Speculation on the beginning

[HanSh0t1st]

In my opinion, the beginning is highly important for drawing the player into the universe and setting the scene and tone for the rest of the game.

 

With this in mind, I realise that the opening to Kotor 2 (the lenghty escape from Peragus) was received rather differently by different people - quite a few over at the Bioware boards cite it as an example of something to avoid for Mass Effect, while others praise it. Personally, I loved the start of Kotor 2 and continued to enjoy it throughout.

 

Anyway, as Obsidian are releasing a new IP rather than a sequel as part of an already-established universe they are surely eager to impress straight from the off and as such I come back to thinking about the game's opening...

 

So far, we have been given vague hints towards the beginning, with the OXM preview telling us that:

 

Headed out on the first mission, which finds Thorton awakening in a medical bay, dazed and confused. Immediately, you choose whether to rip out your IV or leave it in.

 

The only other real information we are given here is this:

 

At first, we blasted through a horde of guards in what turned out to be a cool mini-surprise that we ain

[mkreku]

I really have no clue as to what to expect from the beginning of Alpha Protocol, but if we use Bond as an example: Bond films blow appr. 25% of their budget on the opening sequence! Like that awesome Casino Royale chase sequence with Bond crashing through walls to hunt down his super-nimble victim..

 

I'm hoping Alpha Protocol blows 25% of its wad in the opening sequence too

[Morgoth]

The game start is about when Michael horribly fails his first mission. That's what we heard at least.

[Cl_Flushentityhero]

It sounds as though it has a James Bond type actiony intro in lieu of lengthy exploration/puzzle solving. Then again, if Thornton leaves his IV in it might play out differently.

[Starwars]

The main thing I want (and what I often find lacking in RPGs) is that meaningful interactions start off as soon as possible. I liked the idea of Peragus for example, but I think it A) went on for to long and B) just wasn't interesting enough in terms of what the player can do. Even the "big choice" at the end of the level is not really a choice.

 

Now (just to bring another Avellone game into the discussion) I think Torment was pretty good, why? Because there was quite a lot of direct interactions in the Mortuary, there was a lot of stuff to do with the zombies and so on. But even so, the Mortuary definetely feels like the "opening level".

 

I'm not a huge fan of that feel... I was so happy in STALKER that the game just let you loose really. Even though the first mission could be considered a tutorial or introduction of some kind, it absolutely felt like it was a part of the game, and death is definetely a real possibility there. It feels like it's a part of the rest of the game, and not some seperate "easy introduction level".

 

But yeah, I suspect AP will definetely have an opening level. I just hope it will be good and stuff. And I'm just rambling here...

[Rostere]

Now (just to bring another Avellone game into the discussion) I think Torment was pretty good, why? Because there was quite a lot of direct interactions in the Mortuary, there was a lot of stuff to do with the zombies and so on. But even so, the Mortuary definetely feels like the "opening level".

 

I think the Mortuary was so great because other games always try to explain a lot of things in their introductions. Instead, Torment explains very little and almost instantly has you wondering about a lot.

[mkreku]

The Gothic games have no introduction. They don't even have hints. You're on your own and you WILL get your butt kicked.

 

I love it.

[Musopticon?]

There's always hints, the first few enemies have definitions like "Young Something" or "Something Scout" and pack a punch less and the games more or less point you the right way immediately. You'll still get your butt kicked though.

 

I hope that the first missions advices stealthy manouvering to its utmost, since you'll be in your hospital pyjamas most likely, it'd be worse than dumb to have Thorton pick a gun from a corpse and blast everyone he meets and pretend the whole setup is plausible.

[Cl_Flushentityhero]

My impression of AP in general is that it will seldom force you to take a certain approach, even if it is the only realistic solution. So, my suspicion is that in the intro the player will have options regarding playstyle, which isn't all bad.