Alpha Protocol - Reviews, Impressions, Gameplay, etc.

[Freezer-TPF-]

How long does one playthrough take? This game is sounding better and better, but I still want to wait for a sale and a patch or two (as I do with almost every game).

[Massena]

In the neighborhood of 20 hours or so.

[Chaz]

I'm liking that the missions are generally a pretty reasonable length, and mostly self-contained. Because of that, I can easily play in small chunks without worrying that I'll need to stop mid-mission or not have a good stopping point.

[Turtle]

Yeah, you're not kidding.

Wow, the stuff they're describing on the PA forums I had absolutely no idea was possible, and those outcomes are so vastly different!

A lot of it is based on how you actually play through a mission just as much as what choices you make during dialog.

For example, I went through the game in pure stealth, and didn't really kill anyone. There's a scene later where you meet with a key main character and the meeting goes very very differently than what others have described for even a moderate to small level of run and gun play.

Another big thing that affects conversation options and outcomes is collecting dossier info.

After I get some work done, I'm starting a recruit play through, but cheating some aspects, then a final veteran run through.

[silvaril]

Heya

Yeah, the forum effect kicked in over the last weekend and I purchased this.

Still playing through the tutorial missions, and already sufficiently happy with some of the game design to not be concerned I didn't get this on sale.


What got me sufficiently interested was the comparisons I was drawing to Deus Ex from the various posts in this thread.
While I was not overly interested in a "Spy" game, the elements of free-play, albeit mission based, and decision based impacts on over-arching storyline resonated strongly.

And now that I have spent some time, else spent sleeping, on the game, I'm happy with the purchase...

[Asharak]

Following up on my very early impressions from the weekend with some somewhere-in-the-middlish impressions (completed intro, Saudi, and almost all of two subsequent mission hubs):

So far, I'm thrilled with the game. It's exactly what I expected and hoped for. The game this reminds me of most strongly at this point is no longer Mass Effect, actually, but one of Obsidian's other games: Neverwinter Nights 2. The reason for that comparison is essentially the balance between combat and dialogue. I once described NWN2 as a game where the cutscenes and conversations are your rewards for working through the combat sequences, which could be labourious. I'm very much getting that same feeling with AP. It's not that the combat is bad per se but it is rather straightforward and uninspired. The level of detail in the character interactions, though, is absolutely superb. Playing the Russian hub last night, I had an NPC complain that I showed up to meet him in his office in body armour -- more than that, though, I'm actually pretty sure the dialogue was specific to the fact that I showed up in stealth armour as opposed to combat armour. I'm also pretty sure an NPC tricked me into getting an ally killed. Right before I stopped last night I had a conversation where I accidentally gave up the name of someone I was working with, when I had the option to play dumb instead, and I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop on that mistake.

There's no question Obsidian has a poor track record with end games, however (KOTOR2 being the most egregious but even NWN2 had that stupid influence-check-or-all-your-allies-betray-you bit right at the end), so I'm not going to whole-heartedly endorse AP until I've finished it but, to this point, it feels like a game that I not only want to play all the way through but will probably play at least a second time.

To follow up on my criticisms from my earlier post:

- I've had no further issues with reloading failed missions not working properly (enemies missing, etc.). Using the automatic "load last checkpoint" option seems to keep that from happening (only the load-a-specific-save-file menu choice seems to have that problem).

- My Agent Thorton has started to specialize in assault rifle use (when he's not being stealthy) and, with a few ranks in that, a decent scope, and a second-tier weapon, I feel much less puny now. A properly lined up headshot is a single-shot kill on non-boss enemies and it usually only takes 2-3 three-round bursts to take down enemies that aren't "sniped".

- The hacking minigame improves as you go along. I found it almost impossible initially but, once my mind adjusted and I learned the optimal speed to scan over the display, I find it pretty easy now. I also highly, highly recommend taking a few ranks in Sabotage: apparently those skills make a concrete difference in the minigames, giving you fewer circuits to defuse or longer text strings (i.e. easier to see) in the hacking game.

At this point, the game is a solid 8/10 for me, with the potential for a 9/10 if no more bugs crop up and the end game writing is high quality. Unfortunately, I don't think I'm going to have time to play any more until about Friday...

