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Woop just finished my second playthrough. First time was a Bourne-esque run with minimal casualties, second time through Thorton don't give no f's and killed everyone at every opportunity. Survivors: SIE (which now I get is the "zee" everyone is talking about), Marburgh, Madison St. James, Mina (I "rescued" her at the end with a -10 rep and boy was she mad, no option to execute though). This really is a game that deserves to be owned and played. Even though it has downright Capcom levels of PC optimization, it's pretty clear the designers went above and beyond the call of duty, so I rank AP pretty high. First run was a mix of stealth and pistols, and it was fun to sneak. Second run was 100% pistols, 100% health. Chain shot is comically overpowered and with the extra health I could step out, tank the damage for a moment to get everyone in line of signt, then chain shot and kill them all. I think I'm done playing for awhile but wouldn't mind a full explanation including spoilers of the plot, which I assume I can get from the game's wikia. I did notice, as Thorton sailed away by himself at the end with a bizarre stilted personal monologue, that Leland's boat had an "Omega" symbol on it- oh that there could have been a sequel  E: Wait, all the Grey Box characters survived run #2 as well. I don't think I had any interaction with Darcy or Westridge after the intro and I believe Parker escaped. Oh here it is: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3385132 VVVVVV Oh yeah I forgot thanks to 2 rounds of chain shot making it completely forgettable 
Factor Mystic fucked around with this message at 03:15 on Sep 9, 2011 |
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Sep 9, 2011 03:04
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You never encountered Darcy again? He's a boss very close to the end of the game. Remember the dude in the tower who kept throwing grenades?
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Sep 9, 2011 03:11
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Factor Mystic posted:E2: No AP LP? I'd like to see someone play who really knew what they were doing. CirclMaster is currently doing an audience participation CYOA LP. http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3385132 EDIT: Beaten, so I'll elaborate on the rest of your post. Factor Mystic posted:E: Wait, all the Grey Box characters survived run #2 as well. I don't think I had any interaction with Darcy or Westridge after the intro and I believe Parker escaped. Westridge will be the final boss if you take Leland's deal, agree to betray the US when you meet up with Shaheed, or kill US Marines/CIA agents. I'm pretty sure Parker only escapes if you convince him that his plan is flawed (so you have to protect him rather than kill him during what would normally be his boss fight), otherwise you have to kill him (or get Marburg to do it for you). Lynx fucked around with this message at 03:22 on Sep 9, 2011 |
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Sep 9, 2011 03:15
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Dick Trauma posted:That gelato shop sequence had me laughing. It seemed like every single stage of conversation has the option to EXECUTE! This is such a prime example of why it's a great game though. I was so friggin tense having a brief conversation in a gelato shop, and I wasn't sure what the "right" answer was either. Didn't execute. Didn't eat the cone either because GROSS.
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Sep 10, 2011 21:29
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Scarlet: Are you going to be alright? Mike: I have nooo idea. I really like the dialogue in this game. 
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Sep 11, 2011 21:00
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Mike: "Expose what? Your overuse of quotation marks?" Mr Thorton is pretty funny at times, especially when being a dick to Steven Heck. Mike: "Are you clinically unable to get to the point?"
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Sep 11, 2011 21:11
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Haha, I love that on my third playthrough, the order of how I do things is still giving me new random dialogue from NPC enemies. Infiltrating the hotel in Taipei after having Marburg blow up the museum and some of the guards are talking about how it's a tragedy and then one asks the other if he's crying. The crying guard admits it's because of all the lost art and the other guy is incredulous
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Sep 13, 2011 07:09
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Mike_V posted:Haha, I love that on my third playthrough, the order of how I do things is still giving me new random dialogue from NPC enemies. I didn't know that! Don't try to make me start another playthrough damnit.
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Sep 13, 2011 07:30
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Mike_V posted:Haha, I love that on my third playthrough, the order of how I do things is still giving me new random dialogue from NPC enemies. TFG.count++;
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Sep 13, 2011 08:47
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So I was wondering what everyone thought about this situation in Rome, I'll spoiler it just in case: Namely, the Madison character. I'm replaying the game at the moment and I just completed the Rome section, saving the bombs. One thing I genuinely enjoy about Madison is that she's like the only character in the game who doesn't have an agenda, and I found the talk in the bedroom between her and Mike to be genuinely sweet. I also think it gives some great context to Mike's character and how the spy life is a bit of a bitch. On the other hand, I think there really should've been more reactivity in terms of liking/disliking her (I know, the game is reactive as hell but still...) Like, if Mike really ended up hating her, you wouldn't get the same scene towards the end of Rome (where Mike sits and contemplates his actions alone in the apartment). I mean, I get that Mike cares about her as a civilian casualty in general but it feels like the game pushes the relationship too much. It works if your character really likes Madison, but it doesn't work so well if you don't really give a poo poo.
