OXM UK: Prey is 'Worshipful'

[fitbabits]

Looks like the Xbox 360 has another bona fide hit on the way in the shape of Prey. Official Xbox Magazine (UK) (http://www.oxm.co.uk) praises Prey for its innovative ideas throughout, incredible level and texture detail, and great sense of 'Duke-lite' humour. Final score - 8 out of 10

You can read the whole review here (http://www.oxm.co.uk/articles/reviews/1st_person/prey).

Prey is like watching a fireworks display within someone’s lower bowel. It’s like being inside a kebab. While it’s being eaten.

Every surface bulges, pulsates, oozes and writhes, coils of giant alien intestine sliding over each other within glistening membranes and mucoid sacs. It’s really quite revolting. Prey has swallowed the Doom 3 engine whole and regurgitated bilious goo that will stick to your eyes and keep them glued to the topsy-turvy screen until you’ve passed through its extremely alien world like a pepperami through a dog. A dog trapped in a washing machine.

..........

Prey is packed with great ideas and there’s always a surprise around every sticky corner. We need titles like this that play with convention while still courting it. They prove that you can make games within the constraints of third-party engines but still cut a new dash if you’ve got the imagination and mischievous sense of humour that this shooter is loaded with.
This is now a must buy for me. I know the game has its detractors here, but I simply have to have it!

[Wyrm]

Agreed, I will be picking it up day 1. There was some doubt as to whether or not they'd be able to keep up the creativity, and if this says they do, consider it money well spent.

[RainOfTerror]

So much praise, calling it worshipful, but yet an 8/10 score? That's a rating for nothing more than a good game.

strange ...

[MSUStud911]

This game was a must buy for me after my first 10 minutes with the demo. July 11 cannot come soon enough.

[Wyrm]

So much praise, calling it worshipful, but yet an 8/10 score? That's a rating for nothing more than a good game.

strange ...

Yeah, I was thinking the same thing. The word 'worshipful' sounds like at least a 9/10, if not a perfect score. Maybe they didn't like the story.

[Zacharai]

This game was a must buy for me after my first 10 minutes with the demo.

The first 10 minutes only solidified my resolve. I decided to buy it when I saw the video last year.

[Siraris]

Who the hell would want to be in someones lower bowel?

[MSUStud911]

The first 10 minutes only solidified my resolve. I decided to buy it when I saw the video last year.
You had great foresight my friend. Prey was almost entirely off my radar. I just assumed it was going to be a generic shooter with no real innovation besides "living" weapons. I was horribly horribly wrong. This game is probably going to turn out to be the most innovative and interesting shooter since Half Life 2.

[Savok]

Prey is like watching a fireworks display within someone’s lower bowel.
Best sentence in a review ever

[Plays4Pants]

i love reviewers these days...their words and their score represent 2 different things. Its like they're either ashamed or over zealous about their honest thoughts about what a game should be over their hype for it.
This reviewer was obviously disappointed with this game and therefore gave it an 8 and praised it like a 10.
And i think its because no game in years have HONESTLY deserved a 9+. so, to give a game that rating you must then write totally ignore a games numerous flaws. Hype never meets the standard of the hype...ever! (cough cough halo 2/half life 2). It's like the reviewers admit that they're meaningless and arbitrary and they're words are pre-determined. Everyone saw the hype-o-meter and it said "this game is an 8 on hype-ness"...viola.

[Deadend]

So, was it only 6 hours long?

[sflufan]

i love reviewers these days...their words and their score represent 2 different things. Its like they're either ashamed or over zealous about their honest thoughts about what a game should be over their hype for it.
This reviewer was obviously disappointed with this game and therefore gave it an 8 and praised it like a 10.
And i think its because no game in years have HONESTLY deserved a 9+. so, to give a game that rating you must then write totally ignore a games numerous flaws. Hype never meets the standard of the hype...ever! (cough cough halo 2/half life 2). It's like the reviewers admit that they're meaningless and arbitrary and they're words are pre-determined. Everyone saw the hype-o-meter and it said "this game is an 8 on hype-ness"...viola.

