First of all, I apologize for the terrible pun :'(
Alpha Protocol is a great character-driven TPS conspiracy thriller, but it does stumble in a few places. The good:
It's a solid TPS, if you invest a lot of points in a weapon and health. The AI, while not brilliant, is a bit better than the whack-a-mole opponents found in other cover-based shooters like Mass Effect.
The dialogue is fantastic and many of the characters are well-developed, as you'd expect from an Obsidian game.
The game is clearly made with replay value in mind.
It's certainly not a title without flaws however. The not-so-good:
The game is incredibly buggy, even years after release. The game uses a checkpoint system to save progress, but restoring to a previous checkpoint often carries over baggage which you're likely reloading to avoid in the first place. Trip an alarm & reload? The alarm is off- but the level will be magically filled with the guards the alarm summoned. Accidentally shoot a marine in the head during the chaotic escape from the American Embassy? Reload and you'll have regained Mina's favor, but the end-of-mission summary is convinced you murdered soldiers and Leland taunts you about it later. Thorton also frequently gets stuck on level geometry and shotgun-toting goons fire bursts of assault rifle rounds. Why Obsidian cannot playtest their games is beyond me.
The conversation system relies on timed adjectival dialogue selection. Sometimes this works well, and leads to tense, compelling character interaction. Some of the options give little indication as to what Mike will say however, lacking context and/or having multiple possible meanings. It's also obnoxious when a character says something of vital importance at the very end of their dialogue, giving you literally a second to pick a response.
The game is pretty clearly built with blast-it-out combat in mind, with stealth being a chore.
Although I appreciate the attempt to encourage repeat playthroughs, it's almost impossible to complete all your dossiers in one run, meaning you'll leave the game with a lot of unanswered questions and hanging plot threads.
In all it's a solid 8 or 9/10 title (depending on how much you care for character interaction), just be aware what you're getting into.
Shakey, but stirring
First of all, I apologize for the terrible pun :'(
Alpha Protocol is a great character-driven TPS conspiracy thriller, but it does stumble in a few places. The good:
It's certainly not a title without flaws however. The not-so-good:
In all it's a solid 8 or 9/10 title (depending on how much you care for character interaction), just be aware what you're getting into.