Prey (2017)

''Prey'' is a 2017 first-person shooter immersive sim video game developed by Arkane Austin and published by Bethesda Softworks. The game was released for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One on May 5, 2017.

''Prey'' takes place in an alternate timeline in which an accelerated Space Race resulted in mankind taking to orbital stations far earlier. The player controls Morgan Yu while exploring the space station ''Talos I'', in orbit around Earth–Moon L₂, where they were part of a scientific team researching the Typhon, a hostile alien force composed of many forms with both physical and psychic powers, such as shapeshifting into a clone of any inanimate object. As the Typhon escape confinement, the player uses a variety of weapons and abilities, some of which are derived from the Typhon themselves, to survive while progressing to end the alien outbreak on the station and ultimately escape. The player gradually gains access to areas of ''Talos I'' through linear mission progression - acquiring key items and abilities along the way - eventually allowing the player to explore the station in an open world setting. The game combines elements of first-person shooters, role-playing video games, stealth games, and Metroidvanias in its design.

Arkane's ''Prey'' is largely unrelated to the 2006 game ''Prey'' developed by Human Head Studios. While '' Prey 2'', a sequel to the 2006 game, had been planned by Human Head, it fell into development hell following the transfer of the intellectual property from 3D Realms to Bethesda Softworks, and was eventually canceled in 2014. Arkane's game does not use any of the planned sequel's assets and only incorporates the previous game's name and the broad theme of the protagonist being hunted by aliens. Arkane built ''Prey'' as a spiritual successor to ''System Shock'', giving players multiple avenues to approach and tackle missions while considering the ''Talos I'' station a thematic reinterpretation of the underground dungeon from their debut game, ''Arx Fatalis''.

''Prey'' received positive reviews from critics and is considered one of the best games of 2017 by several gaming magazines and websites. Two expansions were released: ''Mooncrash'', a procedurally-generated mode inspired by various roguelike games, and a multiplayer ''Typhon Hunter'' that incorporates the Typhon shapeshifting abilities in a hide-and-seek style game. Retrospectively, the game has been recognized by several gaming publications as one of the best immersive sims released to date.

Gameplay

General overview

''Prey'' is a complex first-person shooter immersive sim with role-playing and stealth elements set in a semi open world environment. The player takes the role of Morgan Yu, a human aboard a space station overrun by the Typhon, a hostile alien race with various differing subspecies. In a play through, players can customize Morgan’s attributes, such as gender, and make choices that may, or may not, ultimately influence the story. To survive, the player must collect and use weapons, tools, and resources aboard the station to fend off and defeat the Typhon threat. For example, ''Recycler Charges'' can be used to break down almost any object into raw materials, which can then be repurposed using the game's crafting system. The game also features a variation of the skill tree system, enabling players to tailor their playstyle to suit their preferences. In the game, skill points are obtained through an item called a ''Neuromod''. These items can be discovered in the game world and, later on, crafted by the player. ''Neuromods'' enable the player to unlock a range of abilities like hacking and repairing.

According to creative director Raphaël Colantonio, the station setting of ''Talos I'' is completely continuous rather than having separate levels or missions, at times requiring the player to return to areas they previously explored. Lacking a conventional fast travel system, the player can instead venture outside ''Talos I'' into space and find shortcuts connecting parts of the station. Colantonio stated that the Typhon aliens have an array of different physical and psychic powers that the player character can gain over time; one such alien, for example, can shapeshift into everyday items, such as a chair or coffee mug. The player can acquire the aliens' abilities by using a device called a psychoscope, which is found through mission progression.

''Prey'' has multiple endings, according to lead designer Ricardo Bare; the endings fall into three major narrative structures depending on how the player broadly interacted with the station and surviving humans, but Bare said there are "tons of little permutations" based on specific events.

Player progression and customization

At the game's outset, players choose Morgan Yu's gender. This decision influences certain in-game dialogues and character interactions but does not significantly alter the overall narrative or gameplay experience. ''Prey's'' gameplay follows a linear main storyline with optional side quests. Throughout the game, decisions can be made that will alter the playthrough's ending. The level design of the ''Talos I'' station allows players to take a creative approach, enabling them to tackle scenarios in multiple ways.

