Originally released in 2010 and delisted from Steam in June 2019, the GOG version features an array of modern features. The DualSense, Switch Pro, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One and DualShock 4 controllers are all fully supported alongside text localization for French, German, Italian, Spanish, Czech, Polish and Russian.

It also supports cloud saves and modern operating systems. Achievements were previously exclusive to console versions, but have also been brought over. Best of all is the licensed soundtrack, included with all your favorite tracks for that signature espionage feel.

Alpha Protocol is also available for PS3 and Xbox 360. Check out our review of the original PC version here.

Update: Sega has since updated Eurogamer to confirm that it still retains ownership of the Alpha Protocol IP. The game was pulled from Steam due to music rights expiring, which is a common occurrence for old titles using licensed music.

Original Story:

Obsidian Entertainment has been gathering attention for high profile projects like The Outer Worlds, which looks to be a spiritual successor to the beloved Fallout: New Vegas. However, a different project from the developer has been recently garnering attention for no longer being available on Steam. We’re talking about Alpha Protocol, an action RPG released in 2010 to less than stellar reviews.

If you head to the Steam page, you’ll see the note, “At the request of the publisher, Alpha Protocol is no longer available for sale on Steam.” Since the game’s removal, Eurogamer received an update from Sega who published the game. A company spokesperson said that its publishing rights had expired and Obsidian now has control of the license.

Maybe Alpha Protocol will return to Steam, but with Obsidian Entertainment as the publisher. Perhaps we’ll see it become available on the Microsoft Store and Steam, especially since Obsidian Entertainment is now part of Xbox Game Studios. Of course, the other theory is that Alpha Protocol could make the jump to the Epic Games Store. This is something that happened with The Outer Worlds, even if it was via publisher Private Division. We’ll have to wait and find out.

As for The Outer Wilds, it’s out on October 25th for Xbox One, PS4, and PC.

Obsidian is known and beloved for many of their games, but Alpha Protocol, their spy-op RPG that they released with Sega, is arguably their most under appreciated gem. The game was incredibly janky, and really, it had way too many problems for it to actually be recommended as a good game- but underneath all that faff was something truly special.

Of course, a lot of players simply didn’t get to play the game, and like many Obsidian titles pre-Pillars of Eternity, it underperformed. That said, Obsidian may be looking at bringing it back for another go. Limited Run Games recently tweeted a question asking if fans would want a modern day remaster of Alpha Protocol, which in and of itself would be notable, but nothing concrete.

However, now, none other than Obsidian themselves have gone ahead and responded to the Limited Run Games tweet, with nothing but an emoji of a pair of eyes slyly looking away. Which seems to be a pretty heavy handed indication that it may at least be in consideration, if not outright confirmed internally.

Alpha Protocol is available on PS3, Xbox 360, and PC.

https://twitter.com/obsidian/status/1036747936544083968?s=21

Said Sega West president Mike Hayes:”Let’s speak very commercially; the game hasn’t sold what we’ve expected, therefore we won’t be doing a sequel.

“The concept was brilliant, though,” he added. “You know this whole thing with Metacritic where you have to be in the high 70s to mid-80s minimum [to have any success] – well, with RPGs you have got to be in the late 80s.”

“Let’s speak very commercially; the game hasn’t sold what we’ve expected, therefore we won’t be doing a sequel,” said Hayes.

“The concept was brilliant, though,” he added. “You know this whole thing with Metacritic where you have to be in the high 70s to mid-80s minimum [to have any success] – well, with RPGs you have got to be in the late 80s.

“Whilst we had a good game, I don’t think we had a game that had enough to get us to that upper echelon and I think that was the issue.

“Again, the amount you need to invest to get there is so large because RPGs are naturally big projects. We’ve decided we won’t do a sequel.”

It’s kind of sad. Alpha Protocol was certainly a well intentioned game, and a sequel might have been the title the first one should have been. Guess we’ll never know.

