Prey (2017) Review

Written: 24-01-2023

I tried Prey (2017) a while back and never got into it. I found that the enemies were difficult to beat and there was never enough resources the first time I played but after hearing a lot of good things I came back to it and I wasn’t disappointed.

Prey has many ways to tackle each situation in it’s best moments which keeps you on your toes trying to decide the best way forward. It’s usually better to try a different method than running in guns blazing. There’s also a really interesting ability unlock system which accounts for many different play styles. Together these things allow for lots of emergent gameplay. I had one section where I trapped an alien in a room using a nerf crossbow by shooting a control panel which felt great. There was also a few places where I used the mimic ability to transform into small objects to get into areas.

Unfortunately, this is not the case throughout the whole game. After a certain point in the game you will start to be quite powerful and will probably end up using one method to solve every problem since you’ve upgraded the tools for that the most. This removes those interesting decisions. There are also a few areas where tools like the glue gun are always the best option since there’s ammo for that everywhere.

The story of Prey is also quite interesting and a lot of it comes across in the level design and voice recordings left on the space station. These elements make an interesting alternative future and a cool setting.

I’d definitely recommend Prey, especially if you like a game with multiple paths and lots of options.