An Alpha Protocol Designer Speaks Out

It's great to hear from inside the company about how a game went wrong, in this case, it was bad management, and misdirection, not the lack of talent that was holding them back.
I would love to get some inside scoop on the developers of Jericho though, lol^^

I'm so torn over Alpha Protocol. I want to play it but if I do it means I have to throw down $60 for it and that's a lot of money for what could be a shitty game. Of course this could be another Nier, sure the game has problems but the gameplay is good enough and the characters and story are awesome.

I think I'll probably end up getting it because I loved KOTOR 2 and just deal with it. If nothing else at least some mods should come out on the PC version to make it fun.

I'm honestly excited for the game because I heard about the dialouge system and it sounds exactly like indigo prophecy.

Ok in context the game sounded like a dream game for me. However, I got increasingly worried each time new footage came out, as you could see things like: hand to hand combat isn't good; shooting is off; and character models weren't great. The only thing that seems to be good about the game is the story and the choices, so I will wait until this is cheap.

But this basically comes down to poor management and publishers not allowing developers to do their jobs correctly. Oh and as joystiq said on a podcast, they probably found out they had Fallout and thought screw AP, we have got something better, humorous speculation but some links of truth could be present. They just better not end up causing ruptures and problems for Obsidians' upcoming games, because if they screw up Fallout I don't know how I would ever look forward to any of their products again.

if i wasn't afraid enough for new vegas.....

I'm glad he says that future Obsidian games are looking better, but wouldn't having a producer/owner like Chris Parker hurt any game that he works on in the future also. I'm worried about their future as a company and don't want them to go under, since they always seem to be working on something that I am interested in. Even if it is usually just sequels.

Gah, reading these things makes me really sad, the ideas/premise for such a game seemed very admirable to me and something that really clicked with me. As of now Alpha Protocol is a really tough game for me to judge, I've purchased it and TBH technically its a mess/all over the place.

Although so far, the one point I was looking forward to the most going into Alpha Protocol and reading interviews with Chris Avellone seems to be holding/shaping up very well. The writing, story, as well as having a dynamic plot which so far seems heavily influenced on player interactions. This also being helped by the fact that I have felt that the whole "Secret agent spy dude" I feel hadn't really been done right in other games, but this is coming off as much more organic and authentic than you get out of most espionage-esque games.

times like this i wish i had a gamefly account so i could try it out, and buy it if i liked it enough. i'm willing to give any game a chance but i have to say, it's not looking too good as all the reviews i'm reading seem to be confirming my large list of doubts.

never winter nights 2 and KOTOR 2 had issues with polish and bugs, but had plenty of great things to win people over. alpha protol doesn't seem to be doing it.

Oh wow. This really dampens any desire I had to play this game.

we got it a couple of days earlier in Britain so I have been playing it today, so far the dialogue choice thing has been a bit naff. I'am not getting the feeling of tension like a lot of the reviewers have been talking about but maybe it will get more interesting. I do like how you choose the tone of what he says, unlike in Mass Effect where you could think a dialogue maybe a joke but you end up sounding like a dick.

as far as combat I'am a stealthy hand to hand combat guy and it's not that bad. i haven't had any buggy AI but I am still fairly early on in it.

Was on the fence about it this, but I have a feeling the price is gonna drop faster than Dark Void. I wanna try it but I just can't justify paying full price for it when guaranteed AAA titles like Alan Wake, Red Dead and Mario Galaxy just released.

Having played this game for about 5 hours now, i can definitly say that Alpha Protocol is not without its flaws. But damn if this isn't a cool game!
The problems are for the most part easy to look past, cause it's mostly technical/graphical issues. So when you look past that stuff, you'll see that AP really has a lot going for it. Intriguing story, great customization/RPG elements, freedom to tackle the mission as you like ect.

To make this short, i would call AP the game that Splinter Cell: Conviction should have been (fun fact, AP also has a mark & execute system (and takedowns for that matter), just a way more satisfing one) + some Mass Effect (similiar dialouge system, (better) mini games for hacking/lock-picking ect.). (Btw, ME also had some serious technical/graphical issues, but that didn't keep it from getting great reviews).