The story begins with the initiation of our protagonist, Michael Thorton, into the obscure US military agency Alpha Protocol. After the obligatory plot exposition and training segments, our  hero is sent to retrieve information on an arms smuggler in Saudi Arabia. Alpha Protocol starts to carve an interesting universe immediately that serves as an enjoyable pastiche of other spy thrillers from Bond to Bourne, and this certainly becomes clearer once he finds there are members of his own organisation trying to work against him to cover up black market weapons dealing. So Thorton steps out to attempt to find out how to stop all this bad stuff going down, whilst evading pursuit from his previous colleagues. It’s an enjoyable, if quite cheesy storyline, but it’ll certainly keep you playing from start to finish.

The action in the game is pretty satisfying

As for your supporting characters on your missions, well this is left up to options you make early on in the game. This is where Alpha Protocol comes into its own, as your interactions with the game’s memorable cast of characters decide who sides with you, and who will attempt to halt your progress as the story unfolds. I was particularly friendly with the lady at the shooting range, (giggidy) so she was the one to help me out when my other co-workers were out to get me. It really gives your interactions with the game’s NPCs an edge, as keeping them all on side becomes more and more difficult as time moves on. Much like the rest of the game, the characters feel a little too formulaic, but it’s clear that a lot of thought has been put into them and each will react to your varying remarks and actions according to their wide-ranging personalities. It’ll keep you on your toes and will keep you guessing the best approach for each conversation.

Throughout your journey into the bizarre conspiracy theories afoot, you’ll travel the world from Moscow to Thailand, and encounter a lot of memorable set-pieces along the way. It’s just a shame that, whilst the level design isn’t bad, it’s incredibly linear and offers little in the way of exploration. This linearity is furthered by the way missions are structured. You have a safe house where you manage your inventory, skills etc. and where you choose your next mission. It’s nice that you can tackle the levels in any order, but it decreases the sense of Alpha Protocol being any more than just a range of levels strapped end to end.

The RPG and the Third Person shooter are two opposite ends of the genre spectrum that have recently been merged on many occasions. With such a saturated field to enter, is Alpha Protocol able to keep up with the big boys? Sadly not in terms of sheer gameplay. The RPG aspect of Alpha Protocol passes with flying colours. The dialogue system is smooth, simple and effective. You choose one of four key-words during a conversation, ranging from a question to moods and approaches to dialogue. Whilst it’s easy just hitting the keys and hoping for the best, sometimes even the smallest decisions can have a lasting effect and this is something that not enough games get right these days. The other corner of the RPG ring is the levelling and equipment options and Alpha Protocol caters for a wide variety of customisation options. There are a myriad of weapons, upgrades and gadgets and a variety of skills that need mastering in order to use these effectively.

A kick to the face… ouch!

Unfortunately it’s with so many skills and items that the major balancing issues in Alpha Protocol come to light. Some of the guns are just plain useless, and when I can win a fight at any range with just an assault rifle and my fists, I know something is not quite right. What’s more frustrating is the inability to use stealth in the game. Remember the linear missions I mentioned earlier? It makes sneaking up behind the tangos tough, regardless of my skill level in stealth. What’s more bothersome is the appalling AI. Not only are they stupid and partially blind, but they’re also just inhuman. Sure it’s easy enough to get the drop on a guy, but the moment you are spotted, every enemy in the section of the map knows where you are, even when you break the line of site. So I turn off the alarm that was set off; and it makes no difference whatsoever… This becomes game-breaking when you realise that you can’t remove skill points once you’ve comitted them, so take my advice and ignore the pistol and shotgun. They’re next to useless. Alpha Protocol’s main tag line is that “your weapon is choice.” Whilst this is certainly the case with the dialogue system, this is just plain deceitful in relation to your options in combat. No matter how hard you try every level soon becomes a blood bath, and it’s one of Alpha Protocol’s weakest aspects.

The Shooting mechanics are a bit more hit and miss. Ironically the cover system that most titles struggle with is handled quite well in Alpha protocol. It lacks any finesse for sure, but it works and rarely gave me any trouble. It’s a shame that the rest of the mechanics aren’t quite as solid. The gun-play is designed to reward methodical and accurate shots, but it just winds up feeling a bit too slow and flaky. It quickly becomes a case of spamming bullets in the heat of combat, and it makes the shoot-outs feel very unrefined. It’s these moments that unfortunately break the suave spy illusion that is built up so well in the dialogue. Compounding these issues are a range of glitches ranging from the aesthetic to the plain annoying. They were noticeable but thankfully the worst I got was some very dodgy camera flashes. Be warned though that a quick google search will yield various forum posts about more game-breaking glitches others have encountered so I might have just been lucky. Thorough research prior to a purchase would be well rewarded.

