Highly anticipated action shooter defines new chapter in the Transformers universe.

Santa Monica, CA – June 22, 2010 – The legendary conflict between the AUTOBOTS and DECEPTICONS has come to a head, as Activision Publishing, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATVI) announced today that Transformers: War for Cybertron has landed in retail stores nationwide.  Developed by award-winning High Moon Studios and based on Hasbro’s legendary TRANSFORMERS property, the game allows players to become the ultimate TRANSFORMERS weapon in the final, epic war set on the TRANSFORMERS home planet of CYBERTRON.  Complete with full online co-op and a variety of deep, competitive multiplayer modes including the ability to create your own TRANSFORMERS character for the first time ever in a video game, Transformers: War for Cybertron is the title fans have been waiting for.
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Last night, August 21 2009, I hosted an awesome Guitar Hero competition at the Long Beach Island Foundation. Not only did I have a fantastic time, but so did about 50 kids between the ages of 8 and 15. Many, many parents came up to me afterwards to say that this was a great, fun event and we should run more of them. Everyone was also very impressed with Activision’s generosity as a corporate sponsor.

The event itself got off to a roaring start at 8pm when several vans full of little tan kids pulled up. We had 4 stations set up around the room. Three were for practice and one was for competition. Of the three for practice, one was Guitar Hero World Tour, one was Guitar Hero Metallica, and one was Guitar Hero Smash Hits. Then, we did the greatest thing ever, which was to set up some small amps and a projector which gave the appearance that the Guitar Hero band was up on the stage.

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Developer: Radical Entertainment
Publisher: Activision
Platforms: PS3 (reviewed), Xbox 360, PC
MSRP: $59.99 for PS3 and Xbox 360 versions, $49.99 for PC
ESRB: M
http://www.prototypegame.com

PROTOTYPE is the story of Alex Mercer, the survivor of an evil military experiment that has left him genetically mutated, without memory, and hunted. And, with shape-shifting abilities that allow him to use some pretty sick weapons and disguises, also the hunter. This free-roaming romp through a diseased NYC can be both extremely fun and frustrating at times.

This is a big open world game and as a New Yorker I really enjoy playing open world games that take place in something resembling NYC. Yes, Radical did a great job capturing the gritty look and feel of NYC. There are buildings with scaffolds and gridlocked intersections. There are the popular landmarks such as Madison Square Garden, Washington Square Park, Central Park, and Times Square. Yet in all the accurate look and feel, the map and the actual buildings are merely representative and not accurate. My apartment, a floor in a West Village townhouse, is somehow a massive skyscraper. So they win some points here and it is cool to think about going on a rampage in NYC, but it ain’t NYC.

The story is very deep and told through a series of different mechanisms such as flashbacks and flashforwards. One aspect of Alex’s powers is the ability to consume a person – including their memory, clothes, and weapons. As you consume each person you get a video flashback sequence which backfills the story from their point of view. It’s a very interesting mechanism, yet it is extremely disruptive to be in the middle of a massive battle that gets interrupted by a flashback and then you are shoved right back into the action. Yes, you can skip the video, but it is still disruptive.

My major gripe with the game, which overall I have really enjoyed, is that for the first hour or so it is pretty damn boring. Honestly, I almost gave up but am glad I stuck with it. In fact, my first reaction was “OK, Activision blended Spiderman with Wolverine. Great. Been there. Done that. Next.” But for some reason the next day I went back to it. In starting you off slow, Radical runs the risk of losing your interest. After a few hours though, you can upgrade your characters weapons, powers, and movement and really start to kick some ass which is where it gets fun.

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