Yesterday, Sierra Entertainment announced "a completely new type of open-world game" that will "raise the bar" for the genre. Prototype is being developed by in-house studio Radical Entertainment for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC and is slated for a summer 2008 release.
Prototype follows Alex Mercer, a man with with shape-shifting abilities, pointed ears, and wooly feet as he unravels a haunting conspricacy about his past, fighting a secret war that could destroy New York City and mankind itse ... zzz zzz zzz. Oh, sorry, I was sleeping through a re-run of the past decade of video games.
Early-morning grumpiness aside, the shapeshifting ability does sound pretty cool -- a sort of Crackdown with Blue Magic. Apparently, Mercer has the ability to steal the skills and powers of the enemies he defeats, a modern day Viking drinking the blood of the fallen.
Although I really can't imagine what his beef with this lady is.
Hit the jump for a press release and make sure to check out the screenshots.
[Via Gamasutra, screenshots via ActionTrip -- thanks TheGoldenDonut!]
Sierra Entertainment Unleashes Prototype™
Sierra Entertainment and Radical Entertainment Raise the Bar on Open-World Games
Los Angeles, CA - 08/10/2007 - Sierra Entertainment today announced Prototype™, a completely new kind of open-world game, featuring a rich story line of conspiracy, deception and deadly shape shifting action.
Developed by Radical Entertainment, a critically acclaimed developer of open-world games, Prototype tells the story of Alex Mercer, a man haunted by his past, fighting a secret war in New York City. As the action spirals out of control, a conspiracy tied to his origins threatens the future of mankind itself. Mercer's amazing shapeshifting powers allow him to become an exact replica and steal the skills or powers of anyone who crosses his path.
Prototype debuts on the PlayStation®3 computer entertainment system, Microsoft's Xbox 360™ video game and entertainment system and PC in Summer 2008.
"Radical Entertainment has a strong pedigree of critically acclaimed, best-selling open-world games, and Sierra Entertainment is excited to see them craft an original game that has already fired-up the imaginations of press and gamers alike," said Martin Tremblay, president, Worldwide Studios for Sierra Entertainment. "Prototype represents the strength of Sierra Entertainment's internal studios and our commitment to creating original and exciting games."
"Radical Entertainment set out to create the most dynamic video game character ever imagined. From free-form movement to over-the-top combat action; Prototype can climb or wall-run across any surface, jump 30 stories high, and destroy anything that crosses his path," said Kelly Zmak, president of Radical Entertainment. "Our team at Radical has built upon the technology that drove our previous best-selling games and now has the freedom to dream big and imagine a powerful character in a sprawling city like New York, cloaked in a conspiracy and ripped from today’s headlines."
For more information about Prototype, visit the official website at www.prototypegame.com.
About Sierra Entertainment
Sierra Entertainment (www.sierra.com), a global division of Vivendi Games, creates and publishes innovative, high-quality interactive entertainment for videogame systems, handheld gaming devices and personal computers. Sierra Entertainment features a portfolio of titles based on original IP and popular licenses from industry-leading content partners, including F.E.A.R.™, Crash Bandicoot®, Spyro The Dragon®, Scarface™ and Ice Age™. Sierra Entertainment has four integrated internal studios providing creative talents and development capabilities across multiple gaming genres: Radical Entertainment in Vancouver, BC; High Moon Studios in San Diego, CA; Massive Entertainment in Malmö, Sweden; and Swordfish Studios in Birmingham and Manchester, England.
LAUNCH GALLERY (4 IMAGES)
Joseph Leray is a founding Destructoid editor and lives in Nashville with his girlfriend, cats, and Final Fantasy XII obsession. He speaks French and plays a mean coronet. His favorite games are Pokemon, Final Fantasy IX, Dragon Age: Origins, Killer 7, and Katamari Damacy.
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Contest:
9:40 AM on 08.11.2007 | 
That's what one of those billboards/signs/whatever-the-fuck says.
Lol.
It will be interestng to see how that shapeshifting works.
BROWN! BLOOM!
Yes, he does.
Though, there is so many things wrong with the lighting of that screenshot, I can't put to much belief in it.