Prey offers one of the best gaming environments in the history and builds on it its sophisticated, exciting, and unusually entertaining gameplay. A weaker story and sometimes too high difficulty does not change the fact that Arkane studios has once again produced something special. [Issue#275]

Prey is a masterpiece of the science-fiction genre. A game that hooks the player from beginning to end and creates a wonderful experience.

Excellent first person action with a strong RPG element allows countless gameplay approaches with its sensitively set systems and fantastic game- and level- design. It brings an eye-catching story, a great scriptwriting, a mercilessly exciting atmosphere, and it does not allow criticism of logical deficiencies because it explains everything carefully. Technically, it is flawless and runs smoothly. A handful of minor flaws can be overlooked with no regret.

All in all I would definitely recommend Prey to anyone interested. It is very reminiscent of Bioshock with some hefty Dead Space elements thrown in and some solid Deus Ex mechanics driving it all. It is a well-balanced, lengthy game with a substantial story that is intriguing enough to keep you interested for an extended period of time. Lackluster combat can make some stretches a drag, but that next room to explore and that next secret to uncover keeps you going. If you are on the fence, I would suggest you pick this one up. In a year that seems to just keep on delivering, Prey is yet another success story.

It is difficult to overstate what an achievement Prey's environmental and gameplay designs represent, nor the elegance and real ingenuity behind the many interlocking systems that the player accesses throughout. Whether you approach it as a horror-action game, a stealth-puzzle game or a run-and-gun shooter, Prey will accommodate you. Although it lacks narrative drive or memorable characters, Prey will engage you for hours as you realize the potential for creativity that the developers baked in to every area and moment in the game.

Prey's greatest success is its approach to choice and exploration. For players looking for a direct and focused single player shooter experience, this will undoubtedly disappoint and perhaps even frustrate, but for players looking for a smart and immersive world rife with intrigue and tension, Prey is a quality companion for some true classics.

If the PC version of Prey hadn’t become completely unplayable from crashes and save-game corruption just as it was hitting its stride, I’d have called it a very good or perhaps even great game. Its strange alternate-history universe, sidequests, hidden threats, and detailed environmental storytelling make Talos I a joy to explore, one that’s well worth slogging through combat that doesn’t feel fresh enough to sustain it throughout a long game.