I didn't know what to think of Prey when it was first announced. I never played the original game, so I was indifferent about the Prey 2 cancellation. I bought this figuring it would be a fairly interesting game because I'm a fan of the stuff Arkane puts out. However, my expectations were GREATLY surpassed. Prey ended up being one of the best games 2017 has to offer so far in my opinion, as well as definitely being one of the most underrated.


If you take a peek at the score I give the graphics, you might view that as maybe being a little too generous. And if I was looking at this from a purely visual standpoint - you'd be correct. The visuals themselves aren't all that special. However, I do classify atmosphere as part of the "graphics" category, which is what warrants the high score. The setting of Talos I is filled to the brim with detail in a variety of ways, and this shows in the appearance of the setting and the atmosphere. Some have pointed this out, but exploring Talos I is like exploring a real building, as it has all of the components you would find in a real life building. I love the 50's-70's retrofuturistic vibe of Talos I itself, and it seems like a warm and cozy place to live in if it wasn't overrun by aliens. This is where the atmosphere kicks in, because similar to Bioshock, it takes this retro feeling and adds a horror element to it. The contrast between the coziness and the foreboding works extremely well, and it makes every second I spent (and continue to spend) in Talos I fascinating and worthwhile.


One of Arkane's most iconic traits in their games ended up being one of the strongest aspects to Prey, that being how the game encourages you to play your way. There are various ways to bypass the Typhon and access rooms. The excellent level design ties into the flexibility, and just like Dishonored 1 and 2, you have open areas where you're welcome to experiment and find your own way to the objective. It makes each encounter with the Typhon unique and interesting, and thanks to the varied skill trees, you're able to get in-depth with your playstyle. While the combat itself can be kind of tedious at times because some of the enemies are just bullet sponges, I only found it applied to 1-2 enemies at most. Speaking of the Typhon, while I enjoy taking on almost all of them to some degree, my favorite of these enemy types is easily the mimic. Found at the beginning of the game, they're arguably the most iconic part to Prey, because they are capable of shapeshifting into different objects. This makes scavenging more intense, as that medkit you just picked up could end up being your demise. Even though they get less scary as time goes on, their surprise factor lasts through the entire game.


I do not want to get too much into detail with the story, as the story is best left being unspoiled, but I can tell you it is one giant ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥. The main campaign remains interesting and fun for the entirety of it, and I also quite enjoyed the mini stories you could find on TranScribe logs scattered throughout the station, because it gives the game a sense of realism. You could easily imagine what life was like on Talos I before it was overrun, and it gives you a brief feeling of comfort in an otherwise suspenseful game.


Sadly, despite having the talented Mick Gordon handling the very good soundtrack, Prey's audio department ended up being the game's weakest point. The voice acting was fine, and while I don't think there were any major standout performances (though this could change as I play more), it was still solid voice acting and there weren't really any out of place or poor voice performances. The soundtrack, as I stated, is also quite good. So why, exactly, is the audio the weakest point? Simply put, my only major gripe with Prey is that the audio feels very unbalanced. There have been too many instances where the tension is nothing but extremely loud foreboding sound effects, a loud dissonance when you discover a mimic, and it kills the mood because it weakens the horror aspect to the game. You're more distracted by the fact that you really need to turn down the music so you can actually hear what's going on.


Not much to say here. Thanks to the flexibility of Arkane games in general, Prey is very replayable and I can easily see people doing multiple playthroughs of the game.


To sum this all up, aside from some subjective nitpicks and poor audio balancing, I really love this game. Prey feels like the Shovel Knight of immersive sims/shooters, as it borrows aspects of games like System Shock and Bioshock, and rather than blatantly copying them, it respects them, modernizes it, and makes it more polished as a result. I can easily recommend this game, and I'm looking forward to killing more Typhon scum!