- Ash

[Chaz]

I'm liking the stealth mechanics more than I did originally. The enemy AI can sometimes be pretty dumb, but sometimes they're also damn smart. For example, this morning, I headshotted a guy at the top of some stairs. What I didn't notice was that there was a window behind him. The bullet exited his skull and broke the window, alerting all the guards within earshot. D'oh!

I also like the skill that gives you a few seconds of invisibility when you get spotted. Makes sneaking a bit more forgiving. It's really nice to have concrete skills attached to each skill point, and for the stealth branch to have gameplay mechanics attached other than just invisible modifiers to guards' awareness.

[Sepiche]

I ended up playing about halfway through one game, deciding I spread my skills out a little too much, and starting a new game. I'm about back to the point where I was in my first game now.

Overall I'm loving the game. The mini games are a bit rough around the edges, but they are nowhere near as bad as most of the reviews implied. Same goes for the overall level of polish. I actually rather like the sneaking and gunplay myself. It's nice that unlike some games, I can sneak to a point, but if I get caught, it's not the end of the world... it just means that I might have to fight my way through a bad situation (although sometimes killing certain groups or people can be pretty bad).

As mentioned the conversations and seeing how your actions have effected things is one of the major rewards of playing, along with getting new gear, and advancing in level. I've played two of the hubs a couple of times now and I find the differences intriguing. I'm pretty confident I'll play through the game 2 or 3 more times and that owes completely to the way the story unfolds differently each time based on your actions.

One little difference I noticed that speaks to the great attention to detail they put into the dialog...

Spoiler:

The first time I played through I did Rome and then Taiwan, so when I went to the abandoned warehouse mission in Taiwan that was the first time I had ever encountered G22. When I arrived at the mission and my character saw the G22 agent he said something like "Who the hell are these guys and what are they doing here?".

On the second playthrough I did Russia first and G22 played a role there so upon arriving in Taiwan and that same warehouse mission I had already encountered G22. As a result the dialog had changed to "G22? What are they doing here?".

Sure it's a tiny element, but first that's one of probably hundreds of little changes you can see by playing differently, and second how many AAA games out there would probably just have ignored the discrepancy and kept on going with only one version of the dialog.

As far as advice goes... I would definitely get up to sabotage 2. On my first time through I only took 1 point in sabotage and about halfway through the game I was hitting nearly unhackable 10 circuit bypasses and 5 tumbler locks. The second time through though I took 2 points in sabotage and at the same point in the game I wasn't running into those tough hacks. Made it much more enjoyable.

[Chaz]

Something I noticed this morning that was a nice touch of attention to detail. On the post-mission stats screens, there's an entry for "Number of orphans created". This is both amusing and awful. In one mission in Saudi Arabia, I created 122 orphans off of about 30 kills.

Fast forward to a mission in Taiwan. I had 22 kills and created...22 orphans. China limits families to one child each! Brilliant!

[El Guapo]

Fast forward to a mission in Taiwan. I had 22 kills and created...22 orphans. China limits families to one child each! Brilliant!

ummm...except that Taiwan isn't part of China (despite China's aspirations to the contrary), and thus isn't subject to its 'one child' policy.

But that is a nice touch, otherwise.

[Fitzy]

Fast forward to a mission in Taiwan. I had 22 kills and created...22 orphans. China limits families to one child each! Brilliant!

ummm...except that Taiwan isn't part of China (despite China's aspirations to the contrary), and thus isn't subject to its 'one child' policy.

But that is a nice touch, otherwise.

Some of the people you face in Taiwan are Chinese agents though. So it might still work.

[El Guapo]

Fast forward to a mission in Taiwan. I had 22 kills and created...22 orphans. China limits families to one child each! Brilliant!

ummm...except that Taiwan isn't part of China (despite China's aspirations to the contrary), and thus isn't subject to its 'one child' policy.

But that is a nice touch, otherwise.

Some of the people you face in Taiwan are Chinese agents though. So it might still work.

Ah. That might make sense, then.

[Sepiche]

Finished my first game last night so I thought I would post some of my decisions and how it turned out for me.

Spoiler:

This character was a soldier and I mainly put points into Assault Rifles, Toughness, and Martial Arts. Commando specialization.