Player progression is centered around the in-game ''Neuromod'' system. This variation of the skill tree mechanic allows the protagonist to acquire new skills and abilities by using a collectable item called a ''Neuromod''. These ''Neuromods'' can be found throughout ''Talos I'' or crafted later on in the game. The ''Neuromod'' system is divided into two primary branches: Human and Typhon abilities. Human abilities encompass three categories: ''Scientist'', ''Engineer'', and ''Security'', with each focusing on different gameplay aspects. For instance, the ''Scientist'' tree includes skills like "Hacking" and "Physician," upgrading the player's ability to bypass security systems and improve medical kit effectiveness. The ''Engineer'' tree offers abilities such as "Repair" and "Leverage," enabling the player to fix broken equipment and lift heavy objects from their environment and use them to damage enemies. The ''Security'' tree provides combat-oriented skills like "Firearms" and "Combat Focus," which increase weapon damage and slow down time during combat.

Typhon abilities become accessible after the player acquires the ''Psychoscope'', a device that grants the ability to scan alien entities. Typhon abilities are also categorized into three branches: ''Energy, Morph, and Telepathy.'' The ''Energy'' branch includes powers like "Kinetic Blast," which unleashes a burst of force to damage enemies and objects. The ''Morph'' branch offers abilities such as "Mimic Matter," enabling the player to transform into inanimate objects to access hard-to-reach areas or avoid detection. The ''Telepathy'' branch provides skills like "Mindjack," allowing the player to control weaker enemies. Integrating Typhon abilities affects in-game security systems. For example, the in-game defense turrets may identify the player as a threat if too many Typhon powers are acquired.

In addition to ''Neuromods'', players can further customize their playstyle through ''chipsets'', which are modular upgrades that provide passive enhancements to various aspects of Morgan Yu’s abilities and equipment. There are two main types: ''Suit Chipsets'', which improve features like damage resistance, movement speed, or hacking performance; and ''Psychoscope Chipsets,'' which augment Typhon-based abilities and ''Psychoscope'' scanning efficiency. Players begin with a limited number of chipset slots, but can expand these by investing ''Neuromods'' in the "Suit Modification" skill line. Chipsets are found throughout ''Talos I'' or crafted later in the game, and can be swapped in and out by the player to adapt to specific threats or environments.

Combat and stealth

Combat and stealth are integral components of gameplay in ''Prey'', offering players multiple approaches to navigating the challenges aboard ''Talos I.''

Combat is characterized by a combination of weapons and tools. Players gain early access to a wrench melee weapon along with conventional firearms such as a silenced pistol and a shotgun. The first unconventional weapon that can be obtained is the GLOO Cannon, a device that fires a rapidly-hardening foam capable of immobilizing enemies, sealing environmental hazards, and creating climbable surfaces. The GLOO Cannon's versatility allows for both offensive and exploratory applications, enabling players to adapt to various situations when exploring areas of ''Talos I.'' Beyond these initial utilities, several more advanced weapons become available as the game unfolds. First is the disruptor stun gun is a non-lethal weapon which emits an electric charge capable of incapacitating human targets and stunning robotic enemies. The final weapon found in the game is the Q-Beam, which fires a continuous laser-like beam that causes enemies to gradually absorb energy until they disintegrate into resources used for crafting. Alongside these weapons, variations of throwable and grenade-based items can be used in combat.

In addition to physical weaponry, some Typhon-based abilities unlocked through the ''Neuromod'' system can be utilized in active combat scenarios. For example, the ''Energy'' branch includes "Kinetic Blast," which acts as a ranged attack to deal damage to enemies and objects through a kinetic-based projectile. Utilizing Typhon-based powers consumes ''psychic potential'', requiring players to manage their "''psi"'' reserves during combat encounters. "''Psi"'' energy can be replenished using ''psi''-''hypos.''

Stealth mechanics in ''Prey'' provide an alternative to direct confrontation. Players can avoid detection by utilizing shadows, crouching to reduce noise, and using the environment to block line of sight. Certain utilities, such as the Huntress Boltcaster, can be used to distract enemies by triggering sounds or to silently activate distant objects like control panels and door buttons. The game's level design supports stealth gameplay through multiple pathways, including crawlspaces, allowing players to bypass heavily patrolled areas. All enemies within the game contain a detection metre, characterised by a white arch appearing over the heads of enemies. This metre will gradually fill when an enemy becomes aware of your presence. This can occur through the player making loud noises, engaging in combat or interacting with the game's environment.

