Prey (2017 video game)

Prey (2017 video game)
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Title	Prey
Developer	Arkane Studios
Publisher	Bethesda Softworks
Director	Raphael Colantonio
Designer	Harvey Smith
Engine	CryEngine
Platforms	Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
Released	2017
Genre	First-person shooter, immersive sim
Modes	Single-player

Prey (2017 video game) is a first-person action title developed by Arkane Studios and published by Bethesda Softworks that reimagines a long-standing franchise with an original science-fiction narrative set aboard a space station. The game blends elements of Deus Ex, Dishonored, System Shock, Portal, and BioShock through emergent design, player choice, and environmental storytelling influenced by creators associated with Raphael Colantonio, Harvey Smith, and Austin Grossman.

Gameplay

Prey features nonlinear exploration of the space station Talos I, combining first-person shooter mechanics, role-playing game progression, and immersive sim systems with emergent interactions reminiscent of System Shock 2, Thief: The Dark Project, Dishonored 2, Deus Ex: Human Revolution, and BioShock Infinite. Players assume the role of Morgan Yu and can acquire neuromods to customize skills across categories inspired by Tony Stark-style modular upgrades and Metroidvania-like gating used in Hollow Knight design discussions, enabling abilities such as telekinesis, mimicry, and psionic attacks that alter encounters as seen in Prey (2006 video game)-adjacent inspirations. Combat and stealth incorporate weapons, improvised tools, and consumables with crafting and hacking systems analogous to mechanics in Fallout 4, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, XCOM: Enemy Unknown, Bioshock, and Left 4 Dead to support multiple playstyles. Enemies include the shape-shifting Typhon species, with behavior trees and AI routines influenced by research from MIT, Stanford University, Carnegie Mellon University, Johns Hopkins University, and classic studies in game AI like those informing S.T.A.L.K.E.R. design.

Plot

The narrative centers on Morgan Yu aboard Talos I, exploring themes of identity, ethics, and corporate secrecy tied to corporations and research institutions such as TranStar Corporation, with story beats that echo narrative structures from Blade Runner, Alien, Event Horizon, 2001: A Space Odyssey, and The Thing. The plot unfolds through audio logs, emails, and environmental storytelling that reference figures and events analogous to Howard Hughes, Werner von Braun, Project Orion, NASA Apollo program, and controversies similar to incidents involving Black Mesa-like secrecy and Area 51 mythos. Multiple endings are determined by player choices, moral dilemmas, and interactions with characters and factions that call to mind branching narratives in Mass Effect, Heavy Rain, Spec Ops: The Line, and The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt.

Development

Development was led by Arkane's director Raphael Colantonio with a team including Harvey Smith and narrative contributors influenced by writers from BioShock, Deus Ex, Dishonored, and authors like Austin Grossman; production drew on engine work originally from CryEngine with middleware comparable to that used in Unreal Engine projects. The studio researched biology, neurology, and space habitation by consulting academic institutions such as MIT Media Lab, NASA Johnson Space Center, European Space Agency, SETI Institute, and experts who previously advised titles connected to System Shock and Thief. Design philosophies emphasized player agency and environmental interactivity inspired by Immersive Gameplay advocates and precedents set by Looking Glass Studios, Ion Storm, Irrational Games, and Arkane Lyon's earlier projects.

Release and post-launch updates

Published by Bethesda Softworks in 2017 for Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One, the launch was accompanied by pre-release demos and press showings at events such as Electronic Entertainment Expo 2016, QuakeCon, Gamescom, PAX East, and Tokyo Game Show, attracting coverage from outlets like IGN, GameSpot, Polygon, Kotaku, and Eurogamer. Post-launch support included patches addressing stability, balance, and performance across platforms, with updates influenced by community feedback channels on Steam, Reddit, Twitter, YouTube, and modding communities similar to those around Skyrim and Fallout 4; downloadable content and free updates added survival mode features and difficulty options that paralleled post-launch strategies used by No Man's Sky and The Witcher 3.

Reception

Critics and players compared Prey’s systems and atmosphere to classics such as System Shock, BioShock, Dishonored, and Deus Ex, praising its level design, emergent gameplay, and narrative complexity while noting performance and pacing criticisms similar to debates around Fallout 4 and Mass Effect: Andromeda. Major awards and nominations positioned the game among year-end lists from institutions like The Game Awards, Bafta, DICE Awards, and outlets including IGN Best of 2017 and Game Informer, with discourse about its commercial performance referencing market dynamics seen in releases by Electronic Arts, Activision, Ubisoft, and Sony Interactive Entertainment.

Legacy and influence

Prey influenced later immersive-sim and narrative-driven projects by demonstrating viable blends of open-ended gameplay and dense environmental storytelling, informing designers at studios such as Arkane Lyon, Obsidian Entertainment, Larian Studios, ID Software, and Bungie. Its design and modding ecosystem contributed to academic and developer discussions at conferences like GDC, SIGGRAPH, IndieCade, PAX, and within curricula at DigiPen Institute of Technology and University of Southern California School of Cinematic Arts, shaping subsequent work in AI-driven encounters, level architecture, and narrative branching seen in titles released after 2017.

Category:2017 video games