Gaming consoles! Without them, what would we do? They provide you the chance to experience a true power trip by causing you to change into an all-powerful superhuman being.
Over the years, several video games have made an effort to convey that liberating feeling. However, just one has permitted you to dress as an elderly woman, enter a military base secretly, and roundhouse kick a soldier 50 feet across New York. Of course, your estimate was accurate. Today, we are going to speak about Prototype.
Although Prototype may not have been the longest-running series ever, it was able to amass a sizable enough fan base in such a short amount of time that it is still remembered almost ten years later and earned an HD remake for PS4, Xbox One, and PC. Will there ever be another Prototype game? is the query we are posing today, and the answer is one that practically everyone is familiar with.
Let us look at the adored franchise in more detail now without further ado.
Rise OF Prototype Franchise
Prototype was made by the now-defunct Canadian development studio Radical Entertainment, which was established in 1991. For the most part, when it came to licensed releases, Radical was the team to turn to. They were able to obtain the rights to create a Terminator game for the NES in their first year of business, proving their dedication to producing licensed games.
The Simpsons: Hit & Run is a small game that you have probably heard of even if you have not heard of Radical Entertainment. That game and its predecessor Road Rage, unquestionably Radical Entertainment’s most culturally significant creation, were produced.
Following the massive success of Hit & Run in 2003, Radical was bought by Vivendi Universal, where they worked on titles such as Scarface: The World Is Yours, Crash Tag Team Racing, and Crash of the Titans. They also collaborated on Hulk: Ultimate Destruction, which is the closest thing Radical has to Prototype in their back catalogue. Hulk: Ultimate Destruction was a sandbox game in which players took control of the un-Jolly Green Giant as he rampaged across New York City and occasionally some random desert locale. The wide world of Ultimate Destruction was an excellent basis for what Prototype would become, but it would end up looking more like a Venom/Carnage game than a game about a green man smashing stuff.
The game was ultimately launched in 2009. It was a financial success, selling over two million copies in less than a year before being made available digitally on the PS3 and Xbox 360.
The game is set in Manhattan and follows Alex Mercer, a strong amnesiac shapeshifter who must halt an outbreak of Blacklight, a sickness that turns people into horrible violent creatures. Alex’s search for the truth about his history brings him into battle with both the US military and a black ops team known as Blackwatch.
In addition to the plot, the game may be played as a sandbox-style video game, providing the player with complete freedom to traverse the metropolis. Alex possesses excellent physical power, and with a single punch, he can kill most humans. Alex’s primary talent is the ability to shapeshift, which allows him to transform into anybody. His capacity to “devour” others, completely consuming them, goes hand in hand with this capability. Alex may quickly regenerate health by absorbing the biomass of his foes through this procedure.
It also allows him to absorb the shapes of the human enemies he absorbs, allowing the player to maneuver about the adversary as if it is one of them. Without shapeshifting, he can perform a variety of physical strikes and more acrobatic manoeuvres, including air combinations, sliding over the ground utilizing any humanoid enemy’s body, and a high-speed rolling cannonball assault. Alex’s disguise only survives as long as he stays hidden.
Alex may also morph portions of his body into various martial tools acquired either as paid upgrades or as gifts during the game. The enormous and strong Blade arm, the rapid razor-sharp Claws (which can also erupt massive spikes from the ground), the telescoping Whipfist, Musclemass, and the sluggish but powerful Hammerfists are among his morphing abilities. The full body armor, which trades agility and speed for toughness in hand-to-hand combat, is a defensive choice that allows Alex to plough through most barriers while active. Alex’s left arm also has an enormous shield, which needs to regenerate after heavy damage.
There are also vision modes. Thermal vision, which helps Alex to see adversaries through smoke and other obstructions at the cost of a reduced vision range, and Infected vision, which emphasizes people infected with the Blacklight virus as well as military forces, are two vision modes available to Alex. Alex’s other senses, such as hearing, are silenced in both vision modes so that he can focus on his vision.
At any given moment, only one defensive and one offensive power may be active, and utilizing either would render Alex’s current disguise ineffective. Alex can steal weapons from slain or absorbed foes in addition to his own talents. Automatic rifles, machine guns, grenade launchers, and missile launchers are among them. He also has the ability to take control of military vehicles like tanks and helicopters.
The Devastators are Alex’s most potent attacks, and they need him to be in Critical Mass, which is either a condition of near-death or the polar opposite, with excess stored biomass and boosted health. The Tendril Barrage discharges impaling tendrils from Alex’s body in all directions, the Groundspike Graveyard erupts gigantic spikes from the earth all-around Alex, and the Critical Pain blasts a single beam of hardened biomass from his hands to severely harm a single victim.