Crafting and player inventory

Resource management and crafting are integral components of ''Prey'''s gameplay, requiring players to collect and recycle materials to fabricate items such as ammunition, health kits, and ''Neuromods''. The game features four primary material types, ''Organic, Mineral, Synthetic,'' and ''Exotic,'' each derived from various in-game items and enemies. These materials can then be used for crafting different equipment, upgrades and quest items.

Players need to utilize ''Recyclers'' to convert collected junk and resources into these raw materials, which can then be used at ''Fabricators'' to create new items, provided the corresponding fabrication plans have been acquired. Fabrication plans are scattered throughout ''Talos I'' and must be found to unlock the ability to craft specific items, including weapons, ammunition, and consumables. ''The Recycler Charge'', a throwable device, allows players to break down environmental objects and enemies into raw materials, serving both as a grenade-based weapon and a mobile means of resource acquisition.

Players begin with a default inventory capacity of 45 slots, encompassing all carried items such as weapons, ammunition, consumables, and crafting materials. To accommodate for prolonged exploration and combat, players can expand this inventory capacity by acquiring the "Suit Modification" abilities through the ''Neuromod'' system. The first level of this upgrade increases inventory space to 60 slots, the second to 77 slots, and the third to a maximum of 96 slots. Achieving the full inventory expansion requires a total of 13 ''Neuromods''. In addition to increasing inventory space, these upgrades also enhance the suit's capabilities by unlocking additional chipset slots, allowing for further customization of the player's abilities.

Gameplay environment

''Prey'' is set aboard a " retrofuturistic" orbital space station designated ''Talos I.'' According to Arkane’s art team, the station was built as a single, interconnected space that encourages non-linear exploration and emergent gameplay. The layout includes both interior environments and an expansive zero-gravity exterior, allowing players to navigate the station from multiple angles, including venturing outside into space. The design was developed to accommodate backtracking, vertical traversal, and varied player movement, ensuring that gameplay remains fluid and that objectives can be approached from different routes. Environmental storytelling is emphasized through the deliberate placement of props and lighting, which guide the player and provide context without relying solely on scripted sequences. The space station environment offers a semi-open world experience, being structured as a continuous environment that allows players to traverse its various sectors through mission progression and loading screens. Within the game, players will also be able to exit ''Talos I'' and traverse through the exterior space environment, which serves as an unconventional variation of a fast travel system. Players can venture outside the station into space to navigate between different sections more directly, to bypass enemies and to reduce the number of loading screens the player is exposed to.

''Mooncrash'' DLC expansion

The ''Mooncrash'' expansion, released in June 2018, is a separate game mode built atop the setting and gameplay of the base ''Prey'' game. It is a roguelike experience in which, while the levels of the expansion remain the same, the placement of enemies, weapons, and other items are randomized on each playthrough.

Narratively, the player takes the role of Peter, a hacker aboard a satellite orbiting the Moon, forced by his employer the Kasma Corporation to figure out what happened at the Pytheas Moonbase. Peter does this by running through simulations, in which he takes the place of one of five known survivors of the attack. The player must figure out how each of the five survived through the five various escape routes. This is presented by leading one character through the station, fighting off the Typhon, collecting equipment, hacking terminals, and other actions. If the player can lead that character to safety, they then must lead the other characters, one at a time, through the same game world to find a different escape point, with all of the changes from the previous characters still in place. Players may reset the simulation, randomizing the world elements and effectively starting a new run. However, the player gains points that they can use within the simulation to improve how any of the characters start, such as with better weapons or additional health packs, and they can permanently unlock skills for each character within future simulation runs by collecting certain objects.

''Typhon Hunter DLC'' expansion

The Typhon ''Hunter'' expansion contains two game modes. One is designed as a single-player virtual reality experience known as Transtar VR, challenging the player to various escape room scenarios aboard the ''Talos I'' station. The second is an asymmetrical multiplayer mode for up to six players. One plays as Morgan while the others are ''Mimic'' Typhons, which can disguise themselves as nearly any object within the environment. The player as Morgan is challenged to find and kill all the other players within a limited amount of time, while the Mimic players can rearrange items in rooms, disguise themselves, and when the Morgan player is close, jump out and attack them before seeking another hiding place.

