Every time I've mentioned this game I've had the response of "What is Alpha Protocol?" That phrase alone sums up just how underrated this game was. For those of you that don't know, Alpha Protocol is essentially this: take the first Mass Effect, replace Shepard with a cocky James Bond style character, change all the locations to modern day spy-style areas and finally add some cool guns. Alright, so the only real similarity with Mass Effect is that it uses a very similar speech system, where players can choose from various vocal decisions to influence part of the story, but overall Obsidian have had a good stab at establishing a new IP.
Firstly lets look at the storyline itself. The main character Mike Thornton is basically a cockier version of James Bond, who has joined atop secret organisation within the US government called Alpha Protocol. Essentially after the first mission, the organisation betray you meaning you must resolve the situation by stopping the big bad Halbech corporation, from starting World War Three, that have infiltrated Alpha Protocol and want you dead. It doesn't really get anymore complicated than that, however the simplicity of the plot combined with the unique characters and decision making actually keeps you interested for the full 10 hours or so.
We then come on to the decision making. At first glance it seems to make a massive impact. However this is strangely deceiving as you'll soon find out. It seems like regardless of what you decide to do, whether your harsh to everyone, kind, or decide to kill most people you'll still get the same ending with a slight variation. Overall it seems like Obsidian were setting the game up for a sequel. Not to spoil the ending too much, but the decisions don't seem to have much direct impact, and the text that follows these missions talks about "ramifications". Unfortunately the reception the game recieved critically may result in there never being a sequel, which means we wont be able to see the outcome of the decisions made.
We then come to gameplay.This follows a similar style to Mass Effect 1 with some passable shooting gameplay combined with RPG elements. Players may feel like a dice roll is taking place in the background due to the fact that if your character is not proficientwith a weapon, you will notice with missed shots not at fault of the player themselves. There is also a "specialisation" part of the game that comes in with the levelling and RPG elements. This reminds me of KOTOR2, however whilst you actually have to earn the specialisation in KOTOR you just get given it outright after the first mission in AP. Advancement Points are earned throughout the game which players may spend on any of the 10 different skills in the game, much like Mass Effect 1. These skills improve Thornton's ability to use specific weapons and also grant him abilities to use during combat. In Alpha Protocol, you seem to have a lack of money and thus can't really get the best of the best for each weapon, armour, etc unless you horde cash. This doesn't really matter as much as you seem to pick up a couple of bits and pieces on missions, allowing you to still be able to stand your ground without feeling underpowered.
Sadly there is alot of screen tearing and framerate drops here and there. If you get this game, you need to install it. End of. The game has not been optimised efficiently by Obsidian and it seriously shows, especially considering visually the game is nothing spectacular.
To conclude, Alpha Protocol is not a bad game. It is just a little bit rough around the edges. If you look past the screen tearing, framerate drops, and some jank, what you'll get out of it is a fun espionage RPG with a lot to do, a good story and decent characters. You could waste 10+ hours of your life with Alpha Protocol and still be 'satisfied', however just don't expect anything spectacular.
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