Prey

[Ruslan74]

A revived game in the making from 1999 by 3D Realms will be making its PC/X360 appearance in June 2006. It will be one of the first games to showcase ID's DOOM 3 engine to a better extent than dark alleys and spawning monsters behind your back.

Prey Official website (http://www.prey.com/) where screenshots and video clips are available.

[TG]

Can you say "Vapourware"?

:p

[Bass]

Apparently there have been at least 4-6 (can't remember exactly how many) development houses/teams that worked on this, and all disbanded at some stage ...

[Ruslan74]

no not Prey, 3D realms started it back after Duke Nukem 3D and then left it for dead, however it seems DNF is something that wont see the light of day too soon though... ;)

[Ruslan74]

a preview of the multiplayer here. (http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/prey/news.html?sid=6143728)

Snippet :

"Prey's deathmatch feels very much like a traditional deathmatch game at first. At least, until you hit your first wall-walk or you find yourself shooting at guys standing on the ceiling (or, is it that they're on the floor and you're on the ceiling?). Human Head developed the multiplayer levels to incorporate some of Prey's unique design elements, and it's pretty impressive to see how much of an effect these simple ideas can have on the gameplay.

By putting the walls and ceilings into play, the developers can take a standard-sized deathmatch map and make it feel a lot larger. But there's also a wonderful sense of weird disorientation that comes into play. It's almost strange to kill someone and then see his or her weapon "fall" to the ceiling. And you have to be on your guard from nearly every direction, because the enemy can ambush you from almost any point in some levels."

Seems like over the head fun... :p

[TG]

Man, that was like playing Alien vs Predator.
I remember playing as an Alien when I was sick (feverish) once. That seriously fucked with my mind. It also made me feel quite ill :p

[Ruslan74]

yeah, in AvP as an alien it was weird.. i use to get confused and the poor Marine buggers would get k@ked out coz i would go all over the place trying to get my bearings right... headshots with the tail were uber though! :D

[stoke]

Hmmm ... UpsidedownChopper = PerfectlyNormal. Could be interesting.

I am still waiting for a proper SCI-FI futuristic game with flying skateboards.

[doobiwan]

Don't know about skateboards, but Tribes has cool jetpacks.

[Ruslan74]

Back to the Future 2?

:p

[Ruslan74]

a hands-on-preview (http://ve3d.ign.com/articles/686/686549p1.html) of Prey from VE3D, this time the single-player aspect.

Snippet :

"The Leech gun is the BFG9000 of Prey. You get it, use it, things die in fun and exciting ways. The cool aspect of the Leech gun is that it uses three different types of ammo, each of which much be leeched from nodes scattered throughout the levels. Each node type provides a different type of ammo, such as plasma bursts (red) or the insane Sunbeam (white). You only get a few moments worth of firing per full leech, so conservation is key."

And...

"The developers were very adamant about their removal of reloading. Partly because it's one less key to bind, and partly because it streamlines the game a little more. Weapons have ammo as normal (unique ammo, not Deus Ex: IW ammo), and will overheat if used too fast. If you run out of bullets, switch to your trusty wrench and go nuts."

Looking better and better... June here we come! :D

[Ruslan74]

2K Games today announced an incentive based Pre-Order program and Limited Collector's Edition for Prey for PC and the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft.

The Limited Collector's Edition is available for both the Xbox 360 and PC editions of Prey and includes a special metal packaging upgrade, two die-cast pewter figurines including the lead character Tommy and the alien Hunter, a free download to a Prey soundtrack, and "The Art of Prey" book featuring collected conceptual and development images from the artists behind Prey. In addition, the PC Limited Collector's Edition will include an upgrade to DVD media from CD-ROM.

Customers who pre-order either the Limited Collector's Edition or standard edition of Prey on either Xbox 360 or PC will receive a die-cast pewter figurine of Mutate. The Mutate is a melding of the DNA of human and alien victims of the living Sphere, possessing a massive claw that it uses in-game to impale its enemies in a spinning attack. All four versions of Prey will be released simultaneously.

The Prey Limited Collector's Edition is a single production run available on a first-come, first-served basis. Both the Limited Collector's Edition and the Pre-Order program are available while supplies last at participating retailers.

Customers who have previously pre-ordered Prey are automatically "grandfathered" into the incentive based Pre-Order program. Prey is developed by Human Head Studios and Venom Games and produced by 3D Realms.

Super trailer here. (http://www.3drealms.com/news/2006/04/prey_super_trai_1.html)

ETA is July 10th.

[Ruslan74]

June 22nd (http://www.3drealms.com/news/2006/05/june_22nd_is_prey_day.html) is when the five-level single player/multiplayer demo will be out.

:woot:

[Alluvium]

YAY puissage

[Ruslan74]

some more info on Prey :

Any Bot Support in Prey?

TG-We've actually stated this a few times in other forums. No, there will be no bots in Prey. I argued to include them pretty strongly early on, but the issue is mainly one of the enormous AI headache. Bots are difficult enough to program for a regular FPS game. The Doom3 codebase didn't support bots, so we had no code to use as a basis, meaning we'd have to start from scratch. Neither Doom3 nor Quake IV had bots. Now we could have started from scratch to add them, but it's not a trivial feature; then add on top the fact that we have gravity and wallwalk (which are separate features since they both treat gravity differently), portals and spirit walking and it becomes an AI nightmare to code for. It would be doable if we put lots of resources to it for a fairly long time, but I think even then they'd be subpar due to all of the thinking outside of the issues of just a standard fps shooter they'd have to be doing. UT class bots would be outstanding, but that's a huge order considering how our features affect the standard way of playing.
We decided early on that single player was the focus of Prey and that we'd provide as robust a DM experience as possible without bots. I know you want to hear, "Oh yeah, we've got it nailed" but the reality is that we had to pick our battles, and we knew early on bots was one that would consume many resources for a result that would probably be subpar.

