Reviews VideoGame / Prototype 2

Don't you think you're making a mountain out of a molehill here?

I don't mean to sound like a dick, but Prototype's overplot was never grade-A material so why should it be the make-or-break point for its sequel?

Maybe it will be explained in-story?

They just don't write video game stories like they used to. Er...well, what I mean is, I love stories too, so this would be kind of an important factor for me. I still haven't finished the first Prototype though.

The first game left quite a few things unclear in it's story, but I liked Mercer as the monster who was ultimately more human than the man he was made from etc. If the new Mercer is some kind of For The Evulz Always Chaotic Evil type then that's a serious letdown. Still, the main appeal was always the unbridled mayhem you could wreak, so if that's still there then the game can't be a total failure.

Wasn't the game released yesterday?

This is sadly completely spot-on as a review.

Ugh! I agree so much with the review, I was so mad looking at the walkthrough (people sure are fast) of the game and seeing the ending, I mean what? What kind of way was that to treat your fans? I was actually surprisingly fond of Alex Mercer in the first game and found him quite interesting, and he had a genuine Morality Pet, so seeing this Character Derailment was incredibly frustrating and disappointing.

So yeah, the gameplay sure looks fun (like the last game was - what with its flaws and all), but I just can’t bring myself to care. I call Fanon Discontinuity.

I was hoping that they would eventually reveal something farder into the story, but apparently the explanation really is, after busting his ass in the first game to save new york and the world for a virus takeover and more or less coming on the better end on that bargain, Alex decides to bring hell back with himself as the ring dealer. The idea of new protagonist against old protagonist is nice, but it doesn't work in this case. Alex is not Kratos, Cole or a Mishima.

Although in terms of what goes on in the actual gameplay what he does is pretty monstrous right? In the same way Nico Belik was this tortured individual led astray in the new world he'd travelled to, who liked to murder prostitutes and run over old ladies in his spare time

The issue is with his personality transition. At the end of the first game where he resented the real Alex Mercer for the outbreak and by the end truly wanted to save the city to the beggining of the second game where he's no different from Greene.

Don't worry I get it and I can see why it's annoying. But Prototype's one of those games where what you do never quite ties up with what you character should do

'I'm a conflicted person!!' 'Hold on a sec while I just eat this guy'

Maybe the player should have been the antagonist :D

I pretty much agree. The combat is substantially better and is a lot of fun. Its all just dragged down by just how screwed up the story is and how they have made all the characters caricatures.

While Protoype 1 did not have a award winning story it was ambitious enough and interesting enough to be engaging enough to convince you to let some of the plot holes or flaws go. Prototype 2 does not. Its just. GAH.

I only read the plot summary on wikipedia and I know where you're coming from.

I think there should be some kind of rule against people writing reviews for games they HAVEN'T PLAYED.

I think there should be some kind of rule against people writing reviews for games they HAVEN'T PLAYED.

Possibly one of the wisest statements in this entire thread. Because seriously.

I didn't pick up one his comments about the gameplay, I assumed he'd accidentally been given his pre-order a little early.

Yeah you're right. What a strange review then, he speaks about the plot like he's seen it from start to finish

I thought the OP might had done a power run, hence why I asked "wasn't the game released yesterday?" since I don't know how many hours of gameplay [Prototype] 2 has.

I've watched walkthrough videos from several channels. So far it seems that while P2's story-telling has improved slightly, the story elements themselves might have taken a nosedive in quality. Alex in P2 really doesn't feel like the Alex that P1 closed off with. Maybe the change in voice actor is symbolic of this.

Nonetheless, I'm really anticipating the PC version. Major-concerned that they work out any porting kinks. I'm willing to look aside P2's throw-away story just so I can wreck shit up in ways I never really could in P1.

Speaking as the OP, I'll clear this up if anyone's reading - I never played the game, but the day it came out, I watched a front-to-end Let's Play of the game, including all the storyline missions and cutscenes.

Because yes, people had them up that early.

I'll agree that Mercer in the first game was not a good guy, but he wasn't evil - he did horrible things to fight off even worse alternatives. He didn't start out with a base understanding of morals or right or wrong, but he seemed to be hashing those out at the end of Prototype. Suddenly, he's become the incarnation of everything he hated, with only a flimsy explanation at best; one that they didn't even bother to offer in the game.

And he was an amazing character, so the shift still has me seething. I'm just ignoring this as non-canon. They did change the writers after all, and to me, it's pretty clear the writers did not do their homework. Not just where Mercer is concerned, either. Blackwatch and Gentek both got massive idiot balls.

Just to add something, they address Alex's sudden shift in personality in a comic called Prototype 2: The Anchor. However, the fact they used a comic to explain why Alex became evil in Prototype 2 to me is lazy and just plain dumb story writing.

The Anchor also gets complaints for Mercer being out of character, too. It just seems odd to change Mercer like that. At the most he should have been a more cynical person after The Anchor, not deciding to destroy humanity. And as a fan of the original Prototype, I loved its story. I enjoyed it more than most movies or games. I would go so far as to put it in my top 10 video game stories (along with Chrono Trigger and TWEWY). It had a bunch of pieces and twists that I didn't see coming. Prototype 2 just crapped all over it. It's like the writers of Prototype 2 really didn't like Mercer and decided to derail him so that we would support Heller. That didn't work for me. Even Heller's good actions near the end of the game seemed grossly out of character since he'd only been raging before that. The game sits firmly in Fanon Discontinuity for me. I haven't played the game (I played the first game on a friend's 360), and after watching a playthrough, I don't want to. I can acknowledge that the gameplay improved, but I really couldn't push myself through the game with the story I saw.