In what universe is a score of 80% considered "disappointing"?

[Kelegacy]

I'll hold off and rent it. Demo was fun, but not 60 dollars worth of fun.

[Plays4Pants]

In what universe is a score of 80% considered "disappointing"?

The universe of video games reviewers...dummy. Where 2-3 games a month get 90+ reviews and theres a new "BEST GAME EVER IN THE HISTORY OF GAMING!" every 4 months.

Fight night round 3 or whatever got a 100%...why? hmm...cause there wasn't a "BEST GAME EVER IN THE HISTORY OF GAMING!" out recently

[Savok]

In what universe is a score of 80% considered "disappointing"?
The old Aussie mag Hyper for one, horrible games (which they called horrible) got 60s. It depends on the publication what which score means what (yes I did that on purpose).

[Abednigo]

I enjoyed what I played of the demo. It reminded me of Duke Nukem (which makes sense considering who made it). But I can't see myself buying it.

[Varsity]

So much praise, calling it worshipful, but yet an 8/10 score?
A pun on its Cherokee stuff perhaps?

Also, who here is going to be picking the game up on Triton (http://www.playtriton.com/prey/)?

[fitbabits]

So much praise, calling it worshipful, but yet an 8/10 score? That's a rating for nothing more than a good game.

strange ...
I dunno man, read the review - there's a few negatives, but the positives far outweigh them. After reading the review, I say the 8 is justified. Oh, and it was also pun-tastic, which you would have grasped had you read the review.

[Plays4Pants]

I dunno man, read the review - there's a few nagatives, but the positives far outweigh them. After reading the review, I say the 8 is justified. Oh, and it was also pun-tastic, which you would have grasped had you read the review.

That's fine, however, if the hype-o-meter was high enough the reviewer would have ignored the negatives or spin it. The hype was at an 8/10 and therefore the game got a 8/10.
Of course, i'm not the author and i'm just predicting. But honestly, i could have predicted EVERY basic score for every blockbuster game that's come out in the last two years. This is getting sad. And so have the reviewers. This is why Game geeks shouldn't be game reviewers. they're bias as shit and dumb as hell and there shit can go to hell.

[phantomhitman]

the mp was great but the single player sucked me in. i am going to rent it to make sure its worth the $60.

[fitbabits]

That's fine, however, if the hype-o-meter was high enough the reviewer would have ignored the negatives or spin it. The hype was at an 8/10 and therefore the game got a 8/10.
Of course, i'm not the author and i'm just predicting. But honestly, i could have predicted EVERY basic score for every blockbuster game that's come out in the last two years. This is getting sad. And so have the reviewers. This is why Game geeks shouldn't be game reviewers. they're bias as shit and dumb as hell and there shit can go to hell.
Look, did you read the whole review? Did you read the plus points and negative points? An eight is a damn good score. On a scale of 1-to-10, anything above a 6 or 7 is a good-to-great game. Which I'm guessing is why Prey got an 8, not a 9 or 10. As already stated, the 'worshipful' designation was nothing more than a damn pun.

I challenge you, then, to predict average scores for Gears of War, Timeshift, Test Drive Unlimited, or whichever game you choose. I mean, if you're so good at predicting scores, there's NO CHANCE of you ever being let down by a game you buy, right?

[Salesmunn]

the mp was great but the single player sucked me in. i am going to rent it to make sure its worth the $60.

Well, if you rent it first make sure it's worth around $67 plus tax, because that's how much it's going to cost with the rental price. (gamefly included)

[Beelzebud]

The demo was fun, but there isn't anything really new there.

Portals - Saw the exact same method used in the original Unreal engine.
z-axis fighting - You can tell they loved the SiN DM level, Paradox.
Alive weapons - Half Life 1

The graphics are pretty, and it seemed fun, but I'm not sure this is a buyer. The weapons seem sort of lame the more I play around with the demo.