Plot

Setting

''Prey'' takes place in an alternate timeline where in 1958 the Soviet Union encounters a species of eusocial aliens, called the Typhon, aboard their satellite ''Vorona 1''. The Soviet Union works together with the United States to fight off and capture the aliens, unbeknownst to the general population. Together, they build the space station ''Kletka'' to be used as a prison for the Typhon situated in orbit around the Moon. After a failed assassination attempt on United States President John F. Kennedy, the United States wrests full control of the ''Kletka'' satellite from the Soviet Union. Research of the Typhon continues under the name "Project Axiom". After the "Pobeg Incident" in 1980 where some scientists aboard the station lost their lives to the Typhon, the American government shutters Project Axiom, leaving the captive Typhon alive.

By 2025, the newly-founded TranStar Corporation acquires ''Kletka'' and by 2030, has refitted it as ''Talos I'', a fully operational research laboratory to study the Typhon and develop advances in neuroscience; this leads to the creation of neuromods that harness the Typhon's physiology to restructure the human brain to grant the user new abilities, including superhuman ones. TranStar grows financially successful from sales of neuromods on Earth. At the time of the setting, about 2035, TranStar has further expanded the station to make for suitable living quarters for its staff that spend up to two years on the station between regular shuttles to Earth.

Because of the numerous agencies that operated and expanded ''Talos I'' over the decades, the station includes a large mix of architectural designs, ranging from retrofuturism that was popular in 1960s America, to brutalist styles that were common in the Soviet Bloc in the mid-20th century, to opulent Art Deco put in place by the wealthy TranStar executives.

Synopsis

In March 2032, Morgan Yu (male voiced by Tim Kang, female voiced by Sumalee Montano) is recruited by their brother Alex (Benedict Wong) to join TranStar's research team on ''Talos I''. Before leaving for the station, Morgan takes a series of tests including the Trolley problem and the Rorschach test. One of the supervising doctors is attacked by a Typhon during the testing process, and Morgan is knocked out. Morgan wakes up in their apartment and finds that it is a simulated environment. It is 2035 and Morgan has been living on ''Talos I'' for three years. Morgan is contacted by January (voiced by Kang or Montano, depending on the player's chosen gender), an Operator artificial intelligence that claims to have been built by Morgan. January warns Morgan that the Typhon have broken containment and taken over the station, killing the majority of the crew. It reveals to Morgan that they had been testing neuromods for the past three years, with Morgan continually adding and removing them. While these neuromods allow for instantaneous learning of complex skills and abilities, a side effect of removing a neuromod is that the user loses all memories gained after installation of that neuromod, explaining Morgan's memory loss. January claims that Morgan built it to help destroy ''Talos I'', taking the Typhon and all of its research with it. Alex contacts Morgan and suggests instead building a special Nullwave device that will destroy the Typhon but leave the station intact, citing how their research is too valuable to lose.

Morgan travels through the station and encounters other survivors, with a choice of whether to help them or not. Alex tasks Morgan with scanning the Typhon "Coral" growing around the station and discovers that the Typhon are building some sort of neural network. Their attempts to study the neural network are interrupted when the TranStar Board of Directors learns of the containment breach and sends a cleanup crew to eliminate both the Typhon and any surviving station crew. After the cleanup crew is dealt with, Alex further analyzes the data and concludes that the Typhon are sending a signal into deep space to summon something. A gargantuan Typhon called the Apex appears and begins to devour ''Talos I''. Morgan is given the choice of to activate the station's self-destruct sequence or build the Nullwave device to defeat the Typhon.

If Morgan chooses to activate the Nullwave device, all of the Typhon on ''Talos I'' are destroyed and the station is left intact. If Morgan chooses to activate the self-destruct, the entire station explodes, destroying all of the Typhon with it. Morgan either finds a way to escape the station or is stranded and dies in the explosion, based on earlier choices in the game.

In a post-credits scene, Morgan wakes up in a lab and learns that it is not the real Morgan, but instead, a captured Typhon implanted with Morgan's memories in an effort to teach it human emotions and empathy. The Typhon have invaded Earth; Alex and his Operator assistants judge "Morgan" based on the choices it made throughout the game. If "Morgan" failed to show human empathy, Alex destroys it and starts the experiment over. If "Morgan" did show human empathy, Alex lets it go, whereupon it can choose to accept his offer to bring peace between the Typhon and humanity or kill him.

