What I mean is about all of the choices and consequences in the game, and how you can influence a lot of different turnouts for missions and areas depending on how you do them. Then again, IGN is not known for its intelligence.WorstUsernameEver said:Reconite said:
And, uhm, that's a surprise how?
Also, not to smash Alpha Protocol, since I still haven't played it (damn mail!), but.. if the game is not enjoyable to you, why would you feel compelled to play it again just to see the story change a bit?
I'm almost wondering if Obsidian shouldn't have went the Heavy Rain route.
Fireside Chat: Alpha Protocol reception and New Vegas
- Thread starter Brother None
- Start date
WorstUsernameEver
But best title ever!
Reconite said:
And my point is that those are things that you'd notice only if you're comparing your playthrough with someone else's, or play the game at least twice.
It's not something I'd expect from an IGN reviewer, and to be honest, it's not something I'd expect your normal reviewer/player to be interested in.
Oh man. Oh man. Six hours into the game, other than numerous graphical glitches/roughnesses and other smaller mistakes, I have so far managed to: encounter a broken mission that became too easy to finish because of its brokenness, broke one mission so it and thus the game can't be finished (hurray for the fuckin' savepoint-system eh? Have to go back to my appartment now), and had to reload to one of those annoying savepoints because I managed to get stuck in the terrain.
And that's not even mentioning how bleedingly god-awful the mechanics of the minigames and - yes - dialogue are. Getting used to it, but man, talk about stuff that is painfully obviously marked "this should be optional, not obligatory, retard!"
Sure, sure, it's got some standout points. Writing's not too strong but hurray C&C, once you get past all the lame Mass Effect redux-cover shooting. Am I playing an RPG? I'm not even sure. Wow the shooting is bad, btw. I mean...WOW BAD.
Sorry chaps, it's got its good points, but it's rough and - what's worse - it's unfocused. Sorry guys, I'm with JE Sawyer, there's no criticism being leveled at this game that's unfounded, as far as I can see. It rambles, and it shakes.
And that's not even mentioning how bleedingly god-awful the mechanics of the minigames and - yes - dialogue are. Getting used to it, but man, talk about stuff that is painfully obviously marked "this should be optional, not obligatory, retard!"
Sure, sure, it's got some standout points. Writing's not too strong but hurray C&C, once you get past all the lame Mass Effect redux-cover shooting. Am I playing an RPG? I'm not even sure. Wow the shooting is bad, btw. I mean...WOW BAD.
Sorry chaps, it's got its good points, but it's rough and - what's worse - it's unfocused. Sorry guys, I'm with JE Sawyer, there's no criticism being leveled at this game that's unfounded, as far as I can see. It rambles, and it shakes.
It picks up once you're past Saudi Arabia and have enough skill points in any weapon skill to get the weapon special attack. Or if you Solid Snake every mission, that works too (except for the boss fights, but what the hey).
The getting stuck in terrain unsticks if you use melee attacks a couple of times, 90% of the time =)
And I've never ran into mission-breaking bugs. Game-balance-breaking yes, but not mission-breaking. May ask where did you find one of those? =)
And the minigames ARE optional (also, the lockpicking is insanely easy, really, it's the circuit cutting that's of any real difficulty, and even then, you put points into Sabotage and then you can skip those altogether by using EMP bombs).
The getting stuck in terrain unsticks if you use melee attacks a couple of times, 90% of the time =)
And I've never ran into mission-breaking bugs. Game-balance-breaking yes, but not mission-breaking. May ask where did you find one of those? =)
And the minigames ARE optional (also, the lockpicking is insanely easy, really, it's the circuit cutting that's of any real difficulty, and even then, you put points into Sabotage and then you can skip those altogether by using EMP bombs).
In Moscow. I think I did something in the wrong order. Doubt I could recreate it if I tried tho'.
Also their portrayal of Moscow sucks. It's much more of a dreary, bleak, desolate place
q
And yes, I gave up on guns right after the shooting range and have basically been ninja teabagging everyone ever since. What amuses me tho', is that bad FPSs are usually pretty difficult, but this game is mindnumblingly easy in combat. What the hell is that shit for, then?
Also their portrayal of Moscow sucks. It's much more of a dreary, bleak, desolate place
qAnd yes, I gave up on guns right after the shooting range and have basically been ninja teabagging everyone ever since. What amuses me tho', is that bad FPSs are usually pretty difficult, but this game is mindnumblingly easy in combat. What the hell is that shit for, then?
aenemic
Sonny, I Watched the Vault Bein' Built!