I haven't seen it mentioned anywhere either, but the physics seems to be the same engine from Doom3, which means it's not very good.

[Wyrm]

Game reviews are nice, but until you get the game in your own hands, you wont know how much fun you could be missing.

There are a fuck ton of games I never would have bought if I had listened to reviewers, but I dont, so I end up with stuff that I'm happy with.

From playing the demo, this game had a 9/10 from me. The only thing I felt lacking was the story, and I was playing a demo version of the game, so that's kind of a moot point. As long as the game stays fresh, it's one of the best action FPS games I've played in a long time. It's just fun. When it boils down to it, I was having a shitload of fun just gunning my way through every room. I even enjoyed the puzzles (which in most FPS games, I cannot freaking stand).

[jacktion]

I would read the review but it seems that I have to register in order to be lucky enough to read this reviewer's wonderful prose. No thanks. I'll pass. The short excerpts that I have seen here are enough to recognize an idiot when I hear one.
"like watching fireworks in someone's bowels". Wow, that is pure poetry.
Really, can videogame reviewing get much more crapulent?
From the thankfully limited exposure to this reviewer's analogies it seems that this game is basically derivative Antigrav Doom in an Intestine. That doesn't sound too good to me.

And I believe that the "worshipful" comment is intended to be some sort of pun on the name of the game. Of course they are referring to the alternate spelling and usage so the pun doesn't really work as you can see by everyone's confusion regarding it.

Nice work, reviewer dude! You are really proving Chuck Klosterman right!

[Food Nipple]

Sounds like the typical over the top crap that usually passes for a review in OXM. I like Prey and will probably purchase it, but I'll wait for a review that doesn't sound like it was written by an over-caffinated 12 year old.

[Abednigo]

In what universe is a score of 80% considered "disappointing"?

The same universe that says a movie making $80 million dollars opening weekend is a flop. Like this quote (made before the July 4th holiday):

Supes only pulled down $84 of the $260 million (about 32%) needed to break even.

Just stupid. I don't get people sometimes.

And yeah, yeah, I'm not in the movie industry and I probably don't understand how business works. Blah, blah, blah. ;)

[Kelegacy]

I dunno man, read the review - there's a few nagatives, but the positives far outweigh them. After reading the review, I say the 8 is justified. Oh, and it was also pun-tastic, which you would have grasped had you read the review.
I would have rated the demo an 8/10, something I mentioned in the demo thread back when it was released, so this is no big surprise. In fact, it shows how right I am most of the time. By most I mean all of the time.

[torrefaction]

I think the SP campaign looked fantastic. But the MP seemed piss-poor to me. It felt like weak, and boring.

Rent.

[Zawath]

If the game is really 6 hours long then it's not worth the price IMO.

[Grimmjow]

ya know, i like the game dont get me wrong, i jus think they could have did a better job on the graphics, i played the demo on pc first so maybe i shoundlt have done that...

[fitbabits]

If the game is really 6 hours long then it's not worth the price IMO.
I'd rather spend my time and money playing six enjoyable hours on Prey than 100+ hours watching Final Fantasy XXXVII on the iPlayStation X. :rolleyes:

[EternalGamer]

I guess this just confirms how far I am from "mainstream" tastes. I played through the demo two nights a go and while the mechanics and graphics seemed solid, I was left with the feeling of asking "Is that all?" There wasn't anything in the entire demo that wowed me. I've seen the type of 3D level design before adn done better in games like Descent. The weapons all felt like they were muffled and the dialogue is just absolutely horrible. If it were a Scifi film, it would be below B grade with lines like "This is fucked up... no, now that's fucked up" delievered with all the emotion of someone reading a telephone directory.

Maybe I just don't "get" the FPS genre. I like the really good ones like Half Life 2 and Halo, but when stuff like this gets rave reviews, I am left perplexed. In terms of level design, production values, and storyline something like Tomb Raider Legends runs circles around this. Maybe it's because I am just coming off of having finished the latter, but this demo didn't impress me at all and I actually went into it expecting for find something noteworthy given all the positive feedback here on EA..

