Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 06/06

Part 06: APPENDICES and MORE: Tables, Poster, and Gallery Primer

BlackWatch Gunships patrol the ominous orange skies of Manhattan. The Gallery of exclusive art showcases the development of the game, and is filled with developer commentary.

An early look at Alex's Hammerfist Power; an example of the impressive art that fills the back of this book.

Another early sketch showing the impetus for the flowing tendrils that Alex can protrude from his form.

!!WARNING!! Very light Spoiler information is contained below!

An already-chunky book was made morbidly obese with the addition of some final, and incredibly helpful information. In this final Prototype guide Blog, I run through the host of charts and tables at the back of the book, just what to expect when you unfold your Prototype poster (included with the guide), and as you’ve already seen by now, what to expect from the exclusive, art-filled Gallery.

Tables and charts: Hardly thrilling, but an imperative part of every guide, as they allow you to quickly ascertain game information in seconds, without plodding through an entire guide. Fortunately, the Appendices chapter grants you all the information you need, beginning with Evolution Points. The key to Upgrading Alex is to obtain as many Points as possible. To do this, it might be a good idea to provide a massive table showing every Point permutation possible. That’s what I did, so you can find out how many EPs you get for killing a BlackWatch Grenadier (75, by the way), for finishing a particular Event with a specific score total, for finding Collectibles, and for finishing Missions.

This thrill-o-rama continues with an Upgrade chart. The “Holy Grail” of Prototype information, this reveals when every single Upgrade becomes available, and the cost to purchase it. Need to know when you can Body Surf on a bloodied corpse? After Mission 4.04 of course, but it’ll cost you 120,000 Evolution Points. The awesomeness continues with the Events Table, literally showing when each Event is available. To finish, there’s a complete list (with icons and advice) of every Achievement and Trophy, too.

We went slightly bonkers on the Poster you’ll get with the guide, too. For starters, the whole of one of the sides is filled with a Moves list. Every single attack, combo chain, or maneuver is shown, along with the button presses you need. Flip the poster over, and you have a gigantic map of Manhattan showing where all the Collectibles, Hives, Bases, and Events are. There’s also a complete Web of Intrigue showing all Sequences, with locations for every one of your victims.

Finally, it would be a travesty not to add on a 40+ page art Galley, complete with dozens of never-seen-before pre-production sketches, renders, and paintings. There’s prototypes (ahem) of Alex, the various characters, as well as spectacular panoramas of New York under viral attack, the various viral powers that never made it into final production, and special, exclusive biographies of every major character, stuffed into the back of the book as they reveal some major plot points.

I hope you have as much fun reading this guide as I did making it. I’d also like to extend a special thanks to everyone at Radical, Activision, and Prima for making this book so informative.

Purchase The Prototype: Prima Official Game Guide from here.

Categories: Projects
Tags: Prototype, strategy guide
Related Posts: Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 05/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 04/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 03/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 02/06

Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 05/06

Part 05: ADDITIONAL OFFERINGS: Events and Collectibles Primer

Engage in a variety of additional Events, such as this frantic battle against the Military's finest battle Tanks.

The Events soon become massive and frantic fight-fests that are as entertaining as they are brutal. Note Alex's Armor and Blade Powers in use.

This wouldn't be a Radical game without a massive amount of Collectibles to scrounge. Found one!

!!WARNING!! Very light Spoiler information is contained below!

With a game as massively entertaining as Prototype, you’d expect there to be a whole host of additional modes and exploration to attempt. And you’d be correct; I devoted a large chunk of this 256-page guide monstrosity to all the additional content available in the game, the biggest of which are the Events.

As you progress through the main Mission structure (or you purchase a particularly brutal Upgrade Power), you’re awarded with an increasingly difficult series of Events. These are usually timed “mini-games”, with a score or time to beat. So that you can master every single one of these Events (and there are around 60 to finish), I spent some thumb-bleeding, eye-straining weeks attempting to score as highly as possible. My conclusions are as follows:

There are Movement, Glide, Kill, War, and Consume Events. For the first four of these Event types, I began with a map of Manhattan. This map shows the starting locations of each Event, along with any associated Waypoints along the way, so that spatially, you can see how far you have to travel. Next comes a table I’m particularly proud of. For every relevant Event, you are awarded a particular “Medal” depending on your prowess. The score or time needed for every Medal (including a Medal not initially available to you) is shown, so you immediately know what to aim for.

Better yet, the maniacs inside the QA and Testing departments at both Activision and Radical provided me with a score or time from their very best players. These incredible scores allow you knowledge of what it takes to completely master an Event. This doesn’t “unlock” anything (or even appear) in the game, but is simply for bragging rights. Following that, every individual Event is shown, with screenshots and tactics for obtaining the best in-game score possible.