I agree completely. I felt that this game was total shit with a shitty story, shitty characters, and a shitty setting along with a totally fucked up fan base following it. I felt that the writers of the second game along with Radical Entertainment listened to the asshole hypocrites that put the blame of killing innocents on Alex instead of their black hearted and selfish pride and taking the blame for themselves and didn't even bother consuming the web of intrigue targets to get a better grasp of the story of the first game. The fan base for P2 is nothing but bullshit Christians and that's enough for me to hate all of those assholes as well as the game itself. I understand what had to be done but reading fan fictions based on this shitty sequel is irking me to make a petition and tell Radical to be formed again and make a reboot of this game and do it right with Alex as the main character. They seemed to completely forget what Alex is and what he represents in the first game. Alex is a symbol for a monster being a better person than a man, an angel of death on the most vile scum, and a catalyst for fear upon even the most horrid creatures to walk the planet. In P1 they were speaking of Alex, Greene, PARIAH, and other runners as if they were gods needed to be reckoned with, forces of nature that can't be stopped mind stopped if you will. In P2 they just throw all of that away and shove it aside for a shit spin-off that was just made to appeal for all the fuck shit bags that just wanted to be a good guy and have a paycheck game to play for their fucked up Christian minds.

Of course. The Christians ruined the game. No-one liked the game except for the Christians. They're everywhere. They infiltrated Radical. They're on the streets, in our homes. They won't stop until every game is ruined. They ruined Mass Effect 3. They ruined the Spyro the Dragon series. And they are ruining Assassin's Creed, piece by piece.

We have to bring back the old Christian-free Radical to make a new anti-Christian Prototype reboot. Only then will the fight begin.

The review isn't exactly what I'd call excellent, but it's true. The plot is shit and basically a slap in the face for Mercer's fans.

Oh sure, the character was derailed, but Mercer was already painfully bland and generic in the last game to begin with.

So many buzzwords.

@Asger. Listen you black hearted prideful piece of shit fuck bag, Mercer may have been lame and generic but when Radical Entertainment got feedback that Alex was self centered, emotionless, and a bit of a dick they got it the wrong way. It meant that they needed to keep him the protagonist but give him more development out of his blank emo state. NOT MAKE HIM A FICKING BAD GUY TO APPEAL TO YOU SHIT CHRISTIANS!

I think we have a troll on our hands. Not a playful troll like we're accustomed to, but a Ghostlike self-aware jerkwad who feels he needs to have a character to be heard.

I mean he's worse than Ghost, because Ghost kept going along with it to release stress and to entertain people with his wild rants. This guy's just yelling about this with no sort of context, and it doesn't really entertain most people in this comment section. This isn't a case of "different opinion = troll", it's a case of "shitwad teenager with no concept of proper curse placement to be funny = troll". Shape the hell up you little dork, and maybe you'll ruffle a few feathers. Right now, you're Family Guy to everyone else's It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia.

^^ Trying too hard.

Trying too hard is an understatement.

Oh wait, he's using caps lock. Must be serious business.

Listen all I'm trying to say is that I'm sick and tired of the way people are calling Alex an emo and boring character for their own crap and hating on him. And Mr Mallard you might want to cut off the little dork thing if you have the nickname for a duck. And I'm sorry for acting like that it's just that I disgust and loathe people who hate Alex and love James better.

I didn't say I love James. He's boring too, he had all the same flaws like being boring 99% of the time, and only ever showing the emotion of BERZERKER RAAAAAAAAAGE. But hell, at least he didn't have plot-convenient amnesia.

I can vouch that Prototype 2 appeals to Christians. All the people in my church play it. My pastor even did a Let's Play of it with an accompanying sermon.

Do you think Jesus would play it if he came back to life?

Well Corinthians clearly states that Jesus was also a shapeshifting monster who ate people to regenerate health.

...I never read the Bible...

I know right, how in the hell dare they have a different opinion than you, they should be stoned to death.

Well, you see, the way you eat people to take their memories is a parallel to the Last Supper, where Jesus goes "this is my body, take and eat of it... do this in remembrance of me."

And... you eat people... and get their memories...

Look guys you really don't have care for P1 if you don't want to. I'm just going to accept this as canon for the sake of my sanity and make a Prototype 3 where Alexander Mercer, the ex-Gentek scientist, is the hero and has a new virus in him along with the now returned Alex Mercer, the now ex-Blacklight virus, with the same virus Alexander has in him and is the villain since he fits that role better than Alexander ever could. Here's the summary of it.

Prototype 3: After Alexander Mercer, the ex-Gentek scientist, comes back with a new virus inside of him, he discovers that Alex Mercer, the ex-Blacklight virus, has come back with same said virus in him as well. After a brief fight between the two, Alex is willing to use his new power to kill humanity and destroy the entire Earth and Alexander must use his newfound power to protect the planet along with the human race. But will the Former Scientist/Street Fighter/Marine/Navy SEAL succeed and save the planet or will he fail and see Earth and humanity brought down eternal damnation?

The reason I put those other titles along with Scientist for Alexander is because I loathed the way the writers of the first game wrote his past.

Funny, I had the same idea. Only there were more vampires and less science.