Game Review - Prey

Game Review: Prey by Arkane Studios
Score: +11/-3

I got Prey from Epic Game Store for free during the Christmas season of 2021, when Epic Games literally gave out a free game every day for over a week. Typically they just release one game for free each week, and some are real gems -- like Prey.

(We have some general hints for playing Prey, without totally holding your hand and discovering everything for you).

 

In Prey, you awaken aboard Talos I, a space station orbiting the moon in the year 2032. You are the key subject of an experiment meant to alter humanity forever – but things have gone terribly wrong.

+1 If you've played Arx Fatalis (also by Arkane Studios), you know you can expect to very much "play your way" and still succeed because they have accounted for many alternate solutions. This is actually a very rare experience in video games and Arkane Studios does it very well for a fulfilling gameplay experience. What might seem like an exploit is very likely to be a valid optional approach, especially as there is probably another more straightforward way to do it anyway. Whereas in many other games, discovering an exploit often breaks story and game progress, making it too easy and ultimately not satisfying.

+1 This really can't be overstated, especially when alternate solutions can not only resolve one access issue but lead to alternate consequences -- contingency scenes and missions that you can discover by doing things differently.

+1 Lots of interesting mechanics and maps, but little guidance, encouraging you to try different things and in a different order. Many contingencies are accounted for, like dialog changing because what you did or the order you did things was different. Many games railroad you into a strict do A, do B, do C and if you try anything different the quest doesn't update.

-1 This said, the Hacking skill feels too hard due to the precision required and the severe time limit. For some players it's frustrating to have to keep retrying. For some players it's outright a non-option.

+1 A good sense of "open world" exploration. For story experience, certain areas are locked by the story, but overall the zones and optional areas are expansive enough to give you this feeling of not being railroaded all the time.

+1 Because of this, the game is rich with replayability as you try different approaches for a genuinely different gameplay experience despite the story being basically the same.

The story is very well constructed.

• +1 Intriguing setting and opening that grabs you from the start.
• +1 Story elements are also very cleverly conceived.
• You know nothing at the start and there's a reason. And that reason even enriches the content so that when you think back on some of your experiences, you realize they meant much more. For example, once you get the Psychoscope later in the game and see what it unlocks, you will come to understand Dr. Bellamy's confusion during the Tutorial at the very start of the game, and what those tests were actually supposed to be about despite the Tutorial tasks being trivial.
• Probably the weakest element is the Neuromods you can fabricate to learn skills. In my opinion it makes no sense that you can find or craft a bunch of Neuromods and they contain any skill you happen to want. However, from a gameplay design perspective, it was probably a necessary concession to not make character development unnecessarily convoluted.
• +1 The setting comes alive with a lot of non-essential details that hint at what the crew did. Not just their politics and schemes, but their daily lives. Though they are mostly dead now, you get some glimpse into a living world full of persons and personalities.
• Some mechanics that are good for gameplay unfortunately make no sense. For example, you can mass produce Neuromods that give you skills. But why would you be able to do that? Every single Neuromod can provide every type of skill, even ones you didn't know about?

+1 Lots of clever optional puzzles and things to discover. You are rewarded for looking around thoroughly and paying attention.

-1 Carrying things is frequently very awkward.

• For example, it's unnecessarily hard to maneuver something through a doorway. The slightest collision can cause you to drop the object, and there is no good way to change the orientation of the object you are carrying so that you can get it through the door. Quite often you suddenly drop an object for no apparent reason.
• Even placing objects is very imprecise and if the object happens to fall over on its side, there's no way to realign it. Using Turrets in zero gravity is even more frustrating because it is oriented to the same "down" direction no matter what.

-1 Jumping feels very inconsistent. Sometimes you can't jump onto something or you can but you slide off, and it's not clear why. But if you somehow trigger the very unreliable Climb prompt, you can climb onto it.

+1 Not many enemies, but each is interesting and has its own special features and quirks. No cheap clones just for variety.