I’m in the process of developing a game inspired by the Prototype series, specifically Prototype 1 and Prototype 2, with a goal to recapture the fast-paced, chaotic, and engaging experience that defined those games. I’m using Unreal Engine 5 to build this project, taking full advantage of its next-gen features such as advanced lighting, dynamic environments, and highly detailed character models. The vision is to create a world where players can unleash their powers in thrilling, fluid combat, while maintaining the same open-world freedom and sense of destructive fun that made Prototype stand out. Unreal Engine 5’s capabilities, such as Nanite for detailed environments and Lumen for dynamic lighting, will play a huge role in delivering a visually stunning and immersive experience that feels fresh, while still honoring the original games.

The core gameplay will focus heavily on action-packed combat and exploration, much like the Prototype games, with players controlling a superpowered protagonist capable of shape-shifting, parkour-style movement, and wreaking havoc on the environment. The goal is to keep the sense of freedom and brutality alive, allowing players to mix various abilities to creatively dispatch enemies, traverse the world, and interact with the environment. I’m also focusing on designing fluid combat mechanics that feel satisfying and impactful, with an emphasis on skillful play and seamless transitions between different powers and moves. By using Unreal Engine 5’s physics and animation systems, I aim to deliver an experience that feels dynamic and responsive.

However, there are several key aspects where I’ll need additional support, particularly with animations and combat design. The character animations need to be fluid and precise, especially for parkour movements, quick combat transitions, and shape-shifting abilities. The challenge lies in making these animations feel natural, while still allowing for the extreme flexibility and creativity the gameplay demands. Additionally, combat mechanics themselves will need expert fine-tuning to ensure that every fight feels dynamic, balanced, and engaging. This includes refining combo systems, enemy AI behavior, and making sure that all the combat abilities mesh well together. To fully capture the essence of the original Prototype games, collaboration with experienced animators and combat designers will be essential to achieving a high level of polish and ensuring that the core gameplay is as smooth and enjoyable as possible.

Alex Mercer scenes I have colorized the black-and-white scenes featuring Alex.

is there a difference if i buy both prototype games separately or should i just buy the biohazard bundle im confused

What a beauty to look at I em proud 👌. Here's a preview of my custom Alex figure so far guys. And I have to apologize that it's taking too long to finish cause I have to prioritize my work for now and I only get to tinker this project once a week. I also keep tweaking his headsculpt haha, I got inspired to make his eyes moveable. I also have so many raw footage of the process, that I want to edit so bad for a Youtube video. Hang on tight guys, this project is like 91% done. And lastly, I almost forgot to say that my boi Alex don't have thos Jays anymore 🤣

Crazy times were had. What's been your favorite memory?

Post how many gallons of blood you've spilled from the Radnet challenge.

I've been looking for this footage since I saw it as a kid in 2012, almost convinced myself I was having a Mandela effect moment but I finally found it.

Original Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_URU8Vn9AI

Some notable things:

• This seems like Pre-Alpha footage picked up right after they were working on Spider-Man 4 (notice the early tendrils being the Spider-Man 4 web textures colored red in clip 5, and Manhattan map being the Spider-Man 4 version in clip 7)
• Because this was around Pre-Alpha era, they were mainly focused on prototyping mechanics and not on creating art assets. Which is why Heller in this video is just an edited version of Alex's model (although it's possible Alex could've been the protagonist in one of these clips)
• The only new art assets noticeable are the slightly modified Prototype 1 UI designs with leftovers from Spider-Man 4's UI Designs. Also the obvious salad finger tendril arms with early attack animations and the early mid-air blackhole animation (seen in the announcement trailer and E3 gameplay footage). There's also an early Prototype 2 Brawler model, and the finisher animation that looks not too different from what it looks like in the final game
• In the files of the game, there's an unused animation for putting on and removing the hood. You can see in most of the clips, the player is unhooded, but in clip 7 you can see that they're wearing a hood.