Saudi Arabia
- Did all the side missions in the Greybox
- Killed Nasri
- Killed Shaheed

Moscow
- Spared Sis and allied with G22
- Made nice with Grigori
- Met SIE at the trainyard and allied for the mission
- Sent Grigori's cargo to myself
- G22 aided me at the embassy, accidentally killed a marine in the confusion
- Didn't rescue Albatross
- Spared Brayko
- Fought Championchik, beat him, and only fought him with martial arts (and it noted that in the final briefing)
- Spared Surkov

Taipei
- Befriended Heck, wiped his file at the hotel
- Befriended and aided Hong Shi
- Albatross was dead so my bugs could remain on their servers indefinitely
- Tried wearing civilian clothes to the subway mission, but Deng still spotted me
- Assisted by Triad in the park
- Spared Deng, Sung lived because I had evidence of the assassination, but riots ensued.

Rome
- Killed Jibril at the party
- Infiltrated the CIA post without killing
- Killed a lot of people at the warehouse and almost got caught by the cops
- Befriended Madison and got a little bit of that
- Marburg hated me with all the fires of hell and I taunted him at every opportunity (my relations with him ended at -10)
- Diffused the bomb, Marburg shot Madison, taunted Marburg into not running and finished him off

End Game
- Romanced Mina
- Wasn't honest with Scarlet and she disappeared
- Punched Leland
- Took Heck as a handler
- Heck rescued me in the infirmary
- Saved Mina
- Showed Parker the info about Madison being his daughter, but that still didn't flip him
- Killed Parker
- Never saw Westridge
- Beat Darcy
- Killed Leland, no Marburg since he was already dead
- Sailed into the sunset with Mina

Overall I thought it was a great game. I really hope other devs out there pay attention and start working real choices into games the way they did here. The game would be pretty ho hum without the cool ways the story can unfold and the solid writing.

[Asharak]

Ah. That might make sense, then.

Yeah -- actually, I think everyone I killed in Taipei was Chinese. The game does make note of when you're going up against civilian security versus enemy agents, and tends to reward you (at least with end-of-mission text) when you're good enough to leave the civvies alive. Pretty sure I got through all those levels in Taipei with no fatalies.

- Ash

[Chaz]

I had no issues with killing me a mess of Triads. Mobsters ain't civvies. I did leave the civilian security guards alive though. I'm good like that.

[Asharak]

I had no issues with killing me a mess of Triads. Mobsters ain't civvies. I did leave the civilian security guards alive though. I'm good like that.

Oh, right. The triad mission was one I didn't bother with this time through, so I never had to make that distinction. I had either Chinese agents or hotel/subway security guard types.

- Ash

[Grifman]

Any hints/tips about character builds for getting started. I'm not looking for spoilers, I just don't want to make a stupid early choice in skills/etc that I might regret. Thanks.

[Massena]

Any hints/tips about character builds for getting started. I'm not looking for spoilers, I just don't want to make a stupid early choice in skills/etc that I might regret. Thanks.

Despite the fact that you can approach the game anyway you want to, there are a few things that stand out to me, both from my playtime and reading about other people's playing.

1) The game seems designed around a stealth build. It's just all kinds of fun sneaking up on guys and taking them out. If you don't play up stealth, it's just a sub-par shooter with interesting dialogue. So I would recommend stealth.

2) Contrary to point 1, there are a few instances in the game where you flat out NEED a combat skill to get by. The thing is, it doesn't matter what skill, as long as you have it. Pistols is a great complement to the stealth build, and also allows you to train up a feature which some people call the game's Easy Button.

3) I have a lot of fun with Martial Arts, but Sabotage is also pretty fun. If you're unsure about the shooter/combat aspect of the game, you might do assault rifles.

4) Finally, remember how the combat system works. It's RPG shooting. So I've found it's MUCH better to focus on one or two combat skills exclusively, at the expense of the other two or three. You can only take two weapons with you, which, to me, means you only need to focus on two weapons skill at most. The Stealth/Pistol/Martial Arts set is solid because of this, as is the Stealth/Pistol/Sabotage or the Stealth/Pistol/Assault Rifle.

Just my thoughts, others may disagree.

[ydejin]

I generally agree with Massena's advice. I went Assault Rifles and Toughness maxed, with additional points mostly divided between Stealth and Melee and it worked pretty well. Unfortunately Stealth is pretty useless against bosses, but otherwise is a lot of fun. You should probably ask around and see if a straight Melee build is doable, I'm not sure all the bosses are melee'able. But a Stealth, Melee, Pistol build should do fine.

Unless you want to go totally guns blazing, I'd recommend at least enough Stealth to get permanent Awareness, which helps you figure out where the enemy guards are (I think it takes about 5 levels of Stealth or so to get that).