The insanity doesn’t end there, either! The most closely-guarded secrets of the game get a thorough going-over; the most complicated of which is the Web of Intrigue. Essentially a collection of hidden pedestrians scattered throughout Manhattan, and the main Missions, you gradually build a series of memories to help you understand how you came into being. Of course, finding all of these individuals that hold memories you need is almost impossible; until you read this section of the guide, which shows when and where each Web of Intrigue target appears, and how to find them. I spend a mind-bogglingly long amount of time figuring this out with the help of Radical, and this is worth the price of the guide on its own.

Of course, there’s another gigantic series of Collectibles to find, too. These take the form of glowing keys to the city, and there’s a huge number of them to find. Fortunately, I found them all, plotted where all of them are on the attached Poster Map, took screenshots of every single one, made sure to add a check box and number next to each screen so you know which ones you’ve collected, and then I fell over.

Join me one more time as I get back up, and post Blog 06, which reveals some vital information on the guide’s Appendices, Poster, and the special behind-the-scenes Gallery.

Purchase The Prototype: Prima Official Game Guide from here.

Categories: Projects
Tags: Prototype, strategy guide
Related Posts: Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 06/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 04/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 03/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 02/06

Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 04/06

Part 04: ADVANCE and OBLITERATE: Walkthrough Primer

From the very first moments of this initial Mission, the cavalcade of carnage is accessible, producing some truly disgusting dismemberment!

Not all Missions involve tearing your enemies to shreds. Here, Alex must remain in Disguise, and Consume a Military Commander without being spotted… too late!

As you progress through the Missions, the Upgrades you're able to purchase, and the enemies that attack you, become more and more impressive. And spiky.

As you’d expect, a large part of this Official Game Guide to Prototype is taken up with a highly-detailed Walkthrough. With 27 Missions (segmented into ten separate “Episodes”) to attempt, and numerous ways to complete each one, this chapter was designed for you to easily “dip” into a particular Mission you’re having trouble with, or to read from start to finish. With a well-designed tabulation system, you can instantly find the name of the Mission, which Episode it is in, and how far you’ve progressed through the Missions portion of the game. But the information overload doesn’t end there….

Whether you’re rampaging through the streets of Manhattan attempting a number of freeform activities, or simply finding a Military Base to infiltrate, you’ll soon be back and uncovering numerous revelations about your past, present, and future. The Walkthrough was designed to keep you posted about these occurrences, but without any major spoilers ruining the surprise. Of course, you need to tame your page-flipping hand, as the larger “Boss” like creatures are thoroughly detailed, with every possible killing technique shown, but as long as you have some self-control, you’ll easily navigate the Walkthrough, and uncover the optimal paths to take.

Each Mission begins with an Overview. Don’t know what the Mission entails? Then read this, and you’ll soon figure out exactly what you’re about to accomplish. Next comes a map of Manhattan; the same one you see in the game, with the same iconography the game uses. Surrounding each map are Waypoints, exactly as they appear in the game, but with the added benefit of an attached screenshot (so you can see exactly where to go), and the Objectives you complete at each Waypoint (so you can effectively complete the Mission without reading through the Walkthrough portion itself). Cunning? I hope so; but the real information continues throughout the rest of the pages:

The detailed Mission Walkthrough section is divided into screenshots and text separating out every Objective you’re given, thus allowing you to pinpoint the area in the game you need help with, and reading about it. Icons for the objective Waypoint markers are shown here too, for extra access. Then comes a variety of (mainly spectacular and large) screens, tips, notes, cautions, and flags when you’re gifted brand new Powers. At the end of each Mission, any new rewards are listed. Fortunately, a more comprehensive series of Appendices (at the back of the book) reveal every single Event, Upgrade, and host of Evolution Points you can receive. The Walkthrough was designed with you in mind, and with constant input from Radical and Activision. The results blend accessibility with entertainment and information.

Naturally, there’s much more to Prototype than a critical path; come back for Blog 05, where I rampage through all the “additional” gameplay elements you can take part in.

Purchase The Prototype: Prima Official Game Guide from here.

Categories: Projects
Tags: Prototype, strategy guide
Related Posts: Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 06/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 05/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 03/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 02/06

Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 03/06

Part 03: ANTAGONISTS and OPPOSITION: Entity Encounters Primer

Pedestrians, whether they're innocents (or in this case, Marines) can be Sprinted through with appropriate Powers; in this case, the Armor.

This chapter also reveals some of the more hideous viral infections that are rampaging through the city, such as this massive Hydra.

You can engage in vehicular manslaughter by hijacking a Tank, and using it in a variety of destructive and entertaining ways.