If you read this Brad, please don't give a f*ck about what most of the reviewers say (srsly, gametrailers said in their review that the pistol is useless, which is completely false. Use pistol with silencer or you are playing it wrong (it's a espionage/stealth game, not a shooter ffs)). Give this game a chance, it deserves it. You of all people should know to apprieciate a game for its gameplay instead of presentation/polish/graphics or whatever that thin layer i called (*cough*FFXIII*cough*).

(Long time listener/viewer, first time post. Felt obligated to stand by this game)

lol I don't get this at all, I have played the game and I think it is great. Can't wait to buy it on Tuesday.

If you are on the fence, watch me play some this week. I'm still very excited about it and will be getting it in via Gamefly.

I have to say that I agree with Sebqbe. I have played Alpha Protocol for a good 10 hours or so. Tend to always try and stealth round using takedowns, evading or if need be silently shooting people with a pistol critical shot.

I think the comment about splinter cell is relatively valid. When played with the stealth approach Alpha Protocol tends to work better and behave like a more conventional stealth game. Watching enemy patrols and with practice learning to bypass them all either by removing key guards or simply moving through.

The dialogue system can feel a bit vague at times with the cues just falling into set archetypes so you may sometimes say things you don't entirely intend to. But I do find the storyline rather interesting. Also it does feel like conversations deviate more based on your actions.

I made one unwitting mistake in a conversation and spent the next 5 minutes or so debating it with the person and he did seem to bring it up a few times even when back on topic.

The game is certainly flawed, it has issues. My main ones at present are a certain boss encounter and some of the levels that seem to not checkpoint for some time.

The AI can be a bit silly sometimes in combat, but when it comes to stealth although they seem to have a pretty bad case of tunnel vision it isn't too bad. Also the alarm won't sound unless you trip it or someone calls something in. Also enemies in the vacinity can be alerted by gunfire and come running. I have yet to fail a stealth encounter in a way that I felt was not my fault. The stealth is rather conventional and seems to be what this game was built for.

I am pleasantly surprised by Alpha Protocol and I feel it is a shame that so many people dismiss it over things like the crouch move animation which is probably more of a practical, sustainable crouch move than most other games have.

However, it doesnt change the fact, that they made a shitty game. Why even try - to hype the people, when they apparently knew that it was shit from the beginning.

Great article, was an interesting read especially the quote form the developer. Was looking really forward to the game and all the reviews and comments on it have made me fear actually picking up the game. I'll probably pick it up later on when the price drops just because of the unique concept behind it.

Great. Now my summer is ruined. And hearing once more about that cancelled Aliens RPG is poking at a wound that was almost healed. The premise of the game looks awesome, from the videos I´ve been watching over the last month the gameplay looks engaging. But, the faults pointed out in that review are things that I can´t tolerate in my games. Same thing happened with Prototype, I was super pumped about it but once reviews started coming out everyone kept pointing out the same problems, and those were problems that infuriate me in games.
That thing about the game being boring and not warranting subsequent playthroughs does it for me.
It´s a rental now.

I already beat the game once and found it incredibly engaging; I barely feel asleep between nights of playing it. Its RP elements are the game's biggest grace. It's not so much about the combat in this game, but the increasing layers upon layers of interactivity that a friend of mine who played and finished the game nearly at the same time I did had a discussion about it.

Our endings were so different, I swear there were at least 3 times in particular where we both said "No no. You're fucking wrong. THIS is how it went." And so on so forth.

The stance system is kind of hard to get used to, it's even less descriptive than Mass Effect and each character is so complex you can never really tell what it is they're thinking and that makes me happy, because you have to be VERY scrupulous when it comes to defining a different person.

The RPG elements are certainly there, including dice roll-type fire fights where you control the reticle, third-person action style, but your skill in the weapon and how much of a punch it does depends on its accuracy and damage which you need to put points into.

The skills are certainly different than most would expect, besides the obligatory 'Bullet-Time-Pistol-Ownage.' Investing points in what used to be a timed active ability becomes a continuous passive ability.

I'm not forcing anyone to jump on the wagon, but it certainly is nice up on it.