I also dumped a few random points in some other areas, you can get increased health potion effect for a simple investment of 3 points, and IIRC there's an simplified mini-game (lock picking/hacking) skill you can pick up for not much investment.

[Asharak]

Any hints/tips about character builds for getting started. I'm not looking for spoilers, I just don't want to make a stupid early choice in skills/etc that I might regret. Thanks.

First, it is worth mentioning that there's a single skill reset opportunity a little ways into the game, so don't worry about your very first skill choices hampering you through the rest of the game. After that, though, you're stuck with whatever you take, so your question is still legitimate.

As for good skills to take (this will repeat a few things that were already mentioned):

- Awareness, in the Stealth line, is a must-have, IMHO.

- Shadow Operative, second or third level, again a Stealth skill, is a must-have if you want to avoid some fights. If you're OK blowing shit up, though, this is less critical. Oh, I will disagree about it's lack of utility against bosses, though. The hardest fight in the game for me was made much easier by being able to sneak to a certain vantage point.

- Take 2-3 ranks of Sabotage early to make the minigames much easier; by the end of the game, I found I needed about 5-6 ranks in total to keep them manageable.

- On the flip side, despite focusing on Martial Arts with my character, I think I will argue that it's relatively unnecessary. Stealth takedowns don't rely on it and, really, if your cover is blown, you ought to be shooting from cover, not running around trying to beat one guy up while three more shoot at you from across the room.

- Likewise, I also think you only need to focus on a single weapon skill. I'd recommend either pistols or assault rifles; I'm not sure there's enough close-range combat (at least, not if you're playing smart) to make SMGs or the shotgun worthwhile.

I hope that helps.

- Ash

PS> I just finished the game and definitely have no reservations about recommending it. The level of "polish" is still Obsidian's weakest area but this is by no means a KOTOR2 situation. I'll try to write up some proper post-game thoughts after I've had a chance to digest the experience a little more.

[Sepiche]

In my first game I used martial arts a lot and it's generally usable on all the bosses. There are only two I can think of where I couldn't melee them to win.

Spoiler:

Brayko if the only person who seemed better than me. It might just be because I did Moscow first and hadn't trained up enough, but his melee attacks were pretty powerful.

Other than him only Darcy is a problem since you just can't reach him.

Not sure about Westridge... didn't have to face him.

[ydejin]

In my first game I used martial arts a lot and it's generally usable on all the bosses. There are only two I can think of where I couldn't melee them to win.

Spoiler:

Brayko if the only person who seemed better than me. It might just be because I did Moscow first and hadn't trained up enough, but his melee attacks were pretty powerful.

Other than him only Darcy is a problem since you just can't reach him.

Not sure about Westridge... didn't have to face him.

Spoiler:

Darcy is the one I was thinking of, although I seem to recall that there's another boss in the end game up on top of a ledge, maybe shooting a rocket launcher at you? Anyway, I'm not sure if he's reachable, I didn't try, I just sniped him down with the assault rifle.

[Sepiche]

Spoiler:

Darcy is the one I was thinking of, although I seem to recall that there's another boss in the end game up on top of a ledge, maybe shooting a rocket launcher at you? Anyway, I'm not sure if he's reachable, I didn't try, I just sniped him down with the assault rifle.

Spoiler:

Pretty sure that's Leland at the end with the Rocket Launcher. If I recall there was a ramp or some stairs or something you could use to get up next to him. It was late when I finished it, but I remember running up behind him after putting a few bullets in him and finishing him off with melee.

[Asharak]

OK, post-game impressions. This will probably repeat some of what I've posted earlier but why not be thorough?

For those who don't like to read: I give the game 8/10 ("good"), with the potential for 9/10 ("great") if they patch some of the more significant gameplay and UI glitches.

Unquestionably, the game's strongest element is how it weaves your actions and interactions with other characters into the narrative. The story itself is relatively pedestrian - by the end of the tutorial, or at least the first mission, you'll have a pretty good idea of the "bad guy" aspect of the plot - but, given that you can kill most of the supporting cast at various points throughout the game, the way in the climax is kept coherent despite a highly mutable cast of characters is simply marvelous.