''Mooncrash''

In 2036, Peter is stationed in a remote satellite orbiting the Moon and is forced under contract by the Kasma Corporation, a rival to TranStar, to undergo numerous simulations reliving a Typhon outbreak on Transtar's Pytheas Moon Base via an Operator taken from Pytheas (later revealed to be a copy of Morgan's cousin and simulation character Riley Yu). As he completes his assigned tasks, his handler Basilisk warns him that Kasma will betray him once his mission is complete and helps him make preparations to escape. When Peter fulfills his contract, Kasma congratulates him but claims that due to tight budgets, they cannot retrieve him from the satellite and shut off its life support. With help from Basilisk, Peter overrides the satellite's controls and crashes it near the real Pytheas facility, where he commandeers a shuttle and returns to Earth. In a post-credits scene, it is revealed that a Mimic has stowed away on Peter's shuttle.

Development

Intellectual property transition

The success of the original ''Prey'' led to the announcement of a sequel ''Prey 2'' in August 2006, with continued development by 3D Realms. However, the project faced numerous issues, including the transfer of the intellectual property (IP) rights to Bethesda Softworks (under ZeniMax Media) by 2011. In March 2011, Bethesda announced that ''Prey 2'' would instead be developed by Human Head Studios using a modified id Tech 4 engine.

On May 31, 2013, ''Kotaku'' reported rumors that development had moved to Arkane Studios and that the development had been rebooted, scrapping all of Human Head Studios' work on ''Prey 2'' with a targeted release of 2016. After about a year of further rumors, Bethesda cancelled ''Prey 2''. Arkane had started working on a ''Prey'' game that would be considered a reboot rather than a sequel, using none of the ''Prey'' concepts and none of Human Head's previous development.

Announcement and controversy

On June 12, 2016, Bethesda announced the ''Prey'' reboot at its E3 press conference. Development was led by Arkane Studios CEO and director Raphaël Colantonio and his team in Austin, Texas. The new ''Prey'' is not a true sequel but instead "a re-imagining of the IP", according to Colantonio. The teaser trailer shown during E3 2016 showed the protagonist in something like "a space horror version of ''Groundhog Day''", according to CNET's Seamus Byrne. Bethesda's vice president of marketing Pete Hines explained that the new game has no elements from the cancelled ''Prey 2'' outside of the player facing aliens.

Colantonio said in later interviews that calling their game ''Prey'' was a "non negotiable compromise" with Bethesda, a decision that no one on the Arkane team was pleased with. Colantonio described the naming decision as "gross" and "disrespectful" to both his team and the creators of the original game. He stated that it felt like a "kick in the face" to the developers of the original game (Human Head Studios) and that he wished to apologise to them. The creative team at Arkane reportedly wanted their game to stand on its own as a unique IP but were overruled by corporate decisions at Bethesda. Colantonio said it felt bad to lie that they were continuing the ''Prey'' series. He expressed that it was a "sales mistake" that would turn away fans of the original ''Prey'' and fail to attract other players. Colantonio left Arkane Studios shortly after ''Prey's'' release, citing creative disagreements as one of his reasons for departing.

Gameplay design

''Prey'' came out of Arkane Studios' own ideas; as explained by Colantonio, they split their team to work on two projects after completing work on ''Dishonored''. One project was ''Dishonored 2'' and the other was a new intellectual property based on similar gameplay ideas which would be "in first-person, with depth and simulation and narration". According to lead designer Ricardo Bare, Colantonio had suggested they look back towards what they had done with ''Arx Fatalis'', a fantasy title produced by Arkane in 2002 which featured "this big, inter-connected dungeon that the player could roam so long as they could unlock everything". They took this "mega-dungeon" concept, but set it as a space station filled with hostile aliens, and would require the player to consider the "full ecology" of the game world to overcome obstacles. They did not want the player to solve singular-solution puzzles, such as simply finding a key for a locked door, but instead "think of this as a living, dynamic world, where there are tons of solutions possible", according to Bare.

As Arkane started developing this concept, they recognized the similarities to the original ''Prey''. Realizing that coming up with a name for a new property can be difficult and that through Bethesda that they would have the ability to use that name, they chose the name ''Prey''. Hines explained that Arkane evaluated the ''Prey'' property to its core and built up a new game around it, calling it more a psychological game rather than a horror one. In a 2021 making-of documentary created by Noclip, Colantonio and Bare said that, while the project never had any other official name, the title ''Prey'' was a direct mandate from Bethesda. Colantonio referred to it as a "compromise" for the team's creative freedom, saying that the game "had to be ''Prey'' somehow" and that the name "was not necessarily ..the best choice we wanted back then", while Bare recalled that "The Bethesda group was like, 'we have this name ''Prey'', can you please use it?'"