The dialogue system is very unique

The unflattering nature of the combat isn’t helped by the look of the thing. These aren’t the worst graphics I’ve ever seen, but they reek of PS2 era. What’s more frustrating is that the art direction is bland and uninspired with drab textures as far as the eye can see. Some of the animations too are a bit embarrassing, and I must admit it eventually got to the stage where I was locking my door for fear someone would come in and see the suggestively wooden crouch walk animation. You’ll know what I mean if you see it in action. Thankfully the user interface isn’t as bad as the rest of the visuals. It’s helpful enough without getting in the way, and saves me trying to play the game whilst blindfolded.

I’ve always believed the sound to be an important part of the spy thriller genre. After all, there are only a handful of conversations I’ve had about James Bond where someone hasn’t hummed the iconic theme music. Alpha protocol gets some of this important aspect right with some appropriate, if forgettable, background music (minus one intense set piece in Moscow that I won’t spoil for anyone) and some pretty awesome voice acting on the whole. The problem comes in the sound effects in that, much like the combat itself, they just feel weak and unpolished.

Alpha Protocol is a Marmite title. Should you decide to love, rather than hate it you’ll find a lot of loving to be done. A single play-through will take you around 15 hours depending on how thorough you are, and the impact of the dialogue options easily warrants a second or even third run through. Sadly these alternate play-throughs might not hold your attention on account of the linearity of the levels and the lack of feasible options in combat.

I hope it doesn’t sound sexist if I refer to Alpha Protocol as the kind of gal you’d want a long term relationship with. She can be a little irritable and might not be the best looker of the bunch, but deep down she has a heart of gold. It’s worth thinking about whether she’s your type or not though. Do you play games for the story and role-playing? If so proceed to your local games outlet and pick up Alpha Protocol. You won’t be disappointed. If your favourite aspect is the bit where you shoot said villain in the face, then you’ll be better served by a few more hours on your favourite FPS.  At it’s core it’s sturdy and solid, but it lacks a certain polish that many will find off-putting. If you can get past this aspect, Alpha Protocol has enough memorable moments to justify the expense. I’m certainly glad I took the time to enjoy its rather unique charms.

This game was reviewed on the PC.

The dialogue system is very well implemented

As I had promised earlier I won’t be going too deep in the plot so I will now concentrate in to explaining you guys what actually makes the game tick. As you must have already observed through the trailers, the central element of the game play is shooting. But before that the developers have added the tried and tested elements of RPG’s. When you start the game you will be able to customize Thorton’s appearance. From his mustache to his hair, everything about the character can be customized. After you are done with customizing your character, you will be able to choose the type of traits that the protagonist will have. You can select any one of the following:

• Soldier: The Soldier is the weapons specialist. Most skills are weapon-based, and your character doesn’t mind being seen, as it will only be for a short while (since they will be dead). He specialises in SMGs, Assault Rifles and Toughness.
• Covert Ops: The Covert Ops agent excels in keeping down low and taking his enemies out without making any sound. His specialities lie in Stealth, Pistols and Martial Arts.
• Tech Specialist: The Tech Specialist is the go-to guy for your gadgets. Proficient in Sabotage, Technical Aptitude and Shotguns, he uses his skill-set to lure his enemies into his carefully placed traps or taking down enemies from close range.
• Freelancer: The Freelancer is a blank slate. You receive 31 Advancement Points (AP) to buy skills for your character. Be aware though, as specialisation is the key to success!
• Rookie: The Rookie is exactly what you would imagine. Consider this the hardest background, as you start out with no AP to buy skills.

So depending on what fits you the best, you select the option and move ahead. We selected Covert ops since it had the best combination of stealth and combat.

You will face different kind of enemies as you play through the game

The game also has advancement points that you can earn through discussions with NPC’s and by completing missions. These AP points can then be utilized to buy a variety of things which I am going to discuss a bit later.

