i want to give a shout out for Titanfall 2, which is an extremely underrated video game; EA recently released a bunch of their games on Steam and Titanfall 2 has surged in popularity because of that. To call it one of the best first person shooters released this generation would be an understatement - the gameplay is absolutely spectacular and brilliantly fun because of how polished and relatively unique it is. It's got a decent length to its single player (7 hours or so) and the multiplayer is phenomenally well made. Absolutely do not sleep on what is arguably the best first person shooter of our generation.
 
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One of the best games of the decade. It realIy felt like your were exploring a hostile environment so I took my sweet time lol. Moving carefully through each area dragging like five turrets along.
The ending is kinda weak though. They introduce a bunch of tropes that they had carefully avoided until then (excessive backtracking, timed sequences, infinite spawning enemies etc). Cut the last five hours out and it's an almost perfect game.
 
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