Prototype Torrent is a solo-player, open-world action game in the vein of Crackdown or The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction. You assume the role of a man blessed with superhuman abilities and the freedom to explore nearly anywhere you desire, engaging in a wide range of activities upon arrival. It’s sandbox gaming with a strong emphasis on unadulterated action.
Despite embodying a man endowed with superhero capabilities, Mercer is far from being heroic. Ethical choices do not come into play in this scenario. Mercer has pledged to eliminate those responsible for his current predicament, and he possesses the means to achieve it. To acquire new abilities or replenish your health, you’ll physically assimilate other living entities. If your health is running low, you can simply seize an innocent bystander, crush their head, and then absorb them for a rapid boost. In situations where attack helicopters are pursuing you on the streets, you can absorb a person and transform it into their appearance to blend in with the crowd.
Frequently, Prototype adheres to the design philosophy of including everything and the kitchen sink. Instead of facing a few adversaries, the game throws numerous enemies at you. It introduces tanks and helicopters, along with a couple of dozen innocent bystanders for good measure. This design creates a considerable amount of tension, though I occasionally found the action overly chaotic.
Even the law enforcement system is cranked up to the maximum and excessively aggressive. Simply running through the city while leaping off buildings can trigger the Strike Teams, forcing you into shape-shifting or combat. This can make the basic act of exploration more laborious than it should be. There is minimal downtime to balance out the high stress of the missions.
Prototype Torrent Magnet’s design heavily relies on the fact that you can replenish your health by assimilating victims at any time. Some attacks can deplete half of your health bar or more. Others leave you vulnerable to frustrating combos from enemies by juggling you in the air. Sometimes you may think you’ve dodged an attack, only to get hit a few feet away.
The action-packed sequences involve barely surviving to the next checkpoint or repeatedly engaging in and out of action, trying to stay alive. Skilled players may not encounter significant difficulties, but the chaos in Prototype could swiftly become overwhelming for others. I discovered several points in the game to be needlessly exasperating, to the extent that I might have turned off Prototype and walked away if I hadn’t reviewed it.
Prototype Torrent is a game with numerous impressive features. However, it lacks many of the refinements that contribute to a superb and memorable gaming experience. Describing the graphics and game engine as needing improvement is a considerable understatement, and many missions exhibit cookie-cutter designs lacking real focus or attention to detail. Fortunately, Alex Mercer’s absorbing and shape-shifting abilities manage to mitigate many of Prototype’s shortcomings. While the missions themselves may not be particularly remarkable, the extensive range of powers brings their variety and flair.
Prototype Torrent System Requirements
- OS: Windows XP/7/8/10/11
- Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo 2.6 GHz
- Memory: Vista 2 GB RAM / XP 1 GB RAM
- Graphics: All NVIDIA GeForce 7800 GT 256 MB
- DirectX: Microsoft DirectX 9.0c
- Hard Drive: 8GB