According to design documents from early in the project's history published by ''Kotaku'', the game was developed at Arkane under the name "Project Danielle". This was later confirmed by Bare, who added that the name was "a little bit of an homage to SHODAN" from ''System Shock''. Three different concepts were presented, all based on the nature of ''System Shock'' and involving the player-character named Danielle Sho to find that there was a false reality in their apparent world and dealing with an artificial intelligence that has a significant influence on events; these settings included a futuristic lab set on Earth set just prior to the ''System Shock'' time frame, a secret lab on a remote island, and a retro-futuristic setting. ''Kotaku'' observed that this final setting was closest to what the released ''Prey'' looked like.

''Prey'' incorporates numerous gameplay concepts from ''Dishonored'', which was itself inspired by the Looking Glass Studios' games '' Thief: The Dark Project'' and ''System Shock'', where players are encouraged to find creative solutions to overcome obstacles. Borrowed elements from ''Dishonored'' include giving the player enough agency to determine how they want to proceed, having in-game consequences for certain actions taken by the player, developing a game world based on pre-established lore that can be learned by examining notes and computer terminals throughout the station, and a simple user interface. However, Colantonio said that ''Prey'' would be less focused on stealth as ''Dishonored'' was, and would provide a more role-playing video game-style improvement system through in-game chipsets that allows the player to customize their abilities for more tactical fast-paced action sequences in contrast to ''Dishonored''s bone charm system.

While ''Prey'' has been likened to a Metroidvania, Bare has said that he was not familiar with the sub-genre and that ''Prey''s world design follows in the footsteps of games such as ''System Shock'' and Arkane's own ''Arx Fatalis'', which featured interconnected worlds where to make progress, obstacles had been overcome through abilities the player could acquire. Bare considered the ''Talos I'' setting to be "like an open world" that is fully explorable as the player gained abilities and equipment. However, according to Colantonio, calling it an open world "might have the wrong associations." The developers also took inspiration from '' FTL: Faster Than Light'', considering the complexities of the various gameplay systems and how fast that a situation can go wrong if the player did not sufficiently plan. Bare said they wanted to include that "chaos of systems", and keeping in mind that ''Talos I'' is a functioning space station, populated the station with various hazards like gas pipes and oil spills that can be both an aid to the players in defeating the Typhon or a cause of unforeseen consequences if the player is not careful. Arkane had considered including procedural generation within the main campaign, so that different areas may have different hazards when the player encountered them, but they recognized that this would become a point of frustration for a single-player game that may cause players to leave the game uncompleted. They dropped this approach and instead worked the procedural generation aspects into the downloadable content ''Mooncrash'', which takes place outside the main game's campaign.

Emergent gameplay was a goal of Arkane: while they had given the players abilities to take on ''Prey'' in a full action mode or full stealth mode, they wanted players to find a way to complete the game in their own manner. They recognized players may take one specific set of skills and weapons and avoided including any enemies or obstacles that would be impossible to surpass because they did not specialize in the right skills, providing a means to bypass such areas. Arkane restricted how many horror elements they would include, since they could not predict where the player's attention would be, providing another reason why they opted not to consider ''Prey'' a horror game. Some elements supporting emergent gameplay arose during testing of the game's various systems. One of the Typhon aliens, the Mimic, was inspired by the creature of the same name from ''Dungeons & Dragons'', and was programmed to take the form of any object smaller than itself in the room, avoiding the use of scripted events and allowing the alien's artificial intelligence to decide what to replicate. Separately, one of the tools developed by Arkane was the psychoscope, which allows players to scan an alien and learn and then use its powers; when the programmers learned of this, they quickly found that having players be able to copy the Mimic's power created a depth of new gameplay options, such as taking the form of a small object to sneak into small places or taking the form of a non-flammable object to roll through fire-laden areas. Enabling emergent gameplay in ''Prey'' allowed for speedrunners to take advantage of the game's tools, particularly the Gloo Cannon that can create platforms on surfaces to access areas Arkane did not intend to be accessed without other tools.