This being Obsidian, it is also necessary to mention that the climax - and the game as a whole - is coherent. Those worried about a KOTOR2-type ending need not be. That said, there is one character in the game who pretty clearly had some content cut out but, given who it is and their particular...handicap...it actually works quite well as-is (though I really liked that character and hope they return in any sequel). I can understand the complaints about the final mission being shooter-heavy and essentially un-stealthable but that is a criticism of style, not of content, which is quite different than the failing of KOTOR2.

I also think the game's RPG elements are a strong point. I think there are probably three playable archetypes in the character system - stealth, gunner and gadgeteer - with some hybridization between them, which supports several potential playthroughs. Also, I liked the fact that many of the skill upgrades provided concrete new abilities, rather than emphereal "+%" increases (though there are a few of those). And the Perk system - minor rewards that you get for certain conversation choices, mission actions, or even taking the time to reply to a certain number of e-mails - is an excellent feature that should become a staple of every RPG to come. It works wonderfully in both making the "little things" feel important as well as providing rewards specific to your style of play.

Lastly, given the importance of replaying this game to see how different approaches could lead to different endings, I think this is the first time I've ever going to praise a game for being relatively short. How long a playthrough takes will depend significantly on your playstyle (stealth takes a lot longer than shooting, obviously) but it's probably a ~20 hour game, on average, and that makes it not too daunting to take a second or third run through, unlike a Dragon Age or Morrowind-type epic. Individual missions take about 30-60 minutes, with a return to your safehouse after each one, which is nice length for being able to play in smallish chunks if you need to.

So what didn't I like?

First, on something of a meta-level, I think the game was mis-marketed a bit. This is not a hyper-realistic stealth espionage game, as there are some mandatory shooting sequences, some cartoonish villains, and frequent adherence to the typical world-building conventions of the action genre (like not being able to jump over things without a specific icon saying "you can jump over this", regenerating armor, enemies that let their guard down moments after an alarm is silenced despite several of their colleagues still being dead, etc). These things aren't really problems with the game but, if you aren't expecting them when you first start playing, you either have to adjust your expectations quickly or wind up feeling pretty disappointed.

Second, as I hinted at earlier, the story itself is unoriginal and predictable, in a you-can-always-count-on-being-double-crossed kind of way. At a macro level, the story boils down to: you wake up, you do some stuff, things go badly, you figure out why they went badly, you punish those responsible. The most obvious and frequently-seen-in-cutscenes antagonist is also sadly one-dimensional in his motivations and is clearly based on a very tired cliche, right down to the first three letters of his organization's name.

Third, the AI and basic stealth and shooter mechanics are somewhat lacklustre. Enemies have little peripheral vision and essentially no hearing: seriously, Mr. Sentry, when your comrade is standing ten feet away from you, even if you aren't looking at him and I shoot him with a silenced gun, you still should be able to hear him "thud" to the floor. The ridiculous amount of health that boss enemies can have was somewhat distracting and the uniform way to deal with pretty much every other enemy - headshot, headshot, headshot, until everyone's dead - didn't exactly lend itself to a varied experience.

My fourth and biggest complaint, as much as I know this phrase is vague, is the game's lack of polish. I stand by my previous statement that this isn't a KOTOR2-type debacle but the game is nevertheless rather clunky in places, especially on PCs. You can press "M" to bring up the mission map at any time but then it takes two additional keystrokes (neither of which is "M" again) to return to the game. If you bring up the radial menu by pressing, say "Z" (which brings up your list of skills) and then use the arrows to shift to your ammo options or gadget selection, then hitting "Z" again will no longer close the menu unless you return to your skill screen first). There's the previously-discussed issue where using one of the two ways to reload a game can cause all sorts of bizarre scripting errors. The controls aren't very fluid, either: pressing "S" (move back) will move you out of cover only if you haven't rotated the camera so that "back", relative to your point of view, is no longer away from the cover, not to mention the unresponsive or sticky mouse issues others have encountered. And there's a particular mission that's getting widespread criticism for having a crossed-up "did you kill anyone" flag (i.e., if you stealth your way through the whole mission without getting the innocent bystanders killed, your mission debriefing will say the opposite), which is especially unfortunate because it gets brought up in the game's penultimate major conversation.

All told, this is a game that, for me, more than overcomes its flaws. I had a great deal of fun playing it and I intend to start a second run tonight. Given it's weaknesses, though, I would not recommend it universally. I would suggest that, if you're a fan of the recent choose-your-own-adventure / interactive-fiction trend in the RPG genre, then this is a game that is certainly worth your time. If your interest lies more towards the exhilaration of action and FPS mechanics, however, then you're going to find AP somewhat lacking.