[phantomhitman]

Well, if you rent it first make sure it's worth around $67 plus tax, because that's how much it's going to cost with the rental price. (gamefly included)

or I use the free rentals I get through hollywood video and xbox live diamond card...I am a big baller gamer ;)

[earthworm48]

Enjoyment is relative to the user, I wouldn't purchase for 6 hours, just borrow or rent and OXM UK is a trash magazine, I'd tell you to make up your minds from the demo, or wait for an Edge review or something.

[Kelegacy]

I'd rather spend my time and money playing six enjoyable hours on Prey than 100+ hours watching Final Fantasy XXXVII on the iPlayStation X. :rolleyes:
Ah, but you'll be PLAYING FFXII. Yeah, we watch cutscenes, but it's the equivalent (to me) of an interactive movie or book, in terms of epicness. Oblivion was well over 100 hours for me (and still going) so I figure it's worth 60 bucks to me. 6 hours of gameplay isn't worth 10 bucks an hour. That's why it's a perfect rental.

$6.00 > $60.00 :)

[EternalGamer]

And as lame as the Final Fantasy plots are, you will never find anything as embarassing and unoriginal as the dialogue I witnessed in the 1 hour Prey demo. Its the sort of stuff that would get canceled from the 2AM slot on Scifi network.

[Steele Johnson]

The game seems to play better on a console so I'll probably pick it up for the 360 when the price drops a bit. I don't typically pay full price for a single player game with a mediocre multiplayer. If I'm going to shell out $50-$60 for a 360 game, it has to have a fun multiplayer component. It's all about Live. :D

[fitbabits]

And as lame as the Final Fantasy plots are, you will never find anything as embarassing and unoriginal as the dialogue I witnessed in the 1 hour Prey demo. Its the sort of stuff that would get canceled from the 2AM slot on Scifi network.
Like Battlestar Galactica then? ;)

[Claus DuBois]

..........I challenge you, then, to predict average scores for XXXX, Timeshift XXXX

somewhere between 5.3 and 6.5 based strictly on the demo

[Manzy]

I'd rather spend my time and money playing six enjoyable hours on Prey than 100+ hours watching Final Fantasy XXXVII on the iPlayStation X. :rolleyes:

I've heard this arguement countless times before, and in reality I wouldn't want either if I'm paying 50-60 dollars. It's like comparing crap to diarehia(sp, I know). It's irrelevant.

[donkeydrop]

The demo wasn't bad, but it wasn't good either. Kind of like F.E.A.R. really, seemed like it might be interesting for 15 minutes but then you realize that its just the same thing over and over and the story is too weak to keep you interested.

[fitbabits]

I've heard this arguement countless times before, and in reality I wouldn't want either if I'm paying 50-60 dollars. It's like comparing crap to diarehia(sp, I know). It's irrelevant.
Which is why I included the sarcasm smiley. -:rolleyes:-

I try to be good and not forget the smiley, I really do.

[Maskatron]

Also, who here is going to be picking the game up on Triton (http://www.playtriton.com/prey/)?

I'd rather wait and see if I can pick it up on sale next weekend. I don't need to play it the exact second it comes out.

[EvilBob46]

In what universe is a score of 80% considered "disappointing"?

80% is a good score for a good game. However, a score like this can be disappointing if the game was hyped to hell as a be all/end all killer-app kind of deal. Not saying that this is the case here...but an 80% can most certainly can be disappointing.

I'd rather spend my time and money playing six enjoyable hours on Prey than 100+ hours watching Final Fantasy XXXVII on the iPlayStation X. :rolleyes:

Final Fantasy games aren't the only ones that give you a lot of content for your buck, nor does a game have to be "100" hours long. I just find that FPS games are getting shorter and shorter these days, and paying $60 for 6 hours of gameplay is a tad insane. I remember playing Deus Ex when it came out - it took me 30 hours. Resident Evil 4 was a another great game and is a more recent example...25 hours. You can have great action experience that still gives you a decent bang for your buck.

