Alpha Protocol E3 Preview from TeamXbox

Obsidian Entertainment’s spy-themed RPG has once again been given the E3 preview treatment, and this time it’s courtesy of TeamXbox.

The E3 trade show a couple of week ago gave us a chance to catch up on some titles we haven’t seen before. One of the more exciting games to fall in this category was Sega’s Alpha Protocol.

The fact that Obsidian Entertainment is developing the game is certainly a primary reason to get excited. The Southern California studio has been involved in some high-profile games across all platforms, but one of its most prestigious was the Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic on Xbox. Obsidian picked up the product construction after BioWare set the bar high with the first release in the series, and it did a masterful job with the game (which earned a 9.2 in TeamXbox’s review) about four-and-a-half years ago.

Interestingly, Alpha Protocol has Obsidian taking a page from BioWare in this game also—here, it’s a variation on what BioWare had in its Mass Effect release, where you have different conversation options. Obsidian is really pushing changes to the gameplay based on how the player talks to and treats other characters. For example, I was able to see two demos of the same section of the game, where the player’s character, spy Michael Thorton, is confronted by a cold female antagonist named Sie, who is flanked by two bodyguards. In one of the demos, Thorton’s conversation is almost apologetic, a counter to Sie’s aggressive personality to the point that she decides it’s advantageous to team up with Thorton and take this powerful pairing against another enemy group. In the other demo, Thorton’s dialogue was more sassy and confrontational, and after a short give-and-take, Sie tired of the banter and instructed her two bodyguards to take Thorton out.

The versatility goes beyond dialogue, though. At the start, you’ll be able to give Thorton one of a lot of different looks, and then designate his skill set. Among the choices is Commando, Soldier and Recruit. Though he is, at his core, a spy, what you do here defines a lot of what you’ll be able to do with Thorton through the game.

Nearly everything you do in Alpha Protocol earns you points—this is an RPG after all. You have a PDA that keeps track of all of the details, such as the intel you’ve received throughout the game, bios of all individuals you’ve met, your faction standing, your service record, maps and gameplay hints. It’s also where you access the skill tree: You allocate the points you’ve earned to build up your skills in certain areas of expertise; there are nine different skills, and each one can be boosted up to ten levels. According to Tim Ernst, the game’s producer, you can’t hit the level caps on your character on a single playthrough…which says something else about the game.

There are lots of weapons you can get into your hands (you can find items during your travels, but also buy them at various merchants/retailers), and there’s also an opportunity to upgrade those arms in many ways. Every weapon has four modification slots, such as the sight and the barrel, so you’ll be able to craft a wide variety of offensive tools for your arsenal. When you add in the wealth of gadgets—such as incendiary grenades and sticky mines—you’ll see how you can take on the enemy in many ways.

The game’s combat is as versatile. In our viewing of the game, we saw extensive use of cover as a way to avoid enemy gunfire, but also to catch your breath (and gain back some health) while formulating a strategy for what you’re going to do next. It’s not just an opportunity to rest and avoid confrontation, though, because you can blind fire a gun or make a blind toss of a grenade from behind cover. Ernst recommended that cover be used for more stealthy movement when trying to get into a good strategic position, but also “when you’re overmatched,” so you can break up the battle into smaller, more manageable skirmishes.

Ernst also said that there’s a main path to take, but Alpha Protocol offers plenty of side missions that’ll help you build your character. And the game’s “perk system” will add to your abilities as well. Ernst noted that it’s not like Fallout 3’s perks, because you don’t just get them when you level up. Instead, you’ll earn them on the fly as you play, pulling them down for certain things you accomplish.

The game is structured into three acts, so there’ll be plenty of storyline to work your way through. Ernst stated that Alpha Protocol will not only have multiple endings, depending on the various decisions you make throughout, but that it’ll also have “multiple middles,” which makes it sound like a broad RPG with loads of things to experience—which lends itself to a lot of replayability. If there’s truly a lot of branching off that can happen depending on the direction you take at a crossroads—either at a physical intersection or just a dilemma where you have numerous options for how to proceed—it’ll be fun to see how the story evolves and characters react when the circumstances are changed.

This is one we’ll be keeping our eye on as the year progresses, and we’ll bring you any updates as we get the opportunity to see Alpha Protocol again.