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Sep 13, 2011 10:05
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That character went through a lot of different builds during development. IIRC, the writer was never particularly happy with the way things turned out in the end.
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Sep 13, 2011 11:19
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Comte was responsible for all that and I'm sure he'd have a harsher assessment.
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Sep 13, 2011 11:35
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I wanted Madison cut- but I basically wanted everything cut. In the let's play thread we're going through Rome right now and I'm breaking things down level by level about how it was developed. Might be interesting to some.
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Sep 13, 2011 19:01
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drat, how many goons had a hand in making this game? And let me just say Deus Ex was kinda disappointing for me; the entire time I kept feeling that Alpha Protocol was just more fun.
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Sep 13, 2011 19:05
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Comte de Saint-Germain posted:I wanted Madison cut- but I basically wanted everything cut. Great, now I have to follow another LP. Thanks a lot!
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Sep 13, 2011 19:09
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pnumoman posted:drat, how many goons had a hand in making this game? And let me just say Deus Ex was kinda disappointing for me; the entire time I kept feeling that Alpha Protocol was just more fun. It felt like playing nothing but Saudi Arabia over and over. Big levels that I just want to end, an overarching sense of "okay get through this and then we get to the cool part," etc., only without any "cool part" as payoff. There's a lot of things AP could have done better but I played through it five times. I'm probably not going to replay DXHR at all.
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Sep 13, 2011 19:13
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pnumoman posted:drat, how many goons had a hand in making this game? And let me just say Deus Ex was kinda disappointing for me; the entire time I kept feeling that Alpha Protocol was just more fun. I'm actually the only one who was on the team. Rope kid did some internal consulting on the melee combat. I think GWG was also employed as QA the company when AP started production but I don't *think* he was involved. djkillingspree was also employed at the time but he was working on the NWN2 expansions and then Dungeon Siege 3. EDIT: I'm not going to argue with you guys about HR, I'm honored that you like AP more. But HR is better at basically everything. Story reactivity is the only thing AP has over HR.
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Sep 13, 2011 19:13
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Just picked this up because of this thread and holy poo poo this game is amazing. Finally I can play a game where I can be an rear end in a top hat and still spare people/listen to their side of the story/say nice things when its appropriate. It seems every other game ruins being assertive by also making you into an insane impulsive murderer. I'm already on my 2nd playthrough and the stuff I didn't know about Scarlet and Parker are blowing my mind
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Sep 13, 2011 23:49
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Yeah, I was mostly on NWN2, but I was hands-on with alpha Alpha Protocol (  ) a few times with... I believe his name was Abid? Amin? and gave what feedback I could. I still kind of miss the initial "daydream" tutorial that was pitched, but I understand the Medbay intro ties in much more succinctly and even provides a great sense of coming full circle when you do the last level....Still woulda been cool to see the White House, though.
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Sep 14, 2011 00:17
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GetWellGamers posted:Yeah, I was mostly on NWN2, but I was hands-on with alpha Alpha Protocol ( Abia
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Sep 14, 2011 00:40
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Comte de Saint-Germain posted:
That is "only" the principal reason we love the game, and it "has that over" almost every game released in the past decade. AP's story reactivity is a fantastic accomplishment that does not deserve to be minimized. I get your criticisms on most of the other points, but please do let us gush just a tad: this game is amazing.
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Sep 14, 2011 01:04
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Comte de Saint-Germain posted:EDIT: I'm not going to argue with you guys about HR, I'm honored that you like AP more. But HR is better at basically everything. Story reactivity is the only thing AP has over HR. I love HR and wouldn't disagree with you regarding stuff like the combat and general polish, but in fairness, that's a pretty huge "only". The only other game I've played that's this reactive to player agency is Heavy Rain, and that's more of a glorified QTE with some major plot holes.