- Ash

PS> On the topic of a potential sequel, with a very minor spoiler regarding the final scene of the game:

Spoiler:

Did anyone else notice that the boat you sail away on has the Greek letter Omega on the back of it? I'm not sure if that was meant to be a hint about a future game - i.e., having dealt with Alpha, you're about to be introduced to an even shadowier organization - or just a stylistically appropriate way of saying "The End", since Omega is the last letter of the Greek alphabet.

[tgb]

Can you save mid-mission?

[Sepiche]

Can you save mid-mission?

There are checkpoints spread through the missions that will save the current state, but you can't save the game at any time. Actually one of my pet peeves with the game is that even outside of missions things (including stats and purchases) only save when you hit a checkpoint.

It's less of a burden than it sounds, but it's a little annoying.

[Asharak]

Can you save mid-mission?

Nope. It's one of those games where, if you could save after every takedown, the challenge of clearing a set of enemies in a room without being detected would be eliminated.

That said, I found the save points plenty frequent, and there's always one before each boss fight (but, importantly, after the usual dialogue right before the bloodthirsty mayhem breaks out). Sepiche is right that it's a little more annoying that even the safehouses work on a checkpoint system - the game only saves when you first return to the safehouse; you cannot save after, say, buying some new gear - but you can get around that easily enough by just starting the next mission and using the automatic start-of-mission checkpoint as your save.

- Ash

[Doomboy]

You definitely can save in the safe house after buying new gear. I do it all the time.

The thing is, you have to specifically load the save that you made. If you select "continue" when you boot up the game, it loads the autosave that was made when you entered the safe house (or whatever checkpoint you exited the game at).

[Asharak]

You definitely can save in the safe house after buying new gear. I do it all the time.

The thing is, you have to specifically load the save that you made. If you select "continue" when you boot up the game, it loads the autosave that was made when you entered the safe house (or whatever checkpoint you exited the game at).

Ah, OK. That makes sense. I've always avoided that approach because of the scripting issues that specific-save-loading in missions can cause; since there's nothing to script in the safehouse, I can see that that would be viable.

Thanks for the correction, Doomboy.

- Ash

[ydejin]

Spoiler:

Darcy is the one I was thinking of, although I seem to recall that there's another boss in the end game up on top of a ledge, maybe shooting a rocket launcher at you? Anyway, I'm not sure if he's reachable, I didn't try, I just sniped him down with the assault rifle.

Spoiler:

Pretty sure that's Leland at the end with the Rocket Launcher. If I recall there was a ramp or some stairs or something you could use to get up next to him. It was late when I finished it, but I remember running up behind him after putting a few bullets in him and finishing him off with melee.

You're right. That's who I was thinking of. So just one end boss that's not melee-able, and I hear there's something in the level that can help out melee characters.

[Grifman]

FRACK!!! Can someone help me with this stupid hacking minigame?! I can't figure how it works. I know I need to find a frozen code but after that, it just all falls apart for me. It says I can move it using the WASD keys or mouse but hell if I can figure this out. Thanks.

[Doomboy]

FRACK!!! Can someone help me with this stupid hacking minigame?! I can't figure how it works. I know I need to find a frozen code but after that, it just all falls apart for me. It says I can move it using the WASD keys or mouse but hell if I can figure this out. Thanks.

You have to do both. It is very annoying.

There are two lines of numbers and text that don't move. You use the keyboard to move the code on the left (and use the space bar to lock it in) and the mouse to move the code on the right (and use the mouse button to lock that one in). There is a skill that you can raise to make the codes easier to see (can't remember which one right now). But it will take lots of practice.

Unless I have been doing it the hard way.

One bit of advice I can give you, just roll with the alarms. It isn't a death sentence. I carry those little radio transmitter things for stopping alarms and EMP devices for when I don't feel like doing the hack game.

[Asharak]

FRACK!!! Can someone help me with this stupid hacking minigame?! I can't figure how it works. I know I need to find a frozen code but after that, it just all falls apart for me. It says I can move it using the WASD keys or mouse but hell if I can figure this out. Thanks.

Every hacking minigame requires finding two static sequences in the grid of changing characters. It doesn't matter which order you find them in; they're both present all the time. The two codes to find are the ones that appear just above the grid (over the top-left and top-right corners) when the game first starts.

