Arkane explains the gameplay of Prey, new pictures
You'll find yourself aboard Talos, an advanced research facility orbiting the Earth, and you will be immediately thrown into a world full of dangers, after an alien life form (known as "Typhoon") escape the containment. It's up to you to deal with the threat that has invaded the space station, using intelligence, weapons parts and tools found aboard the structure, as well as various mysterious skills. This is Prey, the audacious reinterpretation of the franchise by Arkane Studios.
Set in an alternate future, Prey puts you in the shoes of Morgan Yu, the subject of some morally questionable experiments aimed at empowering aliens.
The threat in space
The Typhon roam the halls of Talos, in search of human survivors. It's up to you to decide how to take care of these creatures. You can opt for a stealthy approach, looking for secret passages in the station and using tools and skills to avoid confrontation. The station itself is a world completely contiguous. All Talos will be available from the beginning ... as long as you find a way to get there.
Regardless of the path chosen, you will find yourself faced with danger around every corner. One of the keys to survival are the neuromods you'll find scattered around the station and allowing potenziarvi with alien powers.
All kinds of Typhon met will require a different approach, as it has different powers. The mimics can take on the appearance of common objects in the environment. Because of their innate ability to blend to take by surprise, these aliens can prove far more lethal than their small size does not suggest. You'll have to keep an eye on the duplicated objects around you: who can tell whether an Office Chair or a trash can is actually a Mimic lurking?
The Phantom, however, are much larger mimics, though not as large as the Nightmare. The Phantom have a humanoid appearance ... or at least, it would if humans were formed by shadows. The clash that we saw in the demo revealed the particular movement of the Phantom, which seems to make them able to teleport from one point to another, rather than running or walking. A Phantom might lie in front of you and the next instant behind you.
Know your enemy
Not enough to destroy the Typhon, you'll also learn from your mysterious enemies. Study them will allow you to acquire their powers with the help of neuromods. Since Mimic you will learn how to transform yourself, which will come in useful to move stealthily and solve the puzzles. In the demo, we saw Morgan turn into a coffee cup to pass through a narrow passage and reach a room otherwise inaccessible. Later, Morgan became Charge recycling, a special grenade that turns the surrounding matter (including some enemies) in reusable resources for crafting, to overcome the hostile robot Operator.
Classic Arkane, you can connect your skills. After being turned into Office recycling in the demo, Morgan has utilized the power of kinetic Wave to lash into the air, reaching a raised step to hide from the Operator. Kinetic wave is another of Morgan's alien powers, learned by studying one of the methods of attack of the Phantom. It can also be used in combat to push away whatever handy, dealing a lot of damage.
At another point, we saw Morgan use an ability called "Supertermia" to create a flaming trap and eliminate a horde of Mimic.
The tools available
Alternatively, you can choose to limit the use of credentials and to focus on a wide range of tools and weapons found on Talos, some drawn from converted equipment maintenance. Take, for example, the cannon GLOO: this tool incredibly versatile shoot ... well, instant hardening glue that secures the enemies on the spot, stop leaks of pipes and electrical panels or provides new and interesting.
In the demo we saw both uses, with Morgan that examined a group of Mimic trapped in the glue and then delete them with a silenced pistol, found on the corpse of a guard. Later, he used the cannon GLOO to create a makeshift ramp and reach an elevated Boardwalk.
In addition, Prey will boast an object creation system, which will allow you to create various things using resources obtained from objects scattered around the space station. In addition to weapons and ammunition, you can create tools such as the propulsion system Artax at one of the many stations of creating Fabricator. In the demo, Morgan takes advantage of this zero-gravity propulsion device to explore space out from Talos. Artax propulsion system allows quick access to new areas of the station, avoiding the paths and reaching directly the hatches watertight.
Although you will find a shortcut through space, you will still need to remain on alert. Danger lurks around every corner and Typhon aren't the only threat on Talos. Along with weapons, powers, tools and ingenuity, a little healthy paranoia will be key to survival.
