Arkane PREY - Arkane's immersive coffee cup transformation sim - now with Mooncrash roguelike mode DLC

[rusty_shackleford]

(Prey had more developers working on it than Skyrim fyi)

 

[Bad Sector]

The root of the problem isn't that Prey got 4/10 or that the reviewer mentioned the gamebreaking bug, the root of the problem is people trying to compress an entire article to a single number - one game might lose 3 points for its graphics from one reviewer because of its graphics, 3 points from another reviewer because of its writing and 3 points from another reviewer for its gameplay, yet all ending up with a 7/10 - how the fuck is this number useful to someone without actually reading the review itself?

Read the damn review (that should absolutely have pointed out the bug and the game's buggy state in general) and stop attaching and giving values to ass-pulled numbers next to them.

 

[<3sRichardSimmons]

Why on Earth would I read a review from IGN?

 

[Ismaul]

(Prey had more developers working on it than Skyrim fyi)

Didn't know that. But looking at the list, it's mostly because they outsourced a bunch of stuff, so the whole of the outsourcing studios have their credits included, seems like. In terms of the in-house studio, it seems similar. And obviously so does the corporate and distribution credits.

Anyways, Skyrim is just a new version of a known formula done by vets that know it inside and out, while Prey is built from scratch and much more creative, so of course bugs will happen and be more abundant given similar dev times.

 

[Dexter]

itt:

 

[Nano]

They updated the review within days, yet you guys can't get that cock out of your mouth 4 years later.

Why would I? Have you seen Raf?

 

[LarryTyphoid]

I'd play this game but I don't touch games with lesbians in them, unless it's an RPG like Fallout or something. I might've enjoyed this 6 years ago. I did play Dishonored 2 and that did have lesbians but I missed them my first playthrough and I pirated it anyway, wasn't worth it cause that game was shit besides. I could power through it but I don't think it's worth it for a Bethesda-sponsored SS2 clone. Also the YouTube video essay fags looooove this game and that's a strike in my book.

Someone's gonna give me a rating for this but I don't care, I dislike dykes too much. I might have something worthwhile about the game to say after somehow powering through these 150+ pages of Arkane Studios apologetics.

 

[Zombra]

Culture wars are very important to me. And I have nothing else to say on any subject.

Try talking about video games next time you post in a thread about video games.

 

[markec]

Culture wars are very important to me. And I have nothing else to say on any subject.

Try talking about video games next time you post in a thread about video games.

It would be easy not to talk about politics in games if SJWs didn't try to cram as much as possible of their political views in them.

If you go to a thread about game like Blood you will notice nobody is talking about culture war.

 

[LarryTyphoid]

Culture wars are very important to me. And I have nothing else to say on any subject.

Try talking about video games next time you post in a thread about video games.

Never said anything about "culture wars", my friend. I'm just a good old fashioned homophobe.

But, you know, you're right. This is an Arkane Studios game, and so my expectations for story, music, voice acting, sound design, visuals, and everything else not related to the pure mechanical gameplay is bottom of the barrel from the start. To play an Arkane game you have to have absolutely no standards, and sitting through Gone Home in Space is just what you have to expect. I'll start up a torrent and see if this video game's """gameplay""" is even half as good as games made over 20 years ago, which I doubt.

 

[NoSoup4you]

...What was SJW about Prey again?

 

[Zombra]

...What was SJW about Prey again?

It's "crammed with as much SJW agenda as possible". There is a woman in it.

 

[Zboj Lamignat]

...What was SJW about Prey again?

Well, I guess replacing audiolog arcs like Diego's struggle or first midwife creation from SS2 with lesbian office romance was not exactly dictated by artistic vision of sf horror.

 

[Ash]

^Was definitely SJW stuff. Game writers that use their work as a medium to make basic sociopolitical statements or push an agenda that does not need pushing are basic-minded themselves. Look, I don't give a fuck that you're into the same sex, just don't shove it in my face you sad fuck. I don't tell you what sick shit I'm into and I expect the same in return.