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Sep 14, 2011 01:14
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Yeah. The story branches and plot in general were what kept me coming back. HR did stealth and cover shooting better but not so great I wouldn't rather play Mass Effect 2 or MGS.
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Sep 14, 2011 01:24
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Doc Hawkins posted:That is "only" the principal reason we love the game, and it "has that over" almost every game released in the past decade. AP's story reactivity is a fantastic accomplishment that does not deserve to be minimized. You've been gushing "just a tad" for months. AP is a pretty good game, but its psycho fanbase is a turnoff for a lot of people who haven't touched it (which is, let's be honest, a lot of people).
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Sep 14, 2011 01:37
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Oxxidation posted:You've been gushing "just a tad" for months. AP is a pretty good game, but its psycho fanbase is a turnoff for a lot of people who haven't touched it (which is, let's be honest, a lot of people). So? They weren't going to touch it anyway, and it's not like it just came out.
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Sep 14, 2011 01:40
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You heard the man, we can't like the game anymore. Lets just go home guys.
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Sep 14, 2011 01:47
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Oxxidation posted:You've been gushing "just a tad" for months. AP is a pretty good game, but its psycho fanbase is a turnoff for a lot of people who haven't touched it (which is, let's be honest, a lot of people). Hasn't stopped Mass Effect! :iamafag:
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Sep 14, 2011 01:48
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Crappy Jack posted:So? They weren't going to touch it anyway, and it's not like it just came out. Considering that you're the worst offender by a wide margin, your defense isn't really the most convincing in this case. I've personally known people who have been turned off the game permanently by the slavering, insane amount of venom directed at them when they ran into difficulties or glitches during gameplay. The one case I'm thinking of is when a guy made the mistake of playing on hard, so when he came asking for advice on a boss battle the whole community called him an idiot for choosing that difficulty, and added that several glitches he had been experiencing did not in fact exist. It's just unreal that one of the game's developers is far and away the most level-headed and critical of the game itself, while its other fans not only obsess over it constantly but also like to march into other threads and say how mediocre those games are and how much better everything they could be if only they were more like Alpha Protocol (which is too good of a game for those plebians anyway). gently caress, the only reason I've posted in this thread recently is because new players, when asking for advice on how to trigger a certain gameplay flag or whatever, get the wrong advice from people who throw themselves a little parade when starting up their fifth playthrough, you included. It's got the worst fanbase of any game I've seen or played, flat out, without question. The fact that it's still carrying on in such a hysterically pompous fashion might be turning off more people than it hooks! Maybe worth a second's consideration, I dunno!
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Sep 14, 2011 01:49
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ChuckDHead posted:I love HR and wouldn't disagree with you regarding stuff like the combat and general polish, but in fairness, that's a pretty huge "only". The only other game I've played that's this reactive to player agency is Heavy Rain, and that's more of a glorified QTE with some major plot holes. I disagree that heavy rain really had any reactivity. Most scenes really didn't have much for you to do differently, and it never carried over much other than making you miss a scene because your guy died. You really got the sense that the developers always tried to get away with producing as little content as possible while still attempting to give the illusion that the story was indeed reactive (which it really was not). Alpha Protocol was very refreshing in that unlike the Heavy Rains and Mass Effects out there, it decided that if you're going to make a game where plot reactivity is the main gimmick of the game, they should make the plot actually reactive to the point where multiple playthroughs don't result in disillusionment, but actually in a different experience. That's really the biggest difference in my heavy rain experience and my Alpha Protocol experience. On the second Heavy Rain playthrough, I saw that the choices I thought I made were actually not choices at all. The second time through Alpha Protocol, I saw that the game reacted to choices I didn't even know were real choices. The second playthrough turns Alpha Protocol from a lovely Mass Effect into a unique game.
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Sep 14, 2011 01:51
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Oxxidation posted:It's got the worst fanbase of any game I've seen or played, flat out, without question. Now let us not engage in hyperbole here. 
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Sep 14, 2011 01:55
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CharismaticHorsey posted:Now let us not engage in hyperbole here. I'm including every fanbase from every Bioware game. I'm including loving Talimancers. At least those freaks stay in their own bubbles and don't creep anyone out who doesn't come looking for them.
