Given the fact that I really don't know how to start this Prototype 2 review, I'll begin with a little story about a big city; let's call it New York, that one day was hit by a virus. And don't think about a cold or flu, no this thing was way more powerful, turning some of the people into monsters and killing lots of other. That was the mayhem that gave birth to Alex Mercer, the character of the first Prototype game. It was a nice but far from flawless sandbox world, where the producers hoped to achieve the ultimate moral and physical freedom for the players. And now, the new Prototype 2 wants to walk on the same old path, provided that it will avoid some of its predecessor's mistakes.

The same old battered New York

I don't know if you have ever noticed this, but all the American movie and game producers have a common problem: most of the time, in all the scenarios, there is one of three cities hit by a catastrophically event (just like a folklore tradition): in San Francisco there's the earthquakes, in L.A. there's a tsunami or a tidal wave incoming and in New York, well, here you have two options - terrorists or zombies (or terrorists releasing zombies). In any way, this is a pattern that never seems obsolete...at least for them. So in Prototype 2 we're back in a battered New York, trying to survive its second infection with the Alex Mercer virus.

If you have ever played the first Prototype you will remember that the city was quite alive, featuring a great deal of people and cars. Now though, the Big Apple has fallen apart and as it is, it has been separated into three different areas according to its degree of zombie infestation. The yellow zone is more like a refugee camp, filled with scared people running from the virus powered zombie aggression. The green zone is a rather quiet place, almost free of any infection and where the rich have retreated to a safe distance from the main red area. And there, in the red marked space, things have turned into a living corner of hell where few had the guts to enter and even fewer have ever returned from. And to make thing even worse, it seems that the military forces who shut down the New York Zero area, have their own agenda of experimenting with the virus, apparently in order to create a new breed of super soldier troops.

Meet the new Alex Mercer

In this critical situation there had to be a hero, but the Prototype series is not about your regular, life saving, moral character. In the first game Alex Mercer was a powerful mutant that could create chaos and destruction in just a couple of minutes without any hesitation. Now, even if Mercer reappears in Prototype 2, his part is way thinner, the main character part going to Sergeant James Heller, a veteran sworn to find and kill Mercer for his presumed part in the death of his wife and daughter.

So yeah, the two meet and as a result, Heller is infected by Mercer with his name bearing virus. A great way to make the character transfer and to sketch the first lines of a very good scenario, much to the disappointment of those who thought that Alex Mercer will continue to be the main character in the second installment too. And here I must say that the producers made a genial breakthrough because it seems that they never did want to relate the series to only one character. In fact, as one of their representatives once said, their main goal was to center the games on the virus, so as not to be limited to only one character or city. Even so, Prototype 2 is back in New York so I presume that this second part has to be a sequel to wrap up this big city adventure without making it a tombstone for the franchise.

The old and the "new"

A thing about the two published Prototype games is that they have lots in common. Even the plot is somehow the same as in both cases it follows a virus outbreak, it does make a purpose out of tracking the guilty ones and somehow determines a new character prototype, a superhero designed by some very unusual rules.

Heller is the black, tuff guy with a soft spot for his family. Just like Mercer he uncovers gradually his new powers and learning to use them leaves behind a long trail of corpses or even worse - no trace, seeing that in order to survive he has to consume his victims. The new NY Zero is a testing ground both for the military and for Heller who was the whole freedom to torment or kill any living human on the map. That's why it does seem a bit strange (to say the least) that in between those people saving missions you can kill them as easy as any other mutant can do the same. It lacks that moral limit, that "don't touch the innocent" element, a thing that sometimes got on my nerves.

Evolving up the food chain

This is an expression used in the game, but I'm not going to tell you when and why. Still, for the moment, this reflects quite well the way in which sergeant Heller evolves his own powers. Because, he has to hunt down and kill his monster enemies, consuming their bodies and receiving in exchange new and quite handy powers: huge claws, powerful hammer like fists, a double shield that can withstand any blow no matter how powerful and so on. Moreover, Heller gets also an evolutionary push up every time he finishes a level, but this time, the player can decide where to "invest" more: strength, speed, healing, stealth or mass. Everyone is as important as the other but balancing Heller's abilities more in one direction than the other gives the game a more personal approach. And as it was only natural, the "consumed victims mind reading" thing is still present together with the shape shifting ability. But this time it has a much more important role in the story as Prototype 2 goes on a linear scenario where Heller has to track down some of the main scientist and military operatives, kill and consume them in order to uncover new pieces from this virus outbreak's mysteries.

A magnificent world

I must say that even if it shows a torn apart version of New York, the Prototype 2 graphic works, is way better than in the first game. People, buildings, vehicles, all looks just as it should, even if our post-apocalyptical notion of a city was deeply influenced by all that Hollywood crap we've been fed through our TV's along the years.

I was even surprised that Heller can (violently) interact with just about anything. He can take and throw away chairs, couches, rooftop air ventilation systems, tanks and of course people. He can even jump up from the top of some of the highest buildings and land hard on the ground leaving a deep crater and a dozen of corpses behind. That's why I was telling you before that the producers forgot to ship the game with the moral component installed. This is a no limits area where each and every one of the players can decide what kind of superhero he wants to be.

A word of advice

Having superpowers and being able to hit/kill/smash/consume everyone you encounter is not always the best course of action. The city is crawling with Blackwatch military operatives and their reaction when seeing you mutate won't be so pleasant. In a matter of minutes there's going to be a helicopter on your tail, that will hunt you down merciless until either you die or you will be able to destroy

it using your superpowers or a missile launcher. So be sure not to attract too much attention on you.Other than that, the game is awesome and seeing that I'm a sandbox games fan, this is one of my favorite titles in 2012. Of course, it has its weak spots, mostly in how the scenario is somewhat too linear but that's second to the fun, the rush and the general action that Prototype 2 features. It's not a classical, but it may become one.

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