Now let’s start with how a mission unfolds in Alpha Protocol. You basically start off your mission in to various safe houses that you will find at different maps within a game. Every mission will have its set of very long and detailed briefings. This is where you will be introduced to the dialogue and the reputation system. Just like in the case of Mass Effect, your actions will decide the fate of your character. Whatever option you will select will impact on the amount of experience points you have earned. Select an appropriate option and your AP and reputation will increase and if you screw it up your AP will go down. Unlike any other RPG, Alpha Protocol will only allow the player to have a conversation once.  After you are done with the briefing you either have the option of attempting the mission directly or go to your lab and customize your gadgets and inventory. Now this is what I really liked about the game. The presentation of the inventory box is the most impressive part of the game. Guns, grenades and gadgets have been wonderfully represented and it feels like you are indeed a part of some tactical organization. The inventory box will be available to you within the safe house or you can directly access it by pressing the pause button. The money that you earn can be used to buy new weapons like shot guns, rifles and snipers. Also a whole arsenal of gadgets is made available.

AP will unlock new abilities and make your life easier

Your arsenal includes four kinds of weapons: pistols, submachine guns, shotguns, assault rifles, as well as a host of gadgets and armour. You may bring two weapons into a mission, as well as the armour or clothing worn in the field. Each weapon has 4 upgradable slots: barrels, sights, magazines and accessories. Upgrades can be purchased in the clearinghouse or found during missions.

Pistol

The pistol is the weapon you use in close to midrange encounters. When used at close range, a pistol can be trained on a target until crosshairs appear in the Target Reticule. When these crosshairs close in on the centre of the Target Reticule, the next shot will be a Critical Hit – inflicting additional damage.

SMG

The submachine gun lays down a torrent of suppressive fire. Multiple hits with the SMG activate a Critical Hit Streak – increasing future hits until the shooting spree ends or you reload.

ASSAULT RIFLE

The assault rifle is the gun for the tactician. A weapon fine-tuned with surgical precision, used for targets that have taken cover or are at a great distance. Its raw damage output makes it the weapon best suited to cracking heavily armoured targets. The assault rifle fires 3-round bursts with impressive stopping power. By steadying your aim over any point in space, you can line up a Critical Hit that will fire all three shots of the next burst in the exact same spot. You can see how close you are to lining up a Critical Hit by watching the crosshairs in the Target Reticule – when the crosshairs close into the dead centre of the Target Reticule, your next shot will be a perfectly grouped Critical Hit.

SHOTGUN

Suitable for short range encounters, the shotgun launches a cloud of small projectiles in one staggering blast. By holding down the Left trigger, you can steady the shotgun for Critical Hit that knocks down anything in its path. When the Left trigger is held, the Target Reticule will fill up with a circular indicator – when that indicator is a complete circle, the next shot will be a Critical Hit.

ARMOUR

You will always have one suit of armour or clothing on any mission. Armour provides Endurance, as well as room for special upgrades, though it is often at the expense of making you more visible and less quiet. Especially daring agents can forgo sensible armour to wear simple clothing, and sacrifice protection for inconspicuous clothing that won’t hinder stealth.

In addition to your primary arsenal, you have a collection of gadgets to help achieve your mission objectives. It’s a good idea to be sparing in use of these tools, as you can only carry a limited amount. The number of gadgets based on your Technical Aptitude skill the kind of armour you choose for the mission

EXPLOSIVE GRENADES

Delivering a powerful concussive blast, this hand grenade is modified from the standard infantryman’s grenade with an adhesive surface and a simple proximity sensor – making it useful as both a thrown weapon and a placed trap.

SHOCK TRAPS

Designed for non-lethal (albeit tortuously painful) takedown, this modified grenade features a series of charged capacitors in the place of explosive material. Delivering a powerful arc of armor penetrating current to several targets, this device’s short radius makes it most useful as a placed trap, but can be exceedingly dangerous when thrown accurately.

FIRST AID

Alongside bandages and rolls of gauze, this compact kit contains an auto-injector of synthetic platelets and pain killers. Invaluable when medical attention is needed and there’s no time for thorough care, this medical marvel can keep an agent alive and kicking despite serious injury. Multiple doses in a short span of time are potentially fatal, so an agent is strongly advised to allow the body time to metabolize the blood clotting agents before injecting subsequent doses.