Gaining a visual representation of the many individuals that population the mean, mutating streets of New York City is as important as being tooled up with the latest in blade-arm sinewy growths, and this compact but thoroughly useful chapter doesn’t disappoint; giving you all the information you need for tackling (or fleeing) from the forms you encounter during Prototype. These are broken down into separate types:

The largest entity group are the Innocent, confused and bewildered individuals that pose no threat to you, but are useful to your cause in a variety of (increasingly unpleasant) ways. I show you the best ways of obtaining “help” from the New York populous, although this usually ends in a health increase for you, and a gory mess for them. A complete list of interactions you can try between the Innocent and Alex is noted, before the next type of entity is revealed; the Infected.

Shambling through the day, drooling and moaning incoherently, the freshly Infected may share characteristics you’d normally associate with New Yorkers, but have an added bloodlust, and constantly trudge their zombified way towards you. The guide shows you where the highest concentration of these fiends are, along with battle-tested, Radical-approved combat tactics to try. Just what are the Infected useful for? You’ll find out, along with information on the more terminally-afflicted; harder, faster, and more thoroughly disgusting Infected variants that cause no end of problems if you don’t know how to dispatch them. Naturally, this is covered, too.

Perhaps the most grotesque creations that the viral infection that rages through Manhattan has created, are the Hunter forms. Giant, lolloping beasts that tear and rend flesh, cut down Tanks with a few swipes of their massively muscled arms, and provide a real challenge for Alex Mercer. That is of course, unless he reads the bit of this chapter devoted to killing Hunters in a variety of unpleasant, but Activision-approved ways. Our attack patterns aren’t limited to the initial Hunter forms too; the more hideous mutations get a good going-over, both in this chapter and during the Walkthrough.

The other major faction of Prototype are the Military, and it is important to know how to interact with them, both to gain access to their hardware, their bases, or know their weaknesses to exploit them. Military personnel come in two types; those trained by the BlackWatch special forces, and Marines themselves. Notes on the weapons they carry are supplied, along with tactics on tackling their Commanders, and infiltrating their Bases. There’s even knowledge on the SuperSoldiers; truly frightening man-mountains that can cause considerable problems later in your adventure. This chapter is all wrapped up with visual identification of various machinery and vehicles you should be aware of, and how to best defeat, or even drive them.

Come back for Blog 04, where I give a spoiler-free look into Alex Mercer’s massive and enthralling 27 Missions to find out the truth about his powers, and much more.

Purchase The Prototype: Prima Official Game Guide from here.

Categories: Projects
Tags: Prototype, strategy guide
Related Posts: Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 06/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 05/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 04/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 02/06

Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 02/06

Part 02: ATTACK and OBFUSCATE: Upgrades Primer

The Upgrades chapter gives blow-by-blow accounts of your greatest attacks, such as this second hit from a Claws Combo chain.

Upgrade Powers such as the Whipfist introduce longer-ranged attacks, which can be useful when you're hoping for a ride from a helicopter.

Surf conditions are currently bloody, with a slight chance of disembowelment: The Body Surf is both entertaining and gruesome.

Part of the excitement of Prototype is rampaging through the streets, throttling the Infected, crushing skulls, and beating down anything that moves with a variety of sharp sinewy mutations and blackened tendrils. With this in mind, I went about this gigantic chapter (filled with close to 500 screenshots) by comprehensively benchtesting every single move in the game. This allowed me to separate every single one of Alex Mercer’s moves, and write about their effectiveness, either for combat or maneuvering. The results are a thorough and exciting romp through Alex’s madcap techniques, but never confusing, as the information is presented exactly as it is read in the in-game menus. Alex has a variety of Upgrade types at his disposal, and spending Evolution Points on the right ones is the key to ultimate enjoyment of the game.

By far the most deadly of Alex’s Upgrades are his Powers; if you’ve seen video of Alex tearing through enemies using a prehensile blade fused to his arm, you’ll have seen a Power at work. After a chart showing exactly when in your adventure each Power becomes available (and its cost), every one of the Power’s techniques receives attention, taking the form of a moves list like a fighting game guide. For example, with Alex’s Blade Power, all of the techniques he can muster, such as Blade Combo Chains, the Air Slice, the Blade Frenzy, and the special Consume animations he does when grabbing a victim are shown, with a screenshot for each hit in a Combo, or each technique itself. Then comes a Tactical Overview; essentially running through every particular technique and its effectiveness, along with when to use it in a combat situation.

The Blade, Claws, Shield, Armor, Hammerfist, Whipfist, Musclemass, and Sensory Powers all receive this meticulous going-over. Then comes Movement Upgrades, which are techniques that allow you to leap and glide from building to building without touching the ground, Diverolling to avoid ground attacks, Sprinting increases, and Jumping upgrades. Then comes information on Survivability Upgrades, increasing your Critical Mass, Health, and Regeneration. All of this sounds confusing, but the guide shines a light on the exact techniques to cherry-pick and use first, and which to save for a later purchase.