I think the shooting is just fine once you get your skills up. what does annoy me is the 3-shot default setting on the assault rifles. I wish I could fire just one shot and switch on fully automatic.
there's been a lot of complaints about the cover system not working correctly, but I have a hard time seeing this too. I like how you're not automatically invinvible when in cover. bullets go through certain cover and enemies can still hit you if you're not 100% hidden. that's how it should be.
there's been a lot of complaints about the cover system not working correctly, but I have a hard time seeing this too. I like how you're not automatically invinvible when in cover. bullets go through certain cover and enemies can still hit you if you're not 100% hidden. that's how it should be.
Well, sure, it's western-made cranberry sauce, what did you expect?
It's the little tidbits (like Molo-Tek, or "Добро Пожаловать/Посторонним Вход Воспрещён" signs, or Lazo's yacht) that make it worth it (and work). The only real-life place that is remotely real-life-looking was the meeting place for the Albatross negotiation, reminds me of a place near ВДНХ.
Well, from what I've tried, there is no real way to sequence-break (and thus, to script-break) because the game won't let you get far from objective A until you've completed it, unless it's optional (which is why most people on the GameFAQs board bungled the endgame badly, MOST of the objectives there are optional).
It's not that mindnumbingly easy (you finish Moscow first, then we'll talk =)), but the shit is there for the guys with twitchy trigger fingers, or psychos that want to replay it seven times with seven different builds and decision sets.
It's the little tidbits (like Molo-Tek, or "Добро Пожаловать/Посторонним Вход Воспрещён" signs, or Lazo's yacht) that make it worth it (and work). The only real-life place that is remotely real-life-looking was the meeting place for the Albatross negotiation, reminds me of a place near ВДНХ.
Well, from what I've tried, there is no real way to sequence-break (and thus, to script-break) because the game won't let you get far from objective A until you've completed it, unless it's optional (which is why most people on the GameFAQs board bungled the endgame badly, MOST of the objectives there are optional).
It's not that mindnumbingly easy (you finish Moscow first, then we'll talk =)), but the shit is there for the guys with twitchy trigger fingers, or psychos that want to replay it seven times with seven different builds and decision sets.
aenemic said:
What, does the enemy AI stop being retarded? The targeting reticule is not my problem, I'm not new to the idea of RPG/FPSs, it's just bad.
aenemic said:
I couldn't care less, I hate the trend of cover-based shooters, let alone cover-based shooter RPGs. I know we live in the era of consoles, but for Frith's sakes people, can't you see how trite this all is?
Speaking of console-based era. Wow. I can't remember exactly when was the last time I reviewed a console port for GB that was too goddamn lazy to make every keybind changeable, but I'm pretty sure I gave it hell for it. This game is one hell of a shitty port, especially with how half-arsed the hacking (fuck hacking) and dialogue mini-games have been ported. I can't tell how many times I've misclicked an option in that retarded excuse for a dialogue system because my mouse was being wonky. Well done, well done indeed.
EDIT: this is all first-impression stuff note, I often sound like this when talking about mind-numbingly boneheaded design decisions.
Noelemahc said:
Hawww. Haven't seen those. Nice one.
Noelemahc said:
I wasn't really trying, and yet I did it. And yeah, for a C&C-based game it sure likes to railroad you a lot. The level design is twat, anyway.
Noelemahc said:
Moscow so far has been even easier than Saudi Arabia.
aenemic
Sonny, I Watched the Vault Bein' Built!
Brother None said:
well, I don't consider AI part of the shooting mechanism. the AI isn't that good, I agree. but when it comes to firing guns, this game isn't any worse than any other skill-based game I've ever played. at least your skill level and weapon stats actually affect your shooting. take Deus Ex for example - the shooting elements in that game aren't any better, and if you run around without proper weapon skill it'll also feel like a really crappy fps. besides, the game clearly isn't made to be played like a straight shooter, which is why a lot of people whine about it - you're supposed to make use of the various weapon skills and actually use some tactics in firefights. not just sit there and gun everything down like it's CoD.
Brother None said:
why, exactly? I mean, you're free to like whatever kind of gameplay you want. but I prefer the realism a cover-based system provides instead of the way old-school fps's handles it. I'd rather sit in cover and wait for the right opportunity to peak out than just rush in guns blazing and being able to take hundreds of bullets to the face.
the only problem I see in cover-based games is that there is an unrealistic amount of random covers cleverly placed out for you to take advantage of. in AP this isn't nearly as bad as in for example ME and GoW. there are many situations where you can't find any good cover and have to move from one spot to the next to survive.
as for the wonky mouse controls, I agree that this is a very big problem in the hacking minigame, but it didn't bother me at all in dialogue. you don't even have to click the options, just move your mouse slightly so that the correct option is highlighted when the timer reaches 0.