Story and art

The narrative concept for ''Prey'' came to Colantonio during one of his airline flights while on travel; on return, he started to engage with the Austin studio to flesh out the ideas for the narrative, design, and gameplay, looking to build as detailed a world as they had for the city of Dunwall used as the setting for ''Dishonored''. Colantonio said that it took about a year from this initial concept to come up with an alternate timeline that helped support this detailing. They considered how the future would have been different if John F. Kennedy survived the assassination attempt, allowing them to flesh out the narrative and design of the space station. This itself directly attributed to the styles used in the various parts of the station, with the team considering what architecture would have influenced those most responsible for operating ''Talos I'' at the time. This ranged from considering what Kennedy would have seen frequently were he alive in the 1960s and 1970s, to envisioning how those funding contemporary commercial space efforts like Elon Musk or Google would style a space station. As ''Talos I'' is a relatively small space, Arkane was able to detail the station in depth to make the world more cohesive, such as naming and fleshing out background stories for each non-player character (NPC), including those already dead by the story's beginning.

The narrative directed them to the types of weapons that would be available to the player. Arkane recognized that as a research station, their security forces would only likely have common weapons, such as pistols and shotguns, and would not have the equivalent of super-powerful gear like ''Doom''s BFG. What advanced weapons are available were designed to look like prototypes and have flaws associated with them being only in their testing phase.

Arkane's Harvey Smith is credited with establishing the Typhon and the reason for their existence in the story. The player, as Morgan, follows in the threat's wake, finding survivors who have no idea what just happened but need their help. Arkane wanted a more unique design to the aliens, and opted to use designs inspired by paranormal elements rather than stereotypical insect- or lizard-like species.

Austin Grossman, also of Arkane, helped establish the early plot details with Morgan's awakening at the start. Bare had reached out to Chris Avellone circa 2013 to gain his help with the story, though at the time, Avellone was committed to other projects but wanted to work with the studio. Once Avellone was able to, he contacted Arkane to offer his help on the narrative. Besides other parts of the narrative, Avellone contributed to designing several NPCs and the various missions that would involve these characters. Avellone felt these characters and their missions created dilemmas for the player to determine how to proceed, helping the player to define their version of Morgan as well as expanding on the game universe. Avellone worked with Arkane on the story from June to about November 2016.

Among other works, ''Prey'' was influenced by the films ''Moon'', ''Starship Troopers'', and ''The Matrix''. As part of the promotion, Bethesda partnered with the Alamo Drafthouse to show these three films during April 2017. Avellone also cited '' Aliens'' as part of his inspiration, describing it as an action-suspense film which has moments of comedy, even amid heavy action sequences, and something he reused in writing for ''Prey''.

The original score was composed and produced by Mick Gordon, who had previously composed the soundtrack for ''Doom''. Additional music was composed by Ben Crossbones, Matt Piersall, and Colantonio, with each one providing a single track. The soundtrack was released for live-streaming music services a week before the game's release.

Technical development

Prior to ''Prey'', Arkane had just released ''Dishonored 2'' which used the studio's internally developed Void game engine. At release, many players reported performance problems with the Windows version, which Arkane fixed through patches, but led to some lingering doubts as to Arkane's ability to develop for the Windows platform. Colantonio said that Arkane wanted to remove that stigma for ''Prey'', with the goal to produce a "really flawless" version for Windows on release. The game was developed using CryEngine, an established third-party game engine, eliminating many issues related to performance. Colantonio said that they "doubled our thoroughness" in the areas of quality assurance testing to eliminate other possible issues.

Expansions

During the Electronic Entertainment Expo 2018, Bethesda announced a free update released on June 9, 2018, that added two new game modes to ''Prey'', including a New Game Plus mode, and a Survival mode that adds modifiers, such as weapon durability, that make it more difficult. Bethesda announced the first downloadable content, ''Mooncrash'', which is a procedurally generated adventure that was available that day. They announced plans to release a multiplayer ''Typhon Hunt'' mode, where some players play as Typhon Mimics that can disguise themselves. The ''Typhon Hunt'' mode was inspired by the "Prop Hunt" mode that came about from '' Garry's Mod''; as Arkane started to show initial details of the main game, including the Mimic enemies, players responded that they were reminded of "Prop Hunt". Bare had not been aware of what that was, but after researching it, felt it was ideal for a multiplayer extension of ''Prey''. Both ''Mooncrash'' and ''Typhon Hunt'' were modes prototyped within an internal game jam following the release of ''Prey'', looking to see how they could easily extend the game.

The ''Mooncrash'' expansion was further updated in September 2018 with a free patch that provided in-game customization skins that celebrated the team's favorite roguelike games, which included ''Spelunky'', '' Rogue Legacy'', '' Risk of Rain'', '' Don't Starve'', '' Darkest Dungeon'', and ''Dead Cells''.

