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Alpha Protocol: Old Thread

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    Stabbity StyleStabbity Style He/Him | Warning: Mothership Reporting Kennewick, WARegistered User regular
    edited June 2010
    Oh god, I started my second game as a Recruit and the dialog is killing me. I think it might be that a dude with a beret, lumberjack beard, and mirrored glasses is saying them.

    "I'm gonna have to fight a cage match?"

    This is the best.

    Stabbity Style on
    Stabbity_Style.png
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    surrealitychecksurrealitycheck lonely, but not unloved dreaming of faulty keys and latchesRegistered User regular
    edited June 2010
    It annoys me how some missions you get detected automatically. GRRR

    Also I love the blue shirt, I'm refusing to wear armour :o

    surrealitycheck on
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    Zen VulgarityZen Vulgarity What a lovely day for tea Secret British ThreadRegistered User regular
    edited June 2010
    I made the arms dealer give me money.

    And being an asshole means no ultra-awesome gear

    Zen Vulgarity on
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    CherrnCherrn Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    I tried going the no-kill route until I found out sometime in Rome that I had gotten a collateral kill. After that I just started unloading.

    Honestly, don't try to make your first playthrough a no-kill one. The game is a lot more fun if you just let go, and start using some of your more lethal abilities. The few missions where you're rewarded for not killing anyone are plainly obvious; when your enemies don't have ties to any of the terrorist organizations. I'm going to save the pacifist playthrough for later, when they've (hopefully) patched it.

    Cherrn on
    All creature will die and all the things will be broken. That's the law of samurai.
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    AspectVoidAspectVoid Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    So, I finished off the Taipei missions last night. There was some good stuff in there.
    I found the final mission to be a blast, despite the fact that I really couldn't stealth it. I had made friends with both G22 and the Triads, so there were a bunch of their guys all over the place shooting things up. While I couldn't stealth most of it, firefights are a breeze when no one's paying attention to you. I ended up choosing to stop the assassination. The way I saw it, the chaos caused by Sung getting assassinated would have been a LOT worse then a couple of hundred people dying in riots. Big picture sort of thing.

    I also loved the fact that I was in good with Heck and he covered for me when VCI tried to frame me for the assassination. I think Heck should be Mike's new BFF.

    AspectVoid on
    PSN|AspectVoid
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    TheApatheticOneTheApatheticOne Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    Got through Saudi Arabi last night, accidently passed up one of the side missions which is gone now, didnt realize that I had selected the main one, which makes me a sad panda.

    Enjoying the game so far, even though Im using the Stealth-Pistol-MA build, and pretty much running straight at guys and punching them. Stealth, so far, I still have no feel for. I can be crouched, behind stuff, not where they are looking, and still get spotted it seems. And then in some places, like one part I played, where it was a very narrow area, with a guard in a tower staring straight my way and not moving. It was literally not a possibility to do a stealth run of that part. Im kinda regreting my decision of that build, but will stick with it. Wish I went with assault rifles, toughness, and MA.

    TheApatheticOne on
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    ShadowfireShadowfire Vermont, in the middle of nowhereRegistered User regular
    edited June 2010
    Cherrn wrote: »
    I tried going the no-kill route until I found out sometime in Rome that I had gotten a collateral kill. After that I just started unloading.

    Honestly, don't try to make your first playthrough a no-kill one. The game is a lot more fun if you just let go, and start using some of your more lethal abilities. The few missions where you're rewarded for not killing anyone are plainly obvious; when your enemies don't have ties to any of the terrorist organizations. I'm going to save the pacifist playthrough for later, when they've (hopefully) patched it.

    I had two because of the
    stryker in Saudi Arabia blowing up a vehicle and killing two guys.

    Seriously, pissed. :(

    Shadowfire on
    WiiU: Windrunner ; Guild Wars 2: Shadowfire.3940 ; PSN: Bradcopter
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    BlackDoveBlackDove Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    Yeah, I had 1 by the end of my first game because of the Stryker blowing up the vehicle and killing a dude.

    But only that one.

    Not gonna happen this time.

    BlackDove on
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    BiopticBioptic Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    Got through Saudi Arabi last night, accidently passed up one of the side missions which is gone now, didnt realize that I had selected the main one, which makes me a sad panda.

    Enjoying the game so far, even though Im using the Stealth-Pistol-MA build, and pretty much running straight at guys and punching them. Stealth, so far, I still have no feel for. I can be crouched, behind stuff, not where they are looking, and still get spotted it seems. And then in some places, like one part I played, where it was a very narrow area, with a guard in a tower staring straight my way and not moving. It was literally not a possibility to do a stealth run of that part. Im kinda regreting my decision of that build, but will stick with it. Wish I went with assault rifles, toughness, and MA.