[Plays4Pants]

Look, did you read the whole review? Did you read the plus points and negative points? An eight is a damn good score. On a scale of 1-to-10, anything above a 6 or 7 is a good-to-great game. Which I'm guessing is why Prey got an 8, not a 9 or 10. As already stated, the 'worshipful' designation was nothing more than a damn pun.

I challenge you, then, to predict average scores for Gears of War, Timeshift, Test Drive Unlimited, or whichever game you choose. I mean, if you're so good at predicting scores, there's NO CHANCE of you ever being let down by a game you buy, right?

Actually there are plenty of times i've been let down by a game i buy cause the REVIEWS ARE BASED ON HYPE NOT THE GAME! did you not get what i was saying? apparently, you think i'm mocking prey. i don't care about prey. I'

Oh and gears of war...9/10 and 93 out of 100 reviews that will talk about graphics all day long and multiplayer...mentioning its shortcomings as "not so bad" like its linearity and lame premise.
ffxii will average 91...saying how it's what the fans wanted...blah blah blah.
halo 3 will average 95 no MATTER WHAT THE GAME ENDS UP BEING. Look at the hype then give it a rating to that then amazingly you will find the actual rating when it does come out. this isn't hard...you can do it.
The normal person that payed attention to gaming hype would have given this game an 8 out of 10 BEFORE THE DEMO. I sure did

[Wyrm]

And as lame as the Final Fantasy plots are, you will never find anything as embarassing and unoriginal as the dialogue I witnessed in the 1 hour Prey demo. Its the sort of stuff that would get canceled from the 2AM slot on Scifi network.

You know, as video games go, I thought that for realistic game dialogue, they did a pretty damned good job. No one knows how the fuck someone would react to an alien invasion, because it hasn't happened. Dropping F-bombs every once and awhile seems reasonable to me. Picking up a gun and stating how much shit you are going to rock with it, while somewhat vulgar, is fucking brilliant. It's got some Duke humor with some of its own flavor, and I really dug it. I'm really into the game and the setting and I knew next to nothing about it when I played the demo.

[Manzy]

Which is why I included the sarcasm smiley. -:rolleyes:-

I try to be good and not forget the smiley, I really do.

God, I missed the sarcasm smiley. I thought I'd never do that. Please excuse me while I scourge myself.

[Guy Mariano]

Demo was Meh. 6 hours long = no way since multiplayer sucks

[Wyrm]

Ok, is the game six hours long, or was that what someone said sarcasitcally wondering why they scored the game at an 8/10? If it's only 6 hours long, that sucks ass.

[Wyrm]

So, was it only 6 hours long?

Here's the post that made everyone think it was six hours, unless I'm mistaken, and the review says so. So, you can stop saying the game is short for the time being.

[antoniogaud]

I thought the demo was great! Art Bell was just icing on the cake!!!

[sonysyndicate]

The demo was fun, but there isn't anything really new there.

Portals - Saw the exact same method used in the original Unreal engine.
z-axis fighting - You can tell they loved the SiN DM level, Paradox.
Alive weapons - Half Life 1

The graphics are pretty, and it seemed fun, but I'm not sure this is a buyer. The weapons seem sort of lame the more I play around with the demo.

I haven't seen it mentioned anywhere either, but the physics seems to be the same engine from Doom3, which means it's not very good.

I too played the demo and thought the single player action was pretty sweet, but the multiplayer left something to be desired.

[Dag-Sabot]

...fireworks display within someone’s lower bowel.
-Pathetic. Lower bowel?! Where is that, I wonder? Oh he means the small intestine. What a twit.

[King Chaos]

Doom 3... this time with a zippo?! I'll skip it, thank you ;)

[randir14]

Doom 3... this time with a zippo?! I'll skip it, thank you ;)
At least you can hold the lighter and a gun at the same time

[Deadend]

Here's the post that made everyone think it was six hours, unless I'm mistaken, and the review says so. So, you can stop saying the game is short for the time being.