It’s rather difficult to play Prototype without feeling that Mercer is an overpowering character at some point, but each time you get too comfortable, the game is going to throw you a curveball. The difficulty curve is nearly ideal, and the fact that you’re constantly adding new moves to your arsenal to battle new threats keeps the action from becoming monotonous. To offer concrete instances would be to give away the plot of the game, but it would suffice to say that when new adversaries and dangers are introduced, moves you’ve grown to rely on may not always be accessible or effective, and Manhattan becomes a more dangerous place as time goes.
Alex makes use of his enhanced physical ability to roam around the city. He automatically jumps over automobiles, barricades, and other obstacles while sprinting without losing velocity. Alex will also scale whatever wall he comes across and just knock any humanoids out of the way without hesitating.
He can jump tremendous lengths and heights, enough to clear five-story buildings, and can race at high speeds eternally. Alex can puncture the earth beneath him with even minor jumps, and his falls from significant heights cause shockwaves at the site of contact, killing most humans nearby and sending things as large as vehicles flying. Even from the most incredible heights, falls incur absolutely no damage to the player.
The Infected (people infected with the BLACKLIGHT virus) and the military are the game’s enemies. The Stricken are average citizens infected with the virus who pose no threat to Alex. The Hunters, massive creatures produced from Infected water towers, are one of the game’s key foes. Leaders are Evolved Hunters, one of the most powerful monsters in the game, and are extremely difficult for Alex to defeat.
The military comprises ordinary troops who are seldom a threat to Alex but are capable of controlling weapons that are exceedingly harmful to him, such as tanks and heavily armed helicopters. BLACKWATCH, an entity committed to countering biological and nuclear warfare, is also part of the military.
BLACKWATCH is an integral component of the game’s plot, and they manufacture some of the most lethal biological weaponry to oppose Alex, such as viral detectors capable of finding him even in disguise and, later in the game, the deadly toxin Bloodtox, capable of slowly killing Alex and the Infected. Extraordinarily armored and durable warriors known as Super Soldiers are introduced at a later stage in the game, who are capable of battling Alex and some of the toughest Infected.
Alex can slip into Military Bases while disguised and silently consuming various authorities within the facility to get more sophisticated upgrades. He may also send out an alarm within the base, making the only way out by murdering whoever is inside. Alex can also obtain Infected enhancements by gathering genetic data. Infected hives, like military bases, are scattered around the metropolis, continually producing genetic data. Alex may either destroy the Infected Hives or just absorb the info as it is generated on the outside.
Only tiny groups of the Infected and Military are present in the city at the start of the game. However, the military and the Infected grow in size as the game advances. The city’s territory is divided into three main zones. Blue Zones are under military control and are primarily infection-free.
Red Zones prosper due to the Infection, yet there is still a substantial military presence. A Blue Zone and a Red Zone may intersect in some city regions, forming a new and unique Purple Zone. The Military and the Infected are constantly fighting for dominance in these Zones. The player’s actions in these Zones determine which faction seizes the region.
Here’s a piece of trivia for you guys… The prototype was launched two weeks after Sucker Punch Productions’ Infamous, a game with many comparable elements, such as a superpowered character and a big open world area that can be explored by climbing up buildings and gliding about the city. As a result, several game journalists compared and contrasted the games.
After the first game’s success, the developers didn’t take much time to release Prototype 2, which came out in 2014. It follows Sgt. James Heller, on his mission to defeat Alex Mercer after losing everything and everyone he loved to the Blacklight virus. The events of Prototype 2 take place in New York City, now known as New York Zero (NYZ).
Prototype 2 takes you to a consequence-free universe where you may cheerfully chop troops and destroy helicopters to your heart’s delight, thanks to simplified controls, zero difficulties, and a slew of impressive-looking assaults. Prototype 2’s greatest strength and drawback is its constant accessibility. With nary an actual obstacle in sight, you dash from one fun event to the next, giggling at the hilarious silliness of it all.
However, there is little sense of success without any obstacles to conquer. Prototype 2 isn’t really original, but it’s so absurd that it’s difficult to wipe that naughty grin from your face. As you discover more about the conspiracy, the first exhilaration you have when the primary narrative comes into focus fades. Evil clichés pervade the array of characters, but even if there’s a good reason to kill them all, you never feel like you know who you’re after. Some of these characters come to life in scenes of redemption at the end of the novel, but by then, you won’t care what happens to the baddies.
Character development is limited, yet the plot is engaging. When you swallow some people, most of the filthy details appear, and flashes of recollection fit together a horrifying jigsaw about the inner machinations of power-obsessed heretics who seldom question their horrible deeds.
Before each mission, dialogue-heavy scenes explain your goals. Most of these chats are peppered with profanity and uncontrolled rage, and the obscene cutscenes cause the freewheeling action to take a back seat far too often. Furthermore, when a contact speaks to him, protagonist James Heller places his palm to his ear and walks gently about, contrasting his normal locomotion of crazy dashing and leaping.