How does it scale on different hardware?

GB-I can play Prey on a 1900xtx, AMD 4400+ at 1600x1200 with all the features on.

We have people at the office play and finish it on as low as a 2.5ghz, 9800, and even one on a 2.0Ghz/9700Pro. So, the game scales pretty well.

Clearly there is a midrange, probably starting aroung 2.8Ghz and a 9800. Higher end video cards will make the game scream.

Steam-like Activation process?

TG-You need internet just for install. After that you can play it offline. You will need it each time you install (or reinstall) so the master server can authenticate the installation.

I'm not sure what Steam's current offline mode is like. You don't have to actively do anything, and you won't automatically log on each time you play. I can tell you that much. I hope that helps. If not, I'll do my best to answer.

Vista Support?

TG-Actually we're working with Microsoft on Vista compatibility. We will support the final release of Vista with Prey, most likely as a patched version down the road, but we will not officially be supporting Vista beta. (That doesn't mean it won't work at all, just that we won't be supporting the beta officially).

I know the engineers have been messing with the beta, but I can't answer any questions on it as it's pretty low on the priority list at the moment.

More about Widescreen support

TG-We support widescreen. Just choose 4:3, 16:9, or 16:10 from the menu and it adjusts to your display. The game also remembers your option settings. We've made other changes as well, but you'll see those soon enough.

[Ruslan74]

Gamespot has a hands-on preview (http://www.gamespot.com/pc/action/prey/news.html?sid=6152874) of the upcoming demo for Prey slated for a 22nd June release.

The Prey demo will also include two levels from the game's multiplayer mode, which focuses on the old deathmatch standby. There are more weapons available here than in the single-player portion, which features such things as a shotgun-like goo blaster, a gross-looking organic chaingun of sorts, and everyone's favorite, the rocket launcher--or at least, some biomechanical variation thereof. But while the weapons may sound like old hat, Prey deathmatch has a few interesting tricks up its sleeve. One of the maps is literally wallpapered with the gravity-defying illuminated walkways you'll see scattered around the single-player game, meaning that you never know when an opponent is going to come charging down the wall or even across the ceiling at you.

Perhaps NB can host a multiplayer server for the demo for some upside down frag fun?

[Ruslan74]

Eurogamer (http://www.eurogamer.net/article.php?article_id=65678) have an article with an interview with one of the head honchos from Human Head, the developers of Prey.

Some snippets :

Eurogamer: The game seems to have a bit of an Aliens feel to it - were the Alien films an influence on you? What other films have inspired you?

Tim Gerritson: Specifically, HR Giger was a big influence on us. His ability to create a look that is at once biological and mechanical had a huge influence on us visually. We were inspired to create a unique look of our own that captured his spirit without specifically trying to ape his style.

Star Wars and its unique blending of spiritual and science fiction elements was also a big influence on us, as was Fire in the Sky, an abduction movie that finely captures the ever-present sense of fear in a totally alien environment.

and...

Eurogamer: Can you explain a bit about the Spirit powers? How do they work, and at what points are they likely to prove useful?

Tim Gerritson: The spirit powers that Tommy learns during the game are Spirit Walk, which is the ability to leave his body and travel as a spirit. He leaves his body behind (leaving it defenseless and subject to attack) giving his spirit [the power] to travel semi-invisibly to by pass enemies (or sneak attack them), and to interact with key objects in the real world.

The next spirit power is Death Walk, which is what happens if your physical body is killed. Your spirit travels to a plane of existence between our world and the next and is forced to fight to return to the real world, where it can rejoin your physical body.

The final major spirit power is your spirit totem, Talon. He is a hawk that acts as your translator but also your companion, who defends you during battle by seeking to distract your enemies.

looking sweet! downloaded the demo and just had a quick peek into it... want to try out the MP if possible!

[Albereth]

Demo on the cover disk from current PC Format - save you almost 500mb

[doobiwan]

Which will cover the cost of the magazine. What a scary thought . . .

[SaintMg]

NAG had it on thier CD this month which stoke so kindly got it is awsome fun and a bit of a mind twisting:cuckoo: thinking to get your head around it ....:sharp:
you can pick pick these little like crab creature things which are like gas grenades ( i only found out after shoooting at the then for like 2 min then i ran over it and it was in my hand so i freaked :scared: out and clicked to get rid of it which subsequently tossed it in front of my feet and boom a green cloud of smoke :fart: )

the leech gun is okay but i like the rifle type as it has a scope on it and head shots kill most things with one shot i also foud that the leech used ammo quick which i found 2 differnet kinds of one being this red like plasma ball and the other a freeze gas like .....:cool:

but i will try to say no more and let you peeps try it out for yourself. it is fun and im sure i will get me a copy when it comes out so try the demo and see if it is for you...:woot:

[SlappY]

Sorry all for no review, have had the game for about 2 weeks now :P

Well like Saint says, it is VERY mind twisting. Am having a hard time trying to try multiPrey out cause no one is on the server yet, but I suspect it is going to be rather nutty (Portals, Gravity switches, etc).

Oh and I found another ammo type for the leech gun...Power of the Sun....Very hectic. It actually blasts you back whilst firing.

I like the scope of the rifle... it is a little thing that jumps out the gun and clamps on your eye :)

Weapons wise you got:
Wrench
Rifle (auto and sniping... sniping uses more ammo)
Crab Genrades
Leech gun
gattling gun/grenade launcher
Rocket launcher
and I think one other which I cant remember.

Plays really well, fast paced...
Now go buy it so we can play some multiPrey!!!