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Sep 14, 2011 01:58
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Oxxidation posted:I'm including every fanbase from every Bioware game. I'm including loving Talimancers. 3 much worse communities: Minecraft, Fallout, and Sonic. Seriously, chill out though. edit: vvv oh man I didn't even think about Second Life or DotA SolidSnakesBandana fucked around with this message at 02:05 on Sep 14, 2011 |
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Sep 14, 2011 02:01
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Oxxidation posted:It's got the worst fanbase of any game I've seen or played, flat out, without question. I'm going to take a wild guess here and say that you've never interacted with the fanbase of anything by Blizzard, Bioware, or Sega, anything inspired by DotA, or anything Minecraft-related, quote:The fact that it's still carrying on in such a hysterically pompous fashion might be turning off more people than it hooks! Maybe worth a second's consideration, I dunno! Here's a thought - you want people to stop praising Alpha Protocol for kicking the poo poo out of everything else in terms of character interaction and story/character/world reactivity? Recommend another game that does it at least as well. I, for one, would love to play it. It doesn't seem unreasonable to present AP as "yes, it has a lot of flaws, but the stuff it does right it does so right that the flaws aren't even worth considering" when no other game on the market even comes close in the respects it does get right.
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Sep 14, 2011 02:03
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ToxicFrog posted:Here's a thought - you want people to stop praising Alpha Protocol for kicking the poo poo out of everything else in terms of character interaction and story/character/world reactivity? Recommend another game that does it at least as well. I, for one, would love to play it. And that last line is an opinion that doesn't exist outside of the echo chamber in this thread. Every aspect of the game besides its plot reactivity is either mediocre or a seething pile depending on how lucky/unlucky the player is with its bugs and tolerant of its overall jankiness. People saying otherwise are just trying to convince themselves that the latest mainstream pariah like Mass Effect or Deus Ex are more popular because of a fiendish game journalism conspiracy or the mindless gamer sheeple, not because Alpha Protocol is a game held together by paperclips and desperate good intentions.
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Sep 14, 2011 02:06
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Oxxidation posted:And that last line is an opinion that doesn't exist outside of the echo chamber in this thread. Every aspect of the game besides its plot reactivity is either mediocre or a seething pile depending on how lucky/unlucky the player is with its bugs and tolerant of its overall jankiness. uh, that doesn't really contradict what he's saying, at all.
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Sep 14, 2011 02:08
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Edit: I have since changed my mind.
Earnestly fucked around with this message at 02:16 on Sep 14, 2011 |
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Sep 14, 2011 02:11
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Fag Boy Jim posted:uh, that doesn't really contradict what he's saying, at all. He said the plot reactivity is so great that none of its other flaws are even worth considering. I say that's a loving stupid thing to believe, and that it's only gotten that way because this thread is such a smugfaced hugbox that anyone besides Comte who's offered up a gameplay criticism not suffixed by "but it's really great anyway!" gets shouted down by the half-dozen people still squatting in it.
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Sep 14, 2011 02:12
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I'd say it has to do with the fact that the story reactivity means a lot more can be discussed about the game. Part of the fun of games like Deus Ex is hearing stories about other peoples playthroughs and how they are different from yours. What are all these threads being so heniously hijacked by rabid Alpha Protocol fans? Human Revolution and Mass Effect 2 I guess? Is it the new Dwarf Fortress or something?
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Sep 14, 2011 02:12
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Oxxidation posted:And that last line is an opinion that doesn't exist outside of the echo chamber in this thread. Every aspect of the game besides its plot reactivity is either mediocre or a seething pile depending on how lucky/unlucky the player is with its bugs and tolerant of its overall jankiness. People saying otherwise are just trying to convince themselves that the latest mainstream pariah like Mass Effect or Deus Ex are more popular because of a fiendish game journalism conspiracy or the mindless gamer sheeple, not because Alpha Protocol is a game held together by paperclips and desperate good intentions. Or, you know, their tastes are such that they prefer a good shooter with no player agency and mediocre writing to a mediocre shooter with good writing and player agency out the rear end. Nothing wrong with that, it's just a matter of what you prioritize in your games. However, if you care more about the reactivity and the dialogue than the shooting, AP is, as far as I can tell, the best thing going at present.
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Sep 14, 2011 02:13
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ToxicFrog posted:Here's a thought - you want people to stop praising Alpha Protocol for kicking the poo poo out of everything else in terms of character interaction and story/character/world reactivity? Recommend another game that does it at least as well. I, for one, would love to play it. One game? Okay, Nier.
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Sep 14, 2011 02:14
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