There are normal Combat Upgrades too. This provides a host of additional offensive moves to your arsenal, including the disgusting Body Surf, the always-helpful Flying Kick, and crowd-clearing ground pounding such as the Bulletdive Drop. Next comes Area Effect attacks, which include Devastator attacks; the strongest and most impressive offensive skewering available. Next are Disguise Upgrades, allowing you to quicken your Consuming, or even attempt Stealth Consumes without anyone spotting you. There’s even information on calling in massive Artillery Strike firepower, and fooling the enemy with a Patsy move.

The final sets of Upgrades to learn are those involving Vehicles; you’ll learn how to hijack a Tank, skyjack a helicopter, and learn the techniques needed to reach an airborne chopper to maximize your maneuverability. There are Upgrades to increase your effectiveness inside vehicles, and finally, a series of Upgrades for using the Military’s array of weapons, from Missile Launchers to Assault Rifles. Emerge from this chapter fully capable to challenge the most fearsome (and not to mention, mutated) foes!

The mutated foes in question are alluded to in Blog 03, which shows off the guide’s entities, from the shambling to the shredding, and including frightened humans as well as frightening and many-tendrilled beasts. Check back here for the information.

Purchase The Prototype: Prima Official Game Guide from here.

Categories: Projects
Tags: Prototype, strategy guide
Related Posts: Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 06/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 05/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 04/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 03/06

Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 01/06

Part 01: ADAPT and OVERCOME: General Training Primer

One of the first gameplay revelations to discover: You'll be spending just as much time moving vertically as horizontally. Alex Mercer gazes over a maze of concrete canyons above Times Square.

The action also occurs on the mean streets of Manhattan. Certain zones are filled with the shambling Infected; recent victims of a contagion afflicting all of New York City.

A not-so wise guy shoves Alex, and pays for his lack of respect. Alex feeds off humans, the Infected, and uses this Consume poIr to don the disguise of his last victim. After a punch through the heart, naturally.

After working on the Scarface Strategy Guide with Developers Radical Entertainment, it was a real thrill to team up and write the official guide to their latest game. Created over a two-month period, where I trekked over every inch of Manhattan Island, I’ve created a monstrously detailed guide to Prototype, printed on thick glossy paper, and with the regulation depth and ease-of-use that Prima guides are known for. Over my next six Blog posts, I’ll work my way through the various chapters in the guide, so you know what to expect. I’ve chosen some amusing (and usually violent) in-game screenshots (which appear in the guide along with hundreds of other pictures) to compliment my ramblings.

The Training section of the Prototype Guide isn’t a rehash of the instruction manual. Far from it, in fact. After showcasing the different Menu options, I charged straight into the action, explaining the Heads-up Display features so you know exactly what all the icons are on your screen, and how useful they can be when you’re searching for foes, or under attack. Every single major activity is covered, including ones you earn as you progress through the game. After that, I went for a spot of sightseeing around the city, detailing all the different ways you can approach the game. This includes advice on Missions, freeform exploration, Bases and Hives, Combat (both on-foot and vehicles), and specific gameplay features too cool to reveal just now.

As you may have gathered, combat plays an overriding (and extremely messy) role in your adventure, and it’s worth knowing exactly how to advance your skills. Fortunately, I revealed how to increase your Evolution Points – the unit of currency with which you can upgrade your poIrs. Every single method of accruing points is shown, from Killing, Consuming, Culling, completing Events, and finishing Missions. There’s a load of useful information on maintaining your Health, too; whether you’re clamped to a thrashing beast, consuming it in a mass of black tendrils, or barraging through crowds of the Infected using your prehensile shield. It’s all in there!

Finally, as a prelude to the second chapter (which showcases your Upgrades), the guide gives you a frame-by-frame account of the dozens of combat attacks and general maneuvers you can try. Need to know how to climb and jump from a wall, or throw vehicles? Want to see the various disgusting and grotesque ways to Consume a human? Need to perfect the dozens of punch and kick combo chains? Well, you’ve come to the correct chapter. To finally wrap up the Training, I listed over 20 Prototips; general advice for making your chaotic stay in New York City that much more violently enjoyable. And this is only 14 pages of the way through this 256-page guide….

Check out Blog 02, which shows off every single Upgrade (and there are dozens) that Alex Mercer can take advantage of. Need to know how to dismember a dozen Infected with a single strike? Want to know how to take down a Tank? Check back here for the information.

Purchase The Prototype: Prima Official Game Guide from here.

Categories: Projects
Tags: Prototype, strategy guide
Related Posts: Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 06/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 05/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 04/06 Prototype Official Guide / Primer / Blog 03/06