Once you've spotted the codes in the grid, you have to move the copies that start out of the grid over top of the corresponding code in the grid. The code segment that appears on the left is controlled with WASD (and press spacebar to "lock it in" when its in the correct position); the one of the right is controlled by moving your mouse (and left-click to lock it in). One silly little trick to it is that, for moving both fragments, the first move you make must be down - since the codes start off the top of the grid, up, left or right do nothing until you've moved down "into" the grid.

In terms of succeeding at the game, I'll admit that I found it practically impossible at first. After trying a few times, though, your mind does adjust to it. In terms of "tricks", I'll offer one that might help. I've read a few posts indicating that "unfocusing" your eyes can help spot the static sections in the changing sea. I.e., rather than bombarding your mind with all the specific characters on the screen, focus your eyes a little in front or behind your monitor, so that all you can see are blurry-shapes-that-are-changing and blurry-areas-that-are-still; from there, it's quick and easy to refocus and figure out which static area corresponds to which code fragment. Also, on a simpler note, don't let the timer rush you: the faster you move your eyes around the grid, the more likely you are to not notice that some characters aren't changing. Especially with the early puzzles, there is plenty of time.

If it really does drive you batty - and for the first few missions in Saudi, it did for me - make sure you take those first two ranks in Sabotage. It gets you longer strings to find (which are much easier to spot), as well as fewer circuits to defuse / tumblers to align in the other minigames. Also, for the small handful of mission critical computer systems, remember that you can use EMPs to completely skip the hacking minigame.

Note that the red bar along the bottom is a "reset" timer; when it fills up, the codes are moved to different positions in the grid; the actual numeric timer at the top is your "fail" timer. I usually only get one fragment per reset, so don't worry if you think you're not going quickly enough based on that. The one thing to avoid doing is "locking in" a fragment incorrectly; each miss like that takes a chunk of time off your total available, which CAN make you lose. Also, note that you can, in fact, quit the attempt by right-clicking at any time; in most instances, aborting will NOT trigger an alarm and you can try again.

That's everything I can think of for now. Let me know if that helps.

- Ash

[Grifman]

Thanks, everyone. The part that was confusing me was how to move the code segments. I didn't understand that WASD was for the left, and the mouse was for the right. That confused me to no end, though I did eventually figure it out. The other two minigames are fine - in fact I think the lockpicking is easy, don't see much challenge there. But the hacking one kills me. And I did take the first two levels of sabotage as soon as I could based upon previous tips, and I plan on using EMP as much as I can Again, thanks.

[Smoove_B]

I have to say I'm pretty impressed. I spent about 2 hours with the game yesterday. I really like the design - it reminds me a bit of the old Top Secret pen and paper RPG I used to play. Specifically how you show up to your job and have the ability to buy better gear, improved ammo, intelligence, etc... I am also really impressed with the conversation engine and how the game seems to acknowledged decisions I've made or things I've accomplished (I'm talking specifically about the training in the beginning). Getting perks for having strong relationships with your handlers or exhibiting a personality via the conversations is definitely an awesome touch.

I am playing a martial arts / pistol / hacker and I can see that if you thought this game was going to be a a shooter (like Gears of War) you'd be frustrated.

It's definitely not going to win any awards for visuals and as others have suggested the AI does seem dodgy at times, but so far I'm really liking what I'm seeing.

[Doomboy]

I'm a little frustrated with the final mission.

Spoiler:

Apparently I had a choice to save Mina? I never noticed it. I thought I told her to stay away. But then I see her dead while somebody is laughing about it. And the same bit as everyone else, with whathisface in the tower sniping at me. There is a sniper rifle in the other tower, but his unending supply of grenade boquets is driving me far crazier than his sniping. Somehow they even got me while I was in the other tower climbing the ladder. I assume that is some kind of bug, since previously they never managed to get inside the tower even, let alone halfway up the ladder.

I think they made the last level just a bit too hard and chaotic. Not once in the entire game has it ever been this nuts. For the first time since I started it, the graphic problems are back (view flipping out when I turn to look at something, framerate hitting all new lows, etc.). So, all in all, this ending is really irritating me.

And one fairly big nitpick: Why didn't I have the option to break Leyland's neck, instead of just punching him? Obviously the guards couldn't have stopped me.

