PREY Xbox 360 Video Game Review
This year at some of the booths the game that was used to show off new joysticks, keyboards and mice was PREY. The entire multi-player part looked good and had some interesting game play elements. While the multiplayer was fun, I wanted to see more of the single-player mode. After spending some time at 2K and seeing their presentation, it grabbed my interest. The more I found out about the game, the more it looked familiar though. I double checked my facts and PREY was in development in the late 90’s only to be delayed (a polite way of saying canned). So almost 10 years later, the game hit the Xbox 360 and the PC. An FPS mixed with Sci-Fi and Indian heritage, this game sounds cool but how is the game really? Read the full review of PREY and find out.
The game is split between a single-player mode and an online mode. The difference though is that they are totally separate games. Sure, the levels look familiar but that’s where the similarities end. In the single-player mode you meet Tommy, a young man who wants to forget his roots and his ancestors. He also wants to get off the reservation. Right from the start PREY shows a few creative things but also a few holes in the storyline. Tommy is in the back room of the bar and casino when he is greeted by his grandfather who warns young Tommy that something strange is going to happen. The grandfather continues to warn Tommy not to forget his upbringing. Then the grandfather walks away and stands by the bar. Once you enter the dingy little bar, you see Tommy’s girlfriend Jen tending bar and two jerks drinking and hitting on her.
Now here is where the story both works for the game and works against it. You can interact with Jen right away or go play the poker machines and other games of chance. You can even turn on the TV and change the tunes on the Jukebox. While all this is neat it’s setting you up for the first big leap of the story, when Jen yells “hands off†at the two drunken guys, Tommy decides to stick up for his girlfriend. He approaches the two guys and, while Jen is behind the bar and in no real harm, decides to be the brash young man he is and over-reacts. Taking a pipe wrench he returns the swing of the two guys! Now I don’t know about you but I have been in bars where fights have broken out. Using a pipe wrench is something that is reserved for a life or death battle. Instead Tommy hits both guys till blood splatters. Jen is heard telling Tommy to “stop itâ€, but of course after the fact is a bit late. I can overlook this one part of the storyline since the wrench is later the first weapon you use and also online. Now the grandfather did warn Tommy about strange things that are going to happen. Next you see lights flash and the jukebox changes to another song as a space ship comes down and grabs grandfather first and then Jen. While Tommy is yelling out, he too is taken away. While this happens very fast, it is also perhaps the best visual effect in the game. It seems a little too quick and also a bit cheesy. Once in the spaceship you see things from Tommy’s view. For some reason one of the creatures decides to help you but leaves Jen and your grandfather in danger. Once you are safe you need to find a way to rescue them both and figure out what exactly is happening. I hate to say the game borrows from games like Doom but its dark and players will think they have seen some of the levels before.
Overall, the single-player game is good but has that ‘been there done that’ feeling with a few added new twists. Enjoyable but unless you enjoy death matches and team death matches, some may feel the single-player part is ended too soon. While the levels are familiar, they added in some neat changes to try and scare you and make you jump. Most of these include seeing your image on a huge screen or a creature jumping out, but it fits with the story. The weapons are cool but again the major complaint was the fact the single-player mode seemed far too short. It seems the real angle of PREY was the multi-player mode. I wish they would have put as much effort in the single mode as well to balance things out.
PREY uses the standard FPS controls and they are well suited for the game. Learning the controls takes about ten minutes. The hardest part may be learning what weapon to use and how to spirit walk in the online mode. Overall, PREY made good use of the Xbox 360’s controller. Since I got to play both the PC version and the Xbox 360 version, I would say the Xbox 360 version controls just as well and at times a little faster in selecting weapons. A well designed control scheme just nothing that is going to change the genre.
The online mode features a few new challenges for players since the levels change with gravity. Anyone can turn the tables on an opponent simply by walking up a wall and dropping down changing the playing field. While this is cool at first, it tends to wear off pretty fast and becomes just a part of the game. If you downloaded the demo, you’re going to know what to expect in both the single-player and online mode except for a few things they left out for the final retail version. The matches are interesting with portals opening and being able to spirit walk. Here again, this works for and against the game in both modes. Being able to spirit walk is fun, but it also means you never really die.
Offline especially you just meet with the great spirits and then return back to your normal self. Online you can use it to sneak up on the enemy and take them out. It’s a catch 22 really and while it fits online, offline it makes it the type of game where you never die and that means no game-over will ever appear. While this has been a standard in the last few years, it takes away some of the challenge of the game and makes it way too easy to beat. Online it makes it a little harder to hit someone who vanishes and is then glowing. Overall, the maps online are well designed and fun, but they got a bit old way too fast and did not hold my interest. Creating and finding a match is easy and 2K did a good job with this part of the game. Its fun but the fun just seems over too fast; sort of like a great roller coaster ride — when it’s over, it’s over.
PREY uses the Doom 3 engine and the graphics look good but at times a bit too dark. The creatures look great but again a little too familiar. The developers tried to add some new things visually and they succeeded especially in the bar with the spaceship. Overall, the graphics fit the story and the online mode but the game did not reach the level they were going for. Visually, it has some great moments and effects but nothing that will make it stand out from other FPS titles out there. The weapons are the main ’stand out’ in the multi-player since most are made from parts of the creatures. You will see arms or body parts attached to certain ones. It looks neat and adds a certain feel but this too gets forgotten in Frag fest in the end.
The cast tries to do a good job although the voiceover artist who plays Tommy seemed like he was trying too hard to play the bad attitude loner character. The other voiceover artists do a decent job and sound convincing enough but still most of the stand out audio is in the multi-player mode. Each weapon has a different sound and when a portal opens up, it sounds cool. In the single-player game, the music is great and the score really stands out and was well done.
PREY really deserves two sections here for the single-player mode. The replay value is pretty short. Most gamers can beat and rack up a few hundred achievement points rather quickly and beat the game in about 7-10 hours. Even gamers that are new to FPS or may try PREY should be able to beat the game with little trouble. I took my copy to a friend’s house and he never touches FPS games, yet was able to go through the game with ease. For those starting out or wanting an easier game then PREY is perfect. Die-hard players on the other hand will find it a short experience and probably be content with the multi-player online mode.
Overall Score: 7.4/10 [not an average]
PREY tried to set the bar and add new features and a different way of playing FPS titles. The spirit-walking and the gravity-changing was a great idea. For a week rental, this one is great but unless you’re the type of gamer that loves death matches, most will play it once, beat it and then let it sit for awhile before wanting to play it again. Visually it tries and succeeds in setting the mood and adding new effects. In the end maybe more time was needed to reach the potential PREY could have achieved. I did like the fact that 2K is trying new things.
Review by XBS Head Writer Rich Reed
Filed under: Reviews • Xbox 360
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