I wanted to like this game. I really did. The idea of a stealth action / RPG game is one that is very exciting to me. I had been following this game, along with Splinter Cell Conviction and Alan Wake, for a couple of years. I just read the previous reviews here and though I respect their views, I think it's a great disservice to the consumers, and more importantly, the gamers by giving the game near-perfect scores. This isn't to say the game is bad. It's actually quite good, if you can manage to look past its imperfections. It's just that, there are too many imperfections.
I played both big RPG titles by Obsidian- Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2 and Neverwinter Nights 2. Both of these were sequels to games that had already created a foundation of game mechanics; Obsidian did not have to create its own. For Alpha Protocol though, they created a game from the ground up. Apparently, this isn't something they're very good at.
The game's greatest strength is its RPG system. The conversation can be controlled with preset routes- you can choose to be agressive, passive, or assertive. This power of choice makes it feel as if you're controlling the direction of the game. The customization system is well thought-out as one would expect from Obsidian. The story is sub-par, I didn't feel as if it was engrossing in anyway.
The game felt familiar but the actual gameplay is where things go downhill. There is a cover to cover system but they made it more complicated than it should be- it uses the A button to "attach" to cover, but this same button is used for running. They could have smooth out this out by applying the same style as Gears of War, which lets players to run to cover. In Alpha Protocol, you can try running to cover but you would need to let go of the A button first when you get to the location, or else you'd just be running into it, as if the character is running nonstop into a wall. Once you load the game, you have a sense of what's to come- stiff animations and outdated graphics. The walking animation makes the protagonist look like a robot. It isn't any better when he crouches. The combat further drag the game down. On hard mode, the enemies are easily killed in melee combat. The gunfight encounters are very glitchy and the enemies' A.I.'s were so dumb that there wasn't any real challenge. In my playthrough, enemies shot the walls, glitched by not moving, and waited in a location to be picked off. Playing the first level left a bitter taste in my mouth that I was hoping would go away as I got deeper into the game. The game becomes more accessible every level, but sadly, that taste never left even after the game's end.
Visit game reviewing sites such as Gamespot, IGN, or Kotaku to see how they ranked the game. I normally do not agree with these sites when they give low ratings, but they got this game's rating dead on. This game is rent-worthy, Gamefly-worthy, borrow-from-friend-worthy, but do not shell out money for the retail cost.
I am pretty sad this game didn't turn out as I was hoping. It had so much potential under the experienced hands of Obsidian...