Graphics - 9.0/10
Gameplay - 9.5/10
Story - 10/10
Audio - 8.0/10
Replayability - 8.0/10

**PERSONAL PICK**

.:8.9/10:.
“Great”

+Thought-provoking main storyline
+High replayability
+Excellent level design
+Mimics
+Encourages different playstyles
+Extremely detailed and charming setting
+Amazing atmosphere

-Unbalanced sound design

I didn't know what to think of Prey when it was first announced. I never played the original game, so I was indifferent about the Prey 2 cancellation. I bought this figuring it would be a fairly interesting game because I'm a fan of the stuff Arkane puts out. However, my expectations were GREATLY surpassed. Prey ended up being one of the best games 2017 has to offer so far in my opinion, as well as definitely being one of the most underrated. [h1]Graphics[/h1] If you take a peek at the score I give the graphics, you might view that as maybe being a little too generous. And if I was looking at this from a purely visual standpoint - you'd be correct. The visuals themselves aren't all that special. However, I do classify atmosphere as part of the "graphics" category, which is what warrants the high score. The setting of Talos I is filled to the brim with detail in a variety of ways, and this shows in the appearance of the setting and the atmosphere. Some have pointed this out, but exploring Talos I is like exploring a real building, as it has all of the components you would find in a real life building. I love the 50's-70's retrofuturistic vibe of Talos I itself, and it seems like a warm and cozy place to live in if it wasn't overrun by aliens. This is where the atmosphere kicks in, because similar to Bioshock, it takes this retro feeling and adds a horror element to it. The contrast between the coziness and the foreboding works extremely well, and it makes every second I spent (and continue to spend) in Talos I fascinating and worthwhile. [h1]Gameplay[/h1] One of Arkane's most iconic traits in their games ended up being one of the strongest aspects to Prey, that being how the game encourages you to play your way. There are various ways to bypass the Typhon and access rooms. The excellent level design ties into the flexibility, and just like Dishonored 1 and 2, you have open areas where you're welcome to experiment and find your own way to the objective. It makes each encounter with the Typhon unique and interesting, and thanks to the varied skill trees, you're able to get in-depth with your playstyle. While the combat itself can be kind of tedious at times because some of the enemies are just bullet sponges, I only found it applied to 1-2 enemies at most. Speaking of the Typhon, while I enjoy taking on almost all of them to some degree, my favorite of these enemy types is easily the mimic. Found at the beginning of the game, they're arguably the most iconic part to Prey, because they are capable of shapeshifting into different objects. This makes scavenging more intense, as that medkit you just picked up could end up being your demise. Even though they get less scary as time goes on, their surprise factor lasts through the entire game. [h1]Story[/h1] I do not want to get too much into detail with the story, as the story is best left being unspoiled, but I can tell you it is one giant mindfuck. The main campaign remains interesting and fun for the entirety of it, and I also quite enjoyed the mini stories you could find on TranScribe logs scattered throughout the station, because it gives the game a sense of realism. You could easily imagine what life was like on Talos I before it was overrun, and it gives you a brief feeling of comfort in an otherwise suspenseful game. [h1]Audio[/h1] Sadly, despite having the talented Mick Gordon handling the very good soundtrack, Prey's audio department ended up being the game's weakest point. The voice acting was fine, and while I don't think there were any major standout performances (though this could change as I play more), it was still solid voice acting and there weren't really any out of place or poor voice performances. The soundtrack, as I stated, is also quite good. So why, exactly, is the audio the weakest point? Simply put, my only major gripe with Prey is that the audio feels very unbalanced. There have been too many instances where the tension is nothing but extremely loud foreboding sound effects, a loud dissonance when you discover a mimic, and it kills the mood because it weakens the horror aspect to the game. You're more distracted by the fact that you really need to turn down the music so you can actually hear what's going on. [h1]Replayability[/h1] Not much to say here. Thanks to the flexibility of Arkane games in general, Prey is very replayable and I can easily see people doing multiple playthroughs of the game. [h1]Verdict[/h1] To sum this all up, aside from some subjective nitpicks and poor audio balancing, I really love this game. Prey feels like the Shovel Knight of immersive sims/shooters, as it borrows aspects of games like System Shock and Bioshock, and rather than blatantly copying them, it respects them, modernizes it, and makes it more polished as a result. I can easily recommend this game, and I'm looking forward to killing more Typhon scum! [b]Graphics[/b] - 9.0/10 [b]Gameplay[/b] - 9.5/10 [b]Story[/b] - 10/10 [b]Audio[/b] - 8.0/10 [b]Replayability[/b] - 8.0/10 [b]**PERSONAL PICK**[/b] [b].:8.9/10:[/b]. [b]“Great”[/b] +Thought-provoking main storyline +High replayability +Excellent level design +Mimics +Encourages different playstyles +Extremely detailed and charming setting +Amazing atmosphere -Unbalanced sound design