The content was clearly by someone obsessed with the notion of pushing same-sex romance in the game, but not actually making it engaging content. If they even had the ability to in the first place is probably unlikely.
That whole arc was uninteresting as shit. Most of the writing in Prey was uninteresting as shit. While the gameplay was decline at least surprisingly it wasn't that bad by comparison.

Arkane's problem here is it keeps specifically hiring romance novelists and SJWs from twitter. I suspect Harvey Smith is a major simp. Still made Deus Ex so I will always have some level of respect for him nonetheless, despite him being a sellout and a simp. Perhaps Raf too is guilty by association.

Same sex relationships are a part of life for many and have their place...but I don't think that place is a game like Prey, and I also think it is very much over-represented these days and typically shallow in execution (shoe-horned in for social credit or just on principle to push an agenda). Even if it were a straight relationship given this much focus I'd think it were lame. Sci-Fi horrors and Immersive Sims do not typically have romances and it is not what I am looking for when purchasing them. The closest I can think of to any romance in the classics of these genres is the sex scene in The Terminator, which is 2 minutes of sex montage and arguably a perfect fit to the events and progression of the movie.

But, you know, you're right. This is an Arkane Studios game, and so my expectations for story, music, voice acting, sound design, visuals, and everything else not related to the pure mechanical gameplay is bottom of the barrel from the start. To play an Arkane game you have to have absolutely no standards, and sitting through Gone Home in Space is just what you have to expect. I'll start up a torrent and see if this video game's """gameplay""" is even half as good as games made over 20 years ago, which I doubt.

You sound like a man of standards. I respect that, becoming rare even on the codex. Half as good (or more)? I'd say so. But as good or better? No. It is perhaps worth playing though, if you either cannot find anything else better to play (why?) or are into this style of game.

 

[Multidirectional]

On my first playthrough I didn't even notice the dyke stuff because, even though I was playing audiologs I found, most the time I never actually listened to them. Too busy killing monsters and looting all the junk. Writing actually needs to be fun in a game for me to bother listening to voice recordings or reading emails. And by the time I got to those particular audiologs I was past caring about the story related stuff. I only found out there's lesbo subplot in the game when I saw people complaining about it here.

 

[Ash]

What is this "fun"? What is this "entertainment industry"? I have a basic as fuck sociopolitical agenda to push.

 

[<3sRichardSimmons]

Yeah, sorry Codex, but the presence of SJW characters (or as far as I can remember in Prey’s case: gay, pluralistically liberal characters) does not equate to an SJW agenda.
The reason that Mizhena was (rightfully) derided was that there was no way in the writing for the player to interact with her without saluting her brave transformation and apologizing for their own ignorance. It was shit writing that denied the player any actual agency.

Prey on the other hand lets you do some pretty fucked up shit to all of its human characters; it doesn’t hide anyone behind virtue-signaling armor.

 

[Ash]

The game in its entirety does not have a SJW agenda, no, yet there is clearly a writer or two or three at Arkane that do and that is clearly communicated in parts of the game.

Whoever said it was "crammed with as much SJW agenda as possible" is either lying or has not experienced worse.

 

[Zombra]

Never said anything about "culture wars", my friend. I'm just a good old fashioned homophobe.

And SJWs don't call themselves SJWs. But that's what you are, the opposite number of an SJW - a CWW if you will. You have nothing to say except how scared you are of the existence of those different from yourself. I'm glad you're honest about that, but the fact remains that if you have nothing else to say, you should take your whining to an appropriate thread. This has nothing whatsoever to do with Prey.

 

[<3sRichardSimmons]

The game in its entirety does not have a SJW agenda, no, yet there is clearly a writer or two or three at Arkane that do and that is clearly communicated in parts of the game.

Whoever said it was "crammed with as much SJW agenda as possible" is either lying or has not experienced worse.

If you're referring to the Sho/Foy relationship, then I believe that was written by Avellone.

But then again he also wrote Luka so, uh... yeah. Not seeing enough of a through-line there to buy into the idea that he was pushing an agenda.

