PREY
Ben Tyrer’s final advance look at the exciting sci-fi shooter
We only review finished games, so in Viewpoint, we go hands-on with near-final code of a game that has just missed our review deadline. Ben Tyrer played two hours of a virtually complete version of Prey, and these are his final pre-release impressions.
That black transforming glob thinks it has got the drop on me. As I wander through the Psychotronics labs of Talos 1, eyeing every item with suspicion, a familiar soundtrack cue and wobbling gas cylinder indicate a Mimic is getting ready to pounce. Unfortunately for the shapeshifter, in trying to blend in, it’s made my life a lot easier. Shooting the cylinders triggers an explosion that sends the Mimic up in flames. Throughout my two hours with this pre-release build, I find catharsis comes in all manner of ways. As you’re probably aware, Arkane’s immersive sim, where you must tackle the Typhon on space station Talos 1, is already on shelves. While review code didn’t make its way to OPM Towers by the time the mag went to press, I did get a chance to sample a couple of hours that I absolutely have to tell you about.
There’s a versatility that flows through every system. Take the Gloo Cannon as an example. It’s a gun that spits out quickly hardening foam, it can fix hazards like broken electric junction boxes, temporarily freeze enemies in their place, and even create makeshift stairs. The alien powers protagonist Morgan Yu unlocks can be just as flexible. The Mimic Matter power’s main use is blending into the environment by turning into smaller objects. But becoming a small item also means I’m able to squeeze through the bars in windows of otherwise inaccessible rooms. Stumbling onto answers by goofing around with the toolset provided is fantastic fun.
This flexibility bleeds into the art design. The section I’m playing is a jaunt through Psychotronics, to find an access point to the GUTS (the area running through the station providing essential services). Because it’s crawling with Typhon, every step I take is a tentative one, as I’m unable to be sure if the petri dish on the floor is a solid object or mimic. Not since Alien: Isolation’s Sevastopol has a spaceship made me equally eager and nervous to explore every nook and cranny. Where it has the potential to surpass Sevastopol is in the environmental touches that give Talos 1 a playful personality. One lab I stumble into is plastered with post-it notes, with the same message. “Not a Mimic.” A low-tech, logical solution to an alien menace that makes the space station feel like a real place.
PHANTOM MENACES
What’s surprising is the tension from inching through Psychotronics doesn’t come from jump shocks, but the power of the aliens you face. Even with a solid amount of ammo for the silenced pistol, plus a wrench, the odds are stacked against me. The other enemy type I find here is the Phantom. These large human-shaped Typhon are roadrunner quick, and able to wipe off a chunk of health quickly. Combat can sometimes be too punishing for its own good in the early going.
But, as I unlock more powers – such as the repair skill that I can use to fix turrets, and Kinetic Blast, which essentially acts as a telepathic grenade – different approaches reveal themselves. Rather than tackling the Phantom head-on with my weapons, I hide in plain sight as a microscope. As it stalks past me, I aim a Kinetic Blast at its feet and mop it up with a few shotgun blasts. Once you have the ability to put multiple plans into action or change your approach mid-fight, the combat swings from slightly frustrating to challengingly moreish.
As I make my way towards the end of the demo, I get a taste of the moral decisions waiting on Talos 1. I come across a man trapped in a glass cube. He begs to be released, promising the access code to the Armoury. On the console that could free him, however, there’s a rap sheet of the crimes he has committed, and the option to let a Mimic that will kill him into his cell. Doing so will give me materials to harvest and turn into health packs and neuromods that can unlock more skills. It’s a morbidly dark decision – I decide to free him, only because I read his list o’ crimes after the fact – that promises longer-reaching consequences than the ones I experience here.
In the two hours I’ve played, Prey offers the sort of rewarding invention and systematic experimentation that separates brilliant immersive sims from good ones. There’ll be a full review of the entire experience next month, but if it maintains the compelling mystery and engagingly malleable systems, then expect great things.
“IF IT CAN MAINTAIN THE ABSORBING MIX OF COMPREHENSIVE ACTION AND TENSE PARANOIA THAT THE TWO HOURS I’VE PLAYED ARE FULL OF, THEN IT’LL BE ONE OF THE YEAR’S BEST.”
Check back next issue to read our full in-depth review, on sale 8 June.