The ''Typhon Hunt'' mode was released on December 11, 2018, along with a virtual reality-based escape the room set of puzzles set before the events of ''Prey''. Both modes were released as free additions to ''Mooncrash''.

Release and marketing

''Prey'' was released on May 5, 2017. Arkane and Bethesda provided a game demo for PlayStation 4 and Xbox One consoles about a week before the launch, covering about the first hour of gameplay. The studio did not opt to provide a demo for Windows systems, citing that they had to choose between either the consoles or personal computer for demo release. Colantonio said that with the release through Steam, interested players can try the game for up to two hours under Steam's return policy, effectively treating this as the equivalent of a demo. The Steam version eventually received a demo in August 2017, which included roughly the first hour of gameplay.

Technical issues

''PCGamesN'' reported that the Windows version of ''Prey'' lacked the technical problems of ''Dishonored 2'', calling it "the best performing triple-A game" they had seen in several months. ''Eurogamer''s Digital Foundry found the computer version of ''Prey'' to run exceedingly well across even low-end computers, in contrast to problems it saw for ''Dishonored 2'' at release.

However, some reviewers and players found that after several hours of playing on the computer version, their saved games would become corrupted, and the game would crash when transitioning between areas once this started to occur. Restoring from older saves would eventually cause those to be corrupted as well, making the game impossible to complete. A Bethesda representative said that Arkane was "working diligently on a fix" that would be released sometime that week; the patch was deployed the following day.

Trademark dispute

Just prior to release, No Matter Studios, the developers of an upcoming video game ''Prey for the Gods'', announced that, due to trademark objections from ZeniMax Media, they had to change the name of their game to '' Praey for the Gods''. ZeniMax reported that they had to defend the ''Prey'' trademark to avoid losing it in taking objection to No Matter's trademark filing.

Reception

Critical reception

''Prey'' received "generally favorable" reviews from critics, according to review aggregator Metacritic.

Critics praised the fully realized atmosphere of ''Talos I'', with Neil Bolt of ''PlayStation Universe'' labeling it a "luxurious sci-fi playground". On the other hand, combat proved polarizing. ''GameSpot''s Tamoor Hussain found fight sequences "rewarding", while ''IGN''s Dan Stapleton considered combat ''Prey''s "biggest weakness" partly due to periods of AI unresponsiveness. Concerning the story, ''GameSpot'' found protagonist Morgan Yu's journey somewhat "thin", and '' Trusted Reviews'' called the storyline "lacking". ''Eurogamer'' ranked the game 12th on their list of the "Top 50 Games of 2017", ''GamesRadar+'' ranked it 11th on their list of the 25 Best Games of 2017, and ''Polygon'' ranked it seventh on their list of the 50 best games of 2017, while EGMNow ranked it ninth on their list of the 25 Best Games of 2017. It was nominated for "Best Setting" in ''PC Gamer''s 2017 Game of the Year Awards, for "Best Xbox One Game" in ''Destructoid''s Game of the Year Awards 2017, and for "Best Shooter" in ''IGN''s Best of 2017 Awards.

The game was praised by several critics and journalists for having an Asian protagonist.

Years after the game's release, many have started considering it an underrated masterpiece. In 2021, TheGamer called Prey “one of the most underrated games ever made”. A 2024 piece by PC Gamer states that it “elevated immersive sims to a god-tier level”. Shortly after Arkane Austin's closure, Rock Paper Shotgun published an article stating that Prey is a “masterpiece that the industry didn't deserve”.

Sales

''Prey'' debuted at No. 2 on the weekly sales charts in the United Kingdom, trailing the Nintendo Switch port of '' Mario Kart 8''. These figures were considered disappointing due to a lack of competition from AAA new releases and the fact that the opening week sales were 60% down from Arkane's previous title, ''Dishonored 2''. Additionally, Bethesda's decision to hold review copies until the release date was mentioned by outlets as a factor for the weak launch.

''Prey'' captured the top spot in its second week of release, besting ''Mario Kart 8 Deluxe'', a rise partially attributed to the positive reception from critics, though sales were down 32% from its debut week. In doing so, ''Prey'' became the first Bethesda game since 2016's ''Doom'' to reach number one on the United Kingdom weekly sales charts.

In Japan, ''Prey'' debuted at No. 5 on the weekly sales charts when it was released in late May with 7,105 copies sold for the PlayStation 4. The Xbox One version did not make the charts.

Accolades

Notes

References

External links

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Prey
at MobyGames

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