[Sepiche]

I'm a little frustrated with the final mission.

Spoiler:

Apparently I had a choice to save Mina? I never noticed it. I thought I told her to stay away. But then I see her dead while somebody is laughing about it. And the same bit as everyone else, with whathisface in the tower sniping at me. There is a sniper rifle in the other tower, but his unending supply of grenade boquets is driving me far crazier than his sniping. Somehow they even got me while I was in the other tower climbing the ladder. I assume that is some kind of bug, since previously they never managed to get inside the tower even, let alone halfway up the ladder.

I think they made the last level just a bit too hard and chaotic. Not once in the entire game has it ever been this nuts. For the first time since I started it, the graphic problems are back (view flipping out when I turn to look at something, framerate hitting all new lows, etc.). So, all in all, this ending is really irritating me.

And one fairly big nitpick: Why didn't I have the option to break Leyland's neck, instead of just punching him? Obviously the guards couldn't have stopped me.

Spoiler:

I can't remember the details, but shortly after you wake up in the medical bay Leland taunts you about capturing Mina. In the room where he taunts you one of the doors has a picture of Mina bound up over it on a screen. Head through there and you can rescue her.

Or at least that's the way it happened in my ending... I think that happens every time, but there's always a chance there was something you did different in your game that changed events around.

Warning! This link is very, very spoiler heavy, but if you've finished the game and are curious about the different ways things can turn out it's pretty entertaining:
http://www.quartertothree.com/game-talk ... hp?t=59646" target="_blank

[Smoove_B]

Still haven't hit any bugs and I just finished the first mission in Moscow. I can't believe the beating this game took in the reviews. It's absolutely not the prettiest game, and yes the AI is both impressive and insanely stupid but the actual design and affect it has on game play? To see that running missions in a certain order has an impact on future missions? To have the game acknowledge your play style and reward you with tangible benefits to your character?

I'm not saying it's better than Red Dead Redemption (because that would be insane), but of all the games I've played this year on the Xbox (Bayonetta, Darksiders, Mass Effect 2, Alan Wake) this beats them all.

I'd read they're actually planning on a patch, so maybe the sales numbers were better than they anticipated.

And if this is how Fallout New Vegas is going to play, it's going to be GOTY material.

[Sepiche]

Still haven't hit any bugs and I just finished the first mission in Moscow. I can't believe the beating this game took in the reviews. It's absolutely not the prettiest game, and yes the AI is both impressive and insanely stupid but the actual design and affect it has on game play? To see that running missions in a certain order has an impact on future missions? To have the game acknowledge your play style and reward you with tangible benefits to your character?

I'm not saying it's better than Red Dead Redemption (because that would be insane), but of all the games I've played this year on the Xbox (Bayonetta, Darksiders, Mass Effect 2, Alan Wake) this beats them all.

I'd read they're actually planning on a patch, so maybe the sales numbers were better than they anticipated.

And if this is how Fallout New Vegas is going to play, it's going to be GOTY material.

Couldn't agree more. I'm trying not to get my hopes up too much about the direction they are going to go with New Vegas... I'm sure I'll love it, but if they could add some of the plot elements from AP, it could definitely be GOTY for me.

[Scoop20906]

Still haven't hit any bugs and I just finished the first mission in Moscow. I can't believe the beating this game took in the reviews. It's absolutely not the prettiest game, and yes the AI is both impressive and insanely stupid but the actual design and affect it has on game play? To see that running missions in a certain order has an impact on future missions? To have the game acknowledge your play style and reward you with tangible benefits to your character?

I'm not saying it's better than Red Dead Redemption (because that would be insane), but of all the games I've played this year on the Xbox (Bayonetta, Darksiders, Mass Effect 2, Alan Wake) this beats them all.

I'd read they're actually planning on a patch, so maybe the sales numbers were better than they anticipated.

And if this is how Fallout New Vegas is going to play, it's going to be GOTY material.

I heard it was a different development team working on Fallout New Vegas so I would not assume we will get the kind of plot branching and writing from AP in the new Fallout.

Also, I love some the writing in the game. Chris Avellone and Obsidian really did a nice job of being humorous and over the top on this game. And I love the perks because you get rewarded for playing the game in different ways. I just finished my first game playing a stealth spy two days ago and I plan to replay the game as a balls to the wall shoot everyone in sight soldier type and I know I am guaranteed to get a different experience and different dialog choices.