Ausir said:
Nope. Why, is he going to force my not-designed-for-shooting-character into a shootout? I kind of like how that lieutenant dude in SA didn't, but I expect the game to shift to retardio any second now.
Hurray! Break the player's legs, give him crutches for most of the game, then kick away the crutches! CHALLENGING GAYM DESAIGN!
aenemic said:
And yet it is! Hell, it's one of the most defining elements of what makes good shooters good.
aenemic said:
You're comparing apples and pears. Deus Ex is a railshooter, more or less. Alpha Protocol is a cover-based shooter. The two get equated as "FPS" for some reason but they're pretty different genres.
As such, Alpha Protocol is comparable to Mass Effect. I hate Mass Effect's combat, but not because it's badly designed, but because it's boring and there's way too much of it. Alpha Protocol makes it look like genius reborn tho'.
aenemic said:
Why? Because combat shouldn't be the core focus of an RPG, yet like RTwP cover-based shooting seems inherently designed to draw out rote, trash mob encounters into an eternity of tooth-aching boredom. So either the level design needs to be better or the combat does, in this case they both suck.
aenemic said:
Sounds perfect! Only it isn't. You still take unrealistic amounts of bullets to the face, and cover-based shooting just adds to the vertigo effect for many of us, especially for games they try to cover up shitty graphics with motion blur, like Alpha Protocol.
aenemic said:
Yes. I know.
Nah, I'm afraid you're stuck with that =)
Varies from level to level. Some levels railroad you, some stagger with their supposed freedom of choice (though it turns into simply choosing the track to which you'll be railroaded), but there are a couple of moments of proper level design. My second playthrough has told me of the oodles of nooks and crannies I've missed for alternate takes on several situations, although this is, yet again, The Modern Approach To Stealth Game-Design (yes, Splinter Cell, we're all looking at you and your 'there is a stealth way, a killer way and a stealthy killer way... except that here, here and here there is no true stealth way' logic). Though here you occasionally get curveballs like guards getting unhinged from their patrol positions by combat with your allies (which also varies from ally to ally - I enjoyed how the three major options differentiate from one another).
The end bosses are kind of naughty in that regard, unless you exploit glitches. What sort of class/build are you doing? My first was a Field Agent/Spy/Stealth with pistols build, and Moscow has been a bear. The second is a Recruit/Operative/Shotguns and Toughness build, and some areas are easy as pie and in others I die in seconds. I don't know if that's a sign of good or bad balancing, but I like the fact that there is a palpable difference that doesn't alter the overall difficulty.
Not really. Shotguns work too (Brayko is actually EASIER with a shotgun). So do assault rifles, if you take the time to max out the skill. The only nerfy weapon type are the SMGs.
The endgame toys with you on this a lot, involving lots of explosives and those covers being destructible by enemy fire (^_^)
OakTable said:
Oh I love killing people. Positively adore it. But if you're going to keep sending little buzzy messages at me telling me I can survive with stealth and melee (that's right, I didn't pick any weapon skill in my build, fuck that noise, ese), then don't start throwing random curveballs at me for artificial challenge.
But there aren't any major curveballs. Where you can't go with stealth and fists alone, a well-placed grenade or sniper rifle will take up the slack for you. Or an activated skill. Fury is kinda wonky, but Iron Will, Stealth Operative and Overclock do help for this sort of tactic.
Don't be greedy for those rifle dead-drop payouts, they do make things easier. Occasionally. It's fun how the sniper rifle mode feels like a shooting gallery where you're invincible, until somebody puts a bullet through YOUR forehead.
And no, on my first playthrough, I killed Brayko in melee. The same tactics apply for whatever your strongest damage-dealing skill is, actually. At least, they did for me.
Don't be greedy for those rifle dead-drop payouts, they do make things easier. Occasionally. It's fun how the sniper rifle mode feels like a shooting gallery where you're invincible, until somebody puts a bullet through YOUR forehead.
And no, on my first playthrough, I killed Brayko in melee. The same tactics apply for whatever your strongest damage-dealing skill is, actually. At least, they did for me.
Hurray, a totally artificial bullshit challenge! My life will be complete!
I haven't seen any so far, but aren't you telling me right now there are?
I haven't seen any so far, but aren't you telling me right now there are?