Well, there were many rumors going around a couple weeks ago that the demo that took about an hour to finish was 1/6th of the game, and others said it would be 6 hours then.

I just want to know, as if Prey is not a 2 sitting game, I will be all over it.

[kid cabelgo]

-Pathetic. Lower bowel?! Where is that, I wonder? Oh he means the small intestine. What a twit.

The lower bowel is probably referencing the large intestine, not the small, if i'm not mistaken.

You know, where the poop (http://www.patient.co.uk/showdoc/21692433/) is formed.

tee hee!

Oh, and I don't care what sort of entertainment is taking place in someone's intestines. It's just not a place I care to visit. I guess I'm no Lemmiwinks (http://youtube.com/watch?v=SBF7gK3D5v8&search=lemmiwinks).

[Paranoia]

8/10 sounds just about right.

If the game got 9/10 or higher some gamers will start too bash it (Halo series is a fine example).

[Draft]

A pun on its Cherokee stuff perhaps?

Also, who here is going to be picking the game up on Triton (http://www.playtriton.com/prey/)?I am.

The message you have entered is too short. Please lengthen your message to at least 10 characters.

[Draft]

Anyone feel like copy/pasting the review? It's asking me to register, and nuts to that.

[Wyrm]

I go through all the trouble to register and it looks like the fucking review got pulled. Wont be going back to that site again.

[Suicidal ShiZuru]

Fit, do you care to stop posting piece of shit links requiring registration and bashing people for not reading it?

[Bargash]

If the official xbox magazine only gave Prey 8 of 10 expect it to get lower scores generally. This is especially true if its only 6 hrs in length and of the quality of the demo.

Play4Pants: What game has ever deserved a 10? Halo 2 and Halflife 2 were both pretty awesome. I rate both over a 9.

[DeadlyDonkey]

If the official xbox magazine only gave Prey 8 of 10 expect it to get lower scores generally. This is especially true if its only 6 hrs in length and of the quality of the demo.

Play4Pants: What game has ever deserved a 10? Halo 2 and Halflife 2 were both pretty awesome. I rate both over a 9.

Agreed, it's the "Official Mags Theory". Generally every game to come out for a console is rated 1-2/10 higher by that console's "official" magazine than every other gaming magazine.

Expect Prey to get a smattering of 6s and 7s. Which is generally what the demo left me feeling it was. A 6/10.

[Varsity]

I go through all the trouble to register and it looks like the fucking review got pulled. Wont be going back to that site again.
www.bugmenot.com

[Kem0sabe]

Anyone know how to make this run on windows vista? i know its not supported, but im not about to reinstall xp just to play the game :(

[Thenetcase]

I love this game... After seeing the last few trailers the demo was like seventh heaven for me. I can't imagine what the full game's going to be like.

This is the ONLY game I've actually preordered since City of Heroes. :)

***edit***
I also preordered Supreme Commander at the same time-- that game freakin' rocks bawls!

[Metal Jesus]

Already pre-ordered based on the excellent X360 demo. I can't wait until Tuesday!

[Morratut]

If Prey is only 6 hours then i'm not paying £49 quid for it. I will wait till it's very very cheap. I enjoyed the demo but i'm not getting ripped off. Especially if the mp isn't good.

/goes back to his GRAW chapter 2 mp maps which cost him 1200 points :D

[Schnoogs]

Anyone else play the demo on both the PC and the 360? Strangely enough both myself and everyone I showed the demos to agreed that the PC version looked better even though I had both my PC and 360 hooked up to the same 1080p LCD display (so you cant blame resolution).

Not that big of a deal since I was planning on buying it for the PC anyways...I have this rule of thumb about first person shooters.

[Goronmon]

As far as the game length is concerned. I read a post from someone who got Prey this weekend and claimed it was shorter than HL2 Ep. 1. Who knows though.