Prototype 2 takes place in an open-world setting where you may run wherever you choose to without being constrained by artificial walls. You don’t need any encouragement to dash across this ruined metropolis from the minute you’re let loose. Movement is liberating and energizing. Running up the walls of buildings, jumping down blocks in a single leap, and gliding like a crazy flying squirrel provide faster transportation than a fatigued vehicle. The unashamed thrill of careening around this virus-infested town is challenging to resist.
When accuracy is required, things get a bit complicated, but happily, you rarely have to move with exactitude. Instead, you gallop till you need the wonderful satiation of your bloodthirst, and in an instant, you’re beating a poor sap so horribly his parents wouldn’t recognize him. The combination of mobility and conflict results in moments of unrepentant violence. You could see a fear-mongering soldier down below while floating over busy streets.
Lock on to him from your secure vantage point in the skies, then grasp his flailing body with a push of a button before he has a chance to cry for aid. You can pound him into the harsh cement, fling him into his fellow troops, or infect him with a viral bomb that causes him to burst into a fountain of blood, then escape the scene as if you have never been there.
In Prototype 2, there’s a perverse pleasure in ruthlessly slaughtering your adversaries. You have such a tremendous arsenal that you may quickly induce agonizing suffering. Although this brutality provides most of the thrill, your opponents are such pushovers that you rarely feel the pleasure of a hard-fought triumph. In many aspects, Prototype 2 embodies the design philosophy often associated with real-time events (despite the that the control approach is rarely used).
In other games, numerous QTEs make you feel like a badass without any effort, and that sensation of limitless power is the essence of Prototype 2. Your powerful opponents collapse after just grazing your tough skin, so you rip them to shreds without fear of death. These are minor issues in a game brimming with simple joys. Perhaps the finest of these joyous bursts come from your escape from the military.
When you inflict too much damage, troops become aware of your existence and chase you down with zeal. They quickly call off their pursuit if you leave their line of sight and shapeshift into someone you have previously eaten. In principle, this is a good answer, but it’s so gloriously irrational that it simply adds to the game’s absurd pleasure.
Prototype 2 is a safe follow-up. It doesn’t bring anything especially novel or imaginative to the genre, but minor changes make it more approachable than the original. Most significantly, it’s an unreservedly enjoyable experience that knows exactly what it wants to be. This is a game about murdering foes in an open-world setting, and there isn’t much to get in the way of your fun. In Prototype 2, mindless violence is all the rage, making for a dumb yet fun experience.
Fall Of The Prototype Franchise
Despite being one of the year’s most successful titles, Activision considers Prototype 2 a failure. Yes, despite being the most popular game in its first month, Activision claimed in a press statement to IGN, “Although we made a substantial investment in the Prototype IP, it did not find a broad commercial audience.”
The real reason Prototype 2 failed in April 2012 is that almost all games failed at the time. In the same month, NPD released data on game sales and industry finances, revealing that game sales had decreased 42 percent yearly. According to NPD analyst Anita Frazier, the cause for the reduction might have been due to a reduced release schedule.
Activision citing the perceived lack of success for Prototype 2 and closing down Radical as a result appears to be a hasty decision that ignores the context of when the game was released. Is it fair to criticize Prototype 2 if it was the most successful game at a period when the whole industry underperformed? It appears that Activision was seeking a reason to kill off Radical and move on, a recurring trend in Activision’s treatment of their studios.
Future Of Prototype Franchise: Will We See Another Game?
Despite deteriorating like milk that has been sitting in your living room window for six years, the original Prototype had a warm spot in every gamer’s heart owing to the magnitude of havoc you could produce. As a teenager, Ash found it amusing to assume the identities of random citizens to knock the snot out of monsters or to use the “patsy” maneuver to designate troops as monsters to turn others against them.
With remasters and remakes for the likes of Crash, Spyro, Call of Duty, and the upcoming Diablo 2, Activision Blizzard has proven that they’re willing to raid their back catalogs in search of the next big hit. Still, the fact remains that Activision never really put much stock or faith in the Prototype brand. They’ve already slain it and its devs as a sacrifice to the Call of Duty gods, so they’re not going back. Not suitable for Prototype.
However, no one says Activision must be the first to release a new game. If anybody were to accomplish it, it would most likely be THQ Nordic, which has acquired all of the world’s gaming properties and produced ports, remasters, and even full-fledged remakes. They did it for Destroy All Humans and TimeSplitters and potentially could do it for Prototype. They presently control the IP rights, but what’s to stop some ambitious publisher from making an offer to Activision for the new game?
Given the scarcity of superhero games on Xbox systems, now is a perfect moment for Prototype to return. And becoming a villain with virus-based powers and fighting in a contemporary setting is every teenager’s most fantastic fantasy from the 1990s.
We do not yet know if Microsoft has any ambitions for the franchise. So, we don’t know if a new Prototype game will be released in the future. However, we are hopeful that the corporation will release Prototype 3 in the future years.
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