Prototype

You can tell how disturbed he is by the leather jacket and hoodie.

Xbox 360

A secret government experiment goes awry and a virus is released in Penn Station...whatever. Really the point of this game is that you can fall hundreds of feet and crater in the top of a cab, grab whoever happens to be standing next to you, and carry them up to the top of your favorite Manhattan landmark, showing them the nicely-rendered view while eating them as they scream. The main character, a 20-something emo-core kid who, presumably, was already obnoxious before he got superpowers, has somehow manipulated the game’s pseudo-science so that he can morph into pretty much anything he wants. He can grow a giant sword as an arm, or giant muscles, or “consume” someone and assume their appearance. So if you want to eat a middle-aged woman and then chop-socky people in high-heeled shoes and a very prim skirt, then congratulations, you are doing exactly what I did for the first fifteen minutes I played. Which makes me wonder: why aren’t there any games about ass-kicking grandmas? That sounds awesome to me. Oh - and you can fly, sort of, apparently by just holding out your hands and wishing. I’m not sure I get the science behind that one.

Of course, there are flaws - the cliché-ridden story and characters, for one, or the fact that all of the side missions consist of eating slightly different people than those you eat in the main missions, which gets a little dull after a while. And, like many games in which you purchase upgrades, a whole lot of what you can buy is pretty pointless. In the end my combat strategy consisted of dodging and tentacle-whipping over and over again, because while I could have used the “Hammerfist Smackdown,” I preferred to just win. Let’s be honest - nobody’s going to be impressed by the numerous ways I can manipulate my pixel-man. Still it’s completely worth playing just for the running-and-jumping-and-flying-through-the-air bits.

Published by: Activision

Developed by: Radical Entertainment

Genre: Action/Sandbox

Number of Players: 1

Release Date:

US: June 9, 2009

Europe: June 12, 2009

Australia: June 10, 2009

ESRB: M  BBFC: 18  OFLC: MA15+  PEGI: 18+

Also Available On: PS3, PC