    Nah - the Field Agent/Spy build is one of the more powerful in the game, but is very Abilities-dependant. For Stealth, remember that noise is almost as important as vision - you may be alerting nearby people even when crouching if you're wearing heavy armour and not moving slowly or using Silent Running. For impassable situations, you can use your Sound Generator thing in the grenade slot to temporarily distract guards for a stealth knockout, or just line up a critical headshot on them with a silenced pistol from cover.

    Pistols in a Stealthy playthrough should be conserved for 1) enemies that are difficult to get behind, and 2) groups of enemies that might become alerted if just one is taken out. Chain shot is ideal for these latter situations (and should be upgraded as soon as possible) - line up silenced head crits on all enemies, and they all go down without an alert.

    Martial Arts is brilliant once you get decent armour - single enemies can be easily rushed and taken out before they can even get a shot off and alert nearby enemies. At higher levels, it should be your first go-to for unplanned combat, as it takes people down quickly and silently.

    Bioptic on
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    DarkWarriorDarkWarrior __BANNED USERS regular
    edited June 2010
    The pain I've had with chain shot is lining up the shots, instant knocking them out but then they fire off their fucking gun as they pass out, alerting everyone nearby.

    DarkWarrior on
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    subediisubedii Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    The pain I've had with chain shot is lining up the shots, instant knocking them out but then they fire off their fucking gun as they pass out, alerting everyone nearby.

    Yeah I've seen that happen once. I'm not not sure whether it might be to do with the fact that some enemies aren't immediately taken out by the damage of the shot itself, and instead get close to zero, and the rest ticks down from there as the Tranq takes effect.

    What I've noticed is that they might fire off like that if they're enemies that don't go down immediately from the shot. Instead hey get knocked to the ground because of the critical hit, and then the last bit of health drops a little after that hit.

    subedii on
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    DemiurgeDemiurge Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    The pain I've had with chain shot is lining up the shots, instant knocking them out but then they fire off their fucking gun as they pass out, alerting everyone nearby.

    That only happens when they have armor, a tranq to the head will instantly knock out everyone else, counter the armor by giving them two shots.

    Demiurge on
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    CherrnCherrn Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    Yeah, and if you get an upgraded gun and remember to use the armor piercing shots, armor's not a problem. I haven't tried using any of the other weapons, but I cannot imagine anything in the game being more powerful than chain shot. It's basically free, noiseless kills with a really short cooldown.

    Cherrn on
    All creature will die and all the things will be broken. That's the law of samurai.
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    Eight RooksEight Rooks Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    It means every boss fight is over in seconds, too.

    Eight Rooks on
    <AtlusParker> Sorry I'm playing Pokemon and vomiting at the same time so I'm not following the conversation in a linear fashion.

    Read my book. (It has a robot in it.)
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    BiopticBioptic Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    Cherrn wrote: »
    Yeah, and if you get an upgraded gun and remember to use the armor piercing shots, armor's not a problem. I haven't tried using any of the other weapons, but I cannot imagine anything in the game being more powerful than chain shot. It's basically free, noiseless kills with a really short cooldown.

    Although I'm sure it's a bug, it doesn't even break glass - I'm pretty sure the game doesn't render Chainshot bullet trajectories. Quite handy for situations where you want to take out the occupants of a room from outside without alerting anyone. I also believe it has a far greater range (at least initially) than normal critical shots.

    And, unfortunately, it's ruined all boss fights bar one for me so far - I just can't resist the temptation of 5 simultaneous critical headshots from clear across the room.

    Bioptic on
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    subediisubedii Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    It means every boss fight is over in seconds, too.

    On this playthrough I fought Sis using and almost full Martial Arts skill. Last time I tried it she walloped me. This time I only had about half health by the time I reached her, but she went down in like, 10 seconds. Wonder whether I could even take down Brayko in melee now.

    I think as long as you've got the developed skill, you can use your speciality to take them down.

    SMG's with bulletstorm admittedly won't be as fast, but that's more designed for mass opponents in order to clear rooms. Engaging dudes with Bulletstorm is practically easy mode, you just keep the trigger held down.

    Don't know how shotguns or rifles would fare.

    subedii on
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    AspectVoidAspectVoid Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    subedii wrote: »
    It means every boss fight is over in seconds, too.

    On this playthrough I fought Sis using and almost full Martial Arts skill. Last time I tried it she walloped me. This time I only had about half health by the time I reached her, but she went down in like, 10 seconds. Wonder whether I could even take down Brayko in melee now.

    Man, Fury + Melee is my boss killing strategy. It drops bosses fast. What I tend to do is open with Chain shot on the Boss enemy's grunts to drop them all, then fury and pound the boss flat. It's pretty glorious.

