Prey is probably my most favorite game of the last decade. The only thing I don't like about it is the name. Specifically because for the longest time I had assumed that it was a sequel/remake of the 1996 game "Prey" staring Cherokee spirit walker Tommy. Now, I liked 1996 Prey well enough but I wasn't really looking forward to a remake.

Enter Prey 2017, which turned out to be more in line with one of my most favorite games of all time, System Shock 2. Turns out Prey 2017 was originally planned to be a sequel to Prey 2006, but things went awry, and Prey 2016 ended up having very little to do with the original. I think that was for the best.

None of the ideas presented in Prey are particularly groundbreaking, but the execution is extremely good. The main story is a very familiar cautionary tale about greed and ambition leading into some very questionable research resulting in the pain and suffering of many for the betterment of a few. Not to mention the inevitable outbreak and contamination leading to a disaster of epic proportions.

Prey explores ideas of perception and identity. It toys with the idea of who would one believe, the old you in a recording, or the even older you in another recording. The old you vs the new you, they both have different objectives, but they're both named (Morgan) Yu.

Good:

- Explore a continuous space station Talos (inside and out) while gaining access deeper and deeper and uncovering what has transpired. Go outside the space station in your spacesuit and wander around until radiation sickness gets the better of you.

- Gain abilities and customize your character (hacking, repair, strength to move heavy items, alien powers, etc).

- Playing at the highest difficulty (nightmare) and conserving most of the resources/skill points, I never felt that I was overpowered. Certainly not at the level of getting the Dragon's Tooth sword in the original Deus Ex or the Crystal Shard in System Shock 2. In both of those, you could just whack everything with them. Prey on the other hand was a struggle for survival for most of the game. It wasn't until the end game where I used all the weapon upgrades, ability points, and ammo. Then it was sweet sweet retribution.

- Music and sound effects really add to the atmosphere, from the horror sound effects to the gentle strumming of a bass guitar when things calm down a bit. But the latter was usually short lived.

- The recently added New Game+ Mode was a welcome addition. Finished the game again with all ability points carried over from the first play through.


Bad:

- Voice recordings have been carried over from System Shock 2, and much of the backstory is learned from them. They add to the atmosphere and it's generally a good way to effectively let the player know what had happened to the personnel on Talos. There's also communication you get from certain characters. The problem is that sometimes you're in a bind and the fact that they start yapping away doesn't really help.

- Operators that give health, armor, and psi (for special powers) wonder around and get destroyed or corrupted. I spent a lot of time building barricades to hold them off in their room.

- My NewGame+ playthrough felt a little shorter than I had hoped. I want more and yes I've already finished everything there is to do in Mooncrash (separate review for that one).


Much has been said about the "twist" ending of Prey. I'm not going to go into any details here (no spoilers) but if one pays any attention throughout the game, everything is spelled out in great detail. The characters voice recordings, emails, notes, all propose the premise of the ending. Though they do largely dismiss it, the basic idea should not be foreign to the player. Also there are intermittent scenes that allude both visually and orally to the actual ending. Mild spoiler about something that happens 1/3 into the game: Also, if you try to escape the space station about 1/3 into the game, you won't be successful and the "twist" will be all but revealed.

Prey - 10/10 - Highly recommended. Especially if you liked System Shock 2.

"65.9 hrs last two weeks / 143.8 hrs on record"

Prey is probably my most favorite game of the last decade. The only thing I don't like about it is the name. Specifically because for the longest time I had assumed that it was a sequel/remake of the 1996 game "Prey" staring Cherokee spirit walker Tommy. Now, I liked 1996 Prey well enough but I wasn't really looking forward to a remake. Enter Prey 2017, which turned out to be more in line with one of my most favorite games of all time, System Shock 2. Turns out Prey 2017 was originally planned to be a sequel to Prey 2006, but things went awry, and Prey 2016 ended up having very little to do with the original. I think that was for the best. None of the ideas presented in Prey are particularly groundbreaking, but the execution is extremely good. The main story is a very familiar cautionary tale about greed and ambition leading into some very questionable research resulting in the pain and suffering of many for the betterment of a few. Not to mention the inevitable outbreak and contamination leading to a disaster of epic proportions. Prey explores ideas of perception and identity. It toys with the idea of who would one believe, the old you in a recording, or the even older you in another recording. The old you vs the new you, they both have different objectives, but they're both named (Morgan) Yu. [b] Good:[/b] - Explore a continuous space station Talos (inside and out) while gaining access deeper and deeper and uncovering what has transpired. Go outside the space station in your spacesuit and wander around until radiation sickness gets the better of you. - Gain abilities and customize your character (hacking, repair, strength to move heavy items, alien powers, etc). - Playing at the highest difficulty (nightmare) and conserving most of the resources/skill points, I never felt that I was overpowered. Certainly not at the level of getting the Dragon's Tooth sword in the original Deus Ex or the Crystal Shard in System Shock 2. In both of those, you could just whack everything with them. Prey on the other hand was a struggle for survival for most of the game. It wasn't until the end game where I used all the weapon upgrades, ability points, and ammo. Then it was sweet sweet retribution. - Music and sound effects really add to the atmosphere, from the horror sound effects to the gentle strumming of a bass guitar when things calm down a bit. But the latter was usually short lived. - The recently added New Game+ Mode was a welcome addition. Finished the game again with all ability points carried over from the first play through. [b]Bad: [/b] - Voice recordings have been carried over from System Shock 2, and much of the backstory is learned from them. They add to the atmosphere and it's generally a good way to effectively let the player know what had happened to the personnel on Talos. There's also communication you get from certain characters. The problem is that sometimes you're in a bind and the fact that they start yapping away doesn't really help. - Operators that give health, armor, and psi (for special powers) wonder around and get destroyed or corrupted. I spent a lot of time building barricades to hold them off in their room. - My NewGame+ playthrough felt a little shorter than I had hoped. I want more and yes I've already finished everything there is to do in Mooncrash (separate review for that one). Much has been said about the "twist" ending of Prey. I'm not going to go into any details here (no spoilers) but if one pays any attention throughout the game, everything is spelled out in great detail. The characters voice recordings, emails, notes, all propose the premise of the ending. Though they do largely dismiss it, the basic idea should not be foreign to the player. Also there are intermittent scenes that allude both visually and orally to the actual ending. Mild spoiler about something that happens 1/3 into the game: [spoiler] Also, if you try to escape the space station about 1/3 into the game, you won't be successful and the "twist" will be all but revealed. [/spoiler] Prey - 10/10 - Highly recommended. Especially if you liked System Shock 2. "65.9 hrs last two weeks / 143.8 hrs on record"