 

[SharkClub]

Joined: Sep 16, 2021

 

[LarryTyphoid]

If you're referring to the Sho/Foy relationship, then I believe that was written by Avellone.

I've yet to fully play Planescape Torment, MCA's alleged magnum opus, and so I only have New Vegas and KOTOR 2 as reference for his writing (and Fallout 2 but that game's voice feels so different from the others that I find it hard to compare).

In New Vegas, I find half of the companions to be annoying (Cass, Arcade, and Veronica to a somewhat lesser extent mainly due to her voice actress (and no I don't find Arcade annoying just cause he gay)), the NCR is comprised almost entirely of cringe dialogue ("Since you haven't pissed yourself I'll assume you don't know who we are - next time I'll bring my sickle and black cloak" ), Caesar is petulant and pretentious, and generally a lot of characters are unlikeable. The Bethesda brand 5 voice actors they grabbed off the street don't help at all. I think people look more fondly on New Vegas's writing because you can ignore the shit you don't like and stick with the cool dudes, IE Mr. House.

Never finished KOTOR 2 but from what I played I just thought Kreia was annoying and retarded. Moral greyness != good writing, especially in a goody two shoes setting like Star Wars. I don't know the Codex consensus on KOTOR 2 but it's Bioware RTwP dogshit with romance so I doubt many people will clash with me on this.

Overall, looks like MCA's lost his touch. I've yet to play an RPG with better dialogue than FO2, and, as I said, it feels completely different from his other games.

Joined: Sep 16, 2021

That's right, I'm the newest of newfags, which means I'm still content with playing the older, better shit so I don't have to desperately suck up Arkane's backwash like the rest of you retards. Maybe in another 20 years I'll be as sad as you. In the meantime, I'm enjoying my youth!

You sound like a man of standards. I respect that, becoming rare even on the codex. Half as good (or more)? I'd say so. But as good or better? No. It is perhaps worth playing though, if you either cannot find anything else better to play (why?) or are into this style of game.

If you say it's maybe worth playing, then I'll go ahead. After all, it was free!

 

[Zboj Lamignat]

Yeah, sorry Codex, but the presence of SJW characters (or as far as I can remember in Prey’s case: gay, pluralistically liberal characters) does not equate to an SJW agenda.

I don't know what sort of non-point are you trying to make here, but I'm fairly sure stuff like that doesn't happen organically in the given context, thus equating "agenda". Of course you're free to believe that people working on the game genuinely thought it fits Prey and devoting time, space and effort to it is better than spending it on adding something, I don't know, creepy or interesting.

On my first playthrough I didn't even notice the dyke stuff because, even though I was playing audiologs I found, most the time I never actually listened to them. Too busy killing monsters and looting all the junk. Writing actually needs to be fun in a game for me to bother listening to voice recordings or reading emails. And by the time I got to those particular audiologs I was past caring about the story related stuff. I only found out there's lesbo subplot in the game when I saw people complaining about it here.

That's a part of the bigger problem - all the things that made such a big impression in SS2 (audiologs, ambience, enemy chatter, enemy design and so on) is dull and pretty much shit tier in Prey. Definitely the biggest ball dropped by the game, right next to giving player the best weapon, ability to craft ammo for it and the ability to craft level up currency pretty much in the starting area.

 

[Tacgnol]

I think Prey has some virtue signalling, but I've always considered that to be lesser to "pushing an agenda".

To me agendas are things like the asexual NPC in Outer Worlds who drops their life story on you and then gives you no opportunity to be critical of their life style.

Prey was merely a little hamfisted or "in your face" about the NPC relationships, which is more an issue of bad writing than overt agenda pushing.

Either way, I didn't really care as I enjoyed the core game, so a little hamfisted writing wasn't that big a deal.

 

[NoSoup4you]

I don't even remember the lesbian logs, and I played the game like two years ago. Maybe I missed them somehow, or it's just .01% of the dialogue being blown up to actual-issue proportions. Loved the game too, I think I called it "90% of a System Shock" or something at the time.