    AspectVoid on
    PSN|AspectVoid
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    OptimusZedOptimusZed Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    AspectVoid wrote: »
    subedii wrote: »
    It means every boss fight is over in seconds, too.

    On this playthrough I fought Sis using and almost full Martial Arts skill. Last time I tried it she walloped me. This time I only had about half health by the time I reached her, but she went down in like, 10 seconds. Wonder whether I could even take down Brayko in melee now.

    Man, Fury + Melee is my boss killing strategy. It drops bosses fast. What I tend to do is open with Chain shot on the Boss enemy's grunts to drop them all, then fury and pound the boss flat. It's pretty glorious.
    Spies turn boss fights into a joke.

    Stealth up to close range, Chain Shot to the head, pop Fury and melee them to death if they survived the headshots.

    I'm finding fights without pistol access to be somewhat more challenging.

    OptimusZed on
    We're reading Rifts. You should too. You know you want to. Now With Ninjas!

    They tried to bury us. They didn't know that we were seeds. 2018 Midterms. Get your shit together.
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    DarkWarriorDarkWarrior __BANNED USERS regular
    edited June 2010
    I dont really think of them as boss fights though, its just Spy Vs Spy, makes sense they're not godlike. Were the combat system more evolved I could see special setups being more likely though, more counters and counter-counters.

    DarkWarrior on
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    subediisubedii Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    I imagine in that respect, the first meeting with with Grigori was essentially his boss fight.

    "Aw look, now you've spilled your drink."

    subedii on
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    DarkWarriorDarkWarrior __BANNED USERS regular
    edited June 2010
    I think the only thing that could make them better is staggered dialogue, so you fight, so much health goes and you retreat to shelter before entering dialogue that you can use to just ignore and attack or to throw them off balance or still try to turn someone who attacked you without warning under the wrong impression.

    DarkWarrior on
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    BlackDoveBlackDove Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    Hmm.

    Even though I went through it undetected and killed no-one, Albatross still caught my ass as I was exiting his Taipei compound.

    :(

    Too bad I didn't have the tech aptitude.

    BlackDove on
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    DarkWarriorDarkWarrior __BANNED USERS regular
    edited June 2010
    BlackDove wrote: »
    Hmm.

    Even though I went through it undetected and killed no-one, Albatross still caught my ass as I was exiting his Taipei compound.

    :(

    Too bad I didn't have the tech aptitude.

    Hmm..thats a shame. Wonder if theres a way to beat it.

    DarkWarrior on
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    subediisubedii Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    I've been playing nice guy, and even tough but nice.

    But grief, you can take Thorton's story down some fairly nasty directions. What's impressive is that they actually took the time to plot all this dialogue out if you're just that bad.

    Compared to him, Renegade Shepard is a freaking boyscout.

    subedii on
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    DarkWarriorDarkWarrior __BANNED USERS regular
    edited June 2010
    Man that is impressively evil

    DarkWarrior on
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    BiopticBioptic Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    subedii wrote: »
    I've been playing nice guy, and even tough but nice.

    But grief, you can take Thorton's story down some fairly nasty directions. What's impressive is that they actually took the time to plot all this dialogue out if you're just that bad.

    Compared to him, Renegade Shepard is a freaking boyscout.

    That settles it - I'm doing a pychotic run as soon as I finish my first. Toughness, Submachine Gun and Shotgun. Nobody lives. Every alarm is tripped, no dossiers compiled. My prior knowledge of the game will allow me to make everyone hate me within 2 minutes of opening my mouth. I genuinely wonder how long I can stomach playing like that.

    Bioptic on
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    tastydonutstastydonuts Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    Cherrn wrote: »
    Yeah, and if you get an upgraded gun and remember to use the armor piercing shots, armor's not a problem. I haven't tried using any of the other weapons, but I cannot imagine anything in the game being more powerful than chain shot. It's basically free, noiseless kills with a really short cooldown.

    so it's kind of like Mass Effect 1's Marksman spam? <3

    tastydonuts on
    “I used to draw, hard to admit that I used to draw...”
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    DarkWarriorDarkWarrior __BANNED USERS regular
    edited June 2010
    I couldnt do it, I cant even be evil in Infamous, I cant be that psychotic.

    DarkWarrior on
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    SoundsPlushSoundsPlush yup, back. Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    So, is there actually an ending for not killing anyone, or is that speculation?
    subedii wrote: »
    Compared to him, Renegade Shepard is a freaking boyscout.
    Shooting Scarlet before she delivers her final words is pretty badass, but how many species has Thorton eradicated? 8-)

    SoundsPlush on
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    DarkWarriorDarkWarrior __BANNED USERS regular
    edited June 2010
    I doubt theres an ending for it, just personal reactions. Its just a person challenge to do it that way.

