Ah, the late aughts. It was around this period where open world action games were hitting their peak, before Grand Theft Auto V would essentially shut down everything else from western developers. Some had brief runs, like Just Cause, Watchdogs, and Saints Row, before flaming out. Prototype was one of those titles that seemed like it had a great deal of promise going for it, with its fast-paced combat, over-the-top special attacks, and gritty atmosphere, but it didn't seem to catch on as a franchise after only two entries.

Developed by Radical Entertainment and published by Activision in 2009, Prototype follows the story of Alex Mercer, fresh from waking up out of the morgue, who learns he has been infused with a symbiote that protects him from an onslaught of bullets. With the help of his sister and Dr. Bradley, he fights against special forces engaged in biological warfare. Which is a little bit amusing, the world in Prototype seems gone completely to shit, and these warring factions are only making things worse by attempting to weaponize this parasite against each other. Dudes, you're not going to have a world to salvage if you're partaking in destroying it!!

Gameplay-wise, I remember seeing Prototype labeled as an Infamous clone, and there may be some vague similarities. I think Prototype feels much more polished and uses the same engine as The Incredible Hulk: Ultimate Destruction, almost embracing the same level of chaos. Similar to Banner, Alex can leap around, scale buildings, and beat the ever-living piss out of soldiers and bystanders. Controlling Alex can be rather fidgety, as a lot of his parkour animations feel mechanical and unresponsive in spots.

The mechanic of possessing and amalgamating with people and some vehicles can be pretty refreshing, though it does come off a little baffling that a guy wielding god-like powers feels the need to blend in to avert suspicion from the same regular enemy combatants with the same firearms. And after a while, farming for EXP may end up becoming tedious. The payoff is Alex's large array of special attacks that are fun to execute. Yeah, I am quite vocal about skill trees, they remain redundant to me, especially in a game that grants you great power in the prelude, only to strip it away shortly thereafter. In the end, it's worth it for the ability to missile dropkick f**king helicopters.

Prototype's graphics are fine for the time, but I would've liked to have seen a wider variety of color palettes. Perhaps it was aiming to emulate the story's garish tone, as most of the city is bathed in drab greys and browns. What's the point of this powerful seventh generation equipment if it's not going to do anything striking with the hues? I suppose the lackluster gammas can be made up for the adequate amount of destruction you can cause. Some of the heavily infected parts of the city shake up the variety.

Mission variety juggles between destroying the infected hives, infiltrating enemy bases and stealing equipment, and whittling down the enemy forces in heavily guarded zones. The action may be fairly one note, but its simplistic nature makes Prototype that much more satisfying as a fleeting thrill ride. Alex Mercer as a protagonist doesn't interest me that much, though gravelly-voiced edgelords in the late 2000's were fairly ubiquitous. At this point in game history, a title like this really does feel like a throwback, as the genre has petered out, but the first Prototype remains a little fun to revisit.