FLASHBANG

The Flashbang uses densely packed flares and ear-splitting concussive sound to blind and deafen opponents in a room. Housed in a special grenade canister with a basic proximity fuse, the Flashbang can be thrown in a firefight or placed on a nearby surface to cover a retreat.

INCENDIARY GRENADES

This modified grenade uses a small explosive charge to ignite a pressurized body of flammable liquid – dousing an area (and any targets within) in intense flames and thick smoke that will block sight. Featuring an adhesive surface and basic proximity sensor, the Incendiary Bomb can be used as a thrown weapon or a placed trap.

EMP GRENADES

Delivering a powerful spike of multi-spectrum interference, the EMP (Electromagnetic Pulse) Charge will temporarily disable cameras, automated turrets, alarm systems, and other technological systems. When used with the Interference skill (in the “Technical Aptitude” branch), an EMP Charge can be tuned to selectively disable electronic components. This allows a trained agent to use an EMP to short circuit the alarm leads on a tumbler lock and then kick the door open, or wipe the security programs off a computer while leaving storage drives intact for the taking.

SOUND GENERATOR

A tool for deception and harassment, the Sound Generator is a directed sonic projector capable of bouncing a coherent sound off any surface at short or medium range. Programmed to broadcast innocuous sounds, the Sound Generator’s compact size and design allow ‘point and shoot’ operation with an effectively limitless battery life.

EPINEPHRINE SPIKES

Epinephrine is a natural neurotransmitter that prioritizes brain and muscle activity while suppressing non-emergency functions such as digestion. This syringe of synthetic Epinephrine will give an agent a rush of strength and precision – resulting in improved recoil control and powerful bursts of hand-to-hand strength.

RADIO MIMICS

A combination radio transmitter and voice distortion device used to send false signals. The Radio Mimic allows the user to call off an active alarm by sending a deceptive “All clear!” message. Limited battery power and the potential to be traced allow a mimic device to be used only once.

REMOTE MINES

This compact, aerodynamic disc of plastic explosives features a short-range radio for detonation. Adhesive on two sides, this mine can be thrown and attached to virtually any surface and then detonated at the agent’s discretion.

For a more detailed look at the gizmos, check this video below:

The shooting sections are a bit of hit and miss for me. It seems like the developers have tried to implement a Gears of War like shooting mechanics. But for some reason it did not worked out fine. Many times I found myself stuck at corners or was uncomfortable to aim while I was in cover. The advancement points (AP) which I had talked about earlier can be used to improve the protagonist’s traits. A number of traits can be improved on which will give the player special abilities like Thorton will be able to shoot multiple enemies at once  and so on. Overall the combat element is pretty strong and as expected is the heart of Alpha Protocol’s game play.

The environments are bland

Alpha Protocol is a pretty good looking game. Thorton has been modelled with focus on every minor detail. The characters when they speak look and sound realistic but some of the environments were very bland. This is something which I hope gets fixed in the retail copy. Sound on the other hand is good. Alpha Protocol easily has the best voice acting for this year. Background scores are a bit of a mix bag.

Overall we at GamingBolt are very satisfied how the game is shaping up. Minor issues like the bland environments and the ones that I faced during shooting should be sorted out in the retail copies. Stay tuned with GamingBolt for the full review of this game at the end of the month.

But in a extensive FAQ post on Sega’s message board, it says that the DRM won’t be like most Ubisoft titles where a network connection is needed, basically the game does require a PC to activate the game and start playing but after that a net connection is not needed.

You will be able to activate the license key on 5 PC’s along with a way to deactivate your PC.

Sega said that they will eliminate the DRM set up for Alpha Protocol via a patch about 18-24 months after the game is released.

Source

“We want to get the core games right before anything else,” said Hayes. “We’ve got our shooter with AvP and our RPG with Alpha Protocol – we really want to make those into franchises. ”

“If you think about it, we can sequel-ise Bayonetta, AVP, Alpha Protocol and we can make a hit of something like Vanquish. Add that to Football Manager and Virtua Tennis – we actually have a broad portfolio.”

Stay tuned with GB for more news and updates.