    DarkWarrior on
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    Zen VulgarityZen Vulgarity What a lovely day for tea Secret British ThreadRegistered User regular
    edited June 2010
    I can easily be that evil after having those psychic fucking enemies see me half the time.

    The world burns this play-through.

    Zen Vulgarity on
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    subediisubedii Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    I think what makes it have impact is that what he says and does are still "rational" (bear with me) actions.

    When he says things like that it still feels as if it's following on naturally from previous events. If he punches someone, you can see why he did it. When Shepard clocks someone, half the time it just comes off as a little camp. Renegade Shepard feels more like they have to force Shepard to be a jerk for no good reason. Here, "Angry, I'm-the-first-priority" Thorton feels like he has his reasons for what he does, even if it's just rage. The things he says and does still fit and feel natural considering what's passed before. Although I think also other people's reactions and dialogue to his behaviour as well has a large part of that.

    subedii on
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    OptimusZedOptimusZed Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    My next (third) playthrough is the sociopathic gun nut firebug thrill killer Thorton.

    It ought to be fun.

    OptimusZed on
    We're reading Rifts. You should too. You know you want to. Now With Ninjas!

    They tried to bury us. They didn't know that we were seeds. 2018 Midterms. Get your shit together.
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    SheepSheep Registered User, __BANNED USERS regular
    edited June 2010
    So have you folks figured out a good way to make use of shotguns or is it still ARs or nothing?

    For you guys that have stuck with it, how do you feel a few days post release?

    Sheep on
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    subediisubedii Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    Sheep wrote: »
    So have you folks figured out a good way to make use of shotguns or is it still ARs or nothing?

    For you guys that have stuck with it, how do you feel a few days post release?

    Definitely an extremely awesome game, and personally it's a contender for one of my best games of the year. I don't care what the freaking reviews say.


    This runthrough though I'm using SMG's. Thorton's done hiding, hit bulletstorm and hold the trigger down.

    subedii on
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    NineNine Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    subedii wrote: »
    I've been playing nice guy, and even tough but nice.

    But grief, you can take Thorton's story down some fairly nasty directions. What's impressive is that they actually took the time to plot all this dialogue out if you're just that bad.

    Compared to him, Renegade Shepard is a freaking boyscout.

    That speech he gives to the old man at the beginning is glorious.

    Nine on
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    tastydonutstastydonuts Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    I doubt theres an ending for it, just personal reactions. Its just a person challenge to do it that way.

    yea. I don't know if there's an ending for not killing anybody, I just want to play through it and not kill anybody. or as few as possible, if I mess up and get a kill and don't feel like rerunning the checkpoint.

    even with achievements, you can still make your own "achievements", heh.

    tastydonuts on
    “I used to draw, hard to admit that I used to draw...”
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    Christ PuncherChrist Puncher Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    That video just made me love this game even more. Definitely going to do a second playthrough now.

    Did anyone else play this on Hard/Recruit the first time around? It will be really satisfying to be a psychopath on "Easy" for this playthrough.

    Question about meeting a german:
    I never met SIE the first time around. What do I have to do to meet her? I'm thinking I shouldn't have blackmailed the Triad boss?

    Christ Puncher on
    Wii friend code: 7549 1748 0857 1681

    XBL: Slimebucato
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    OptimusZedOptimusZed Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    Sheep wrote: »
    So have you folks figured out a good way to make use of shotguns or is it still ARs or nothing?

    For you guys that have stuck with it, how do you feel a few days post release?
    Shotguns are my go-to gun. I've only done one city, but I've already got the achievement for them.

    Basically, you just hold the zoom, let the crit charge, strafe out from behind a wall and knock down as many dudes at once as you can. Then you run up and stomp until they're all unconscious. It's working beautifully for me so far.

    And I'm still loving this game. Probably more now that I've gotten the hang of the minigames.

    OptimusZed on
    We're reading Rifts. You should too. You know you want to. Now With Ninjas!

    They tried to bury us. They didn't know that we were seeds. 2018 Midterms. Get your shit together.
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    subediisubedii Registered User regular
    edited June 2010
    That video just made me love this game even more. Definitely going to do a second playthrough now.

    Did anyone else play this on Hard/Recruit the first time around? It will be really satisfying to be a psychopath on "Easy" for this playthrough.

    Question about meeting a german:
    I never met SIE the first time around. What do I have to do to meet her? I'm thinking I shouldn't have blackmailed the Triad boss?
    Did you visit the trainyard in Moscow? Because that's where you should meet her. If you did, then I'm not sure what plot factors might prevent that from happening.

    subedii on
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