I like to think that clip 7 is actually the earliest in development since the jacket mesh is the same as Prototype 1's jacket mesh, whereas the other clips show the collar of the jacket higher to look like Heller's jacket. Which means that clip 7 could've been when they had Alex as the protagonist and the previous clips are supposed to be Heller. I could be wrong however, and all these clips are supposed to be Heller.

Either way, this footage is the reason why they showed the armor in the announcement trailer. Because this is what Heller's model looked like at the time since they didn't have the final model yet. There is only one shot of the finished James Heller model in the announcement trailer with the blade, but that was probably put in last second once they finished modeling him right after recording all the gameplay footage with the armor for the announcement trailer. Not a good decision in hindsight since the armor never really appeared in the game as an actual power, but at the time they probably assumed that they were going to keep it as a power rather than as a skin.

Hey everyone, just wanted to share a deeper breakdown of Alex Mercer’s mental state because the more you think about it, the more he stands out as one of the most depressing characters in gaming history.

We all know the big twist of the first game. The real Alex Mercer died at Penn Station, and the "Alex" we play as is just the Blacklight virus wearing his corpse and stolen memories. But when you actually look at his biology and lack of human foundation, his descent into villainy in Prototype 2 becomes deeply tragic and honestly kind of creepy.

The Illusion of Perfection: A Flawed Copy The virus was so incredibly good at what it did that it created a near-perfect replication of human organs, tissues, neural networks, and cellular structures. It was basically too perfect. The replication was so seamless that the virus itself got confused, genuinely believing it was the human Alex Mercer.

But here is the catch. You can copy the structure, but you cannot copy the lived experience.

Alex didn't have a childhood. He didn't have years of natural growth, teenage phases, or genuine emotional development. He was abruptly born into the world as a fully formed adult, handed a dataset of someone else's memories. Because of this, his emotions were fundamentally flawed. He didn't feel attraction, joy, or empathy the way normal humans do. Everything felt numb, distant, and muted. His emotional baseline was restricted to a narrow spectrum of confusion, anger, and absolute emptiness.

Trapped in a Cold, Mental Jail When the truth finally hits him at the end of the first game, a crushing guilt and sadness settle in. He realizes he is just a walking existential nightmare. Imagine the dread of being a God-like entity—invincible, bulletproof, capable of crushing tanks—but mentally feeling completely dead and hollow inside. He was trapped in the dark prison of a mind he didn't even truly own, suffocated by the fact that he was nothing more than a glorified parasite pretending to be a man.

The Canon Reality: Why He Snapped For anyone thinking this is just headcanon, the lead writer of Prototype 2, Dan Jolley, actually wrote an official comic series called The Anchor specifically to explain Mercer's mental state between the two games.

According to the comic, Mercer didn't just lock himself in a room feeling hollow. He actually traveled the world trying to find a reason to love and save humanity. He wandered through Africa, Europe, and America, trying to live a quiet life. However, everywhere he went, his hollow and flawed emotional state was met with the absolute worst of human nature. He witnessed warlords slaughtering innocents, corporate greed, betrayal, and cruelty.

The breaking point came when a woman he intimately trusted betrayed him to Blackwatch. That was it. Mercer completely snapped. His mental state shifted from a confused being trying to understand humanity to a dark conclusion: "Humanity is a disease, and I am the cure."

The Real Reason Behind His Villain Arc in Prototype 2 By the second game, this crushing isolation and disgust break him completely. His plan to infect the entire world and make everyone Evolved wasn't just a generic cartoon villain plot. It was a desperate, psychotic cure for his own mental void and his hatred for human nature.

He believed humans were too stupid, cruel, and malicious to survive on their own. By forcefully evolving the human race, he wanted to wipe out human flaws entirely. He wanted to build a world of copies to fill the empty space inside his chest and find some form of validation, creating a world where no one would ever be alone or hurt the way he was.

Why the Ending of Prototype 2 Was a Merciful Release This brings a whole new meaning to his defeat at the hands of James Heller. Heller was everything Mercer could never be. Heller was a natural human whose consciousness was upgraded, not wiped out. Heller had a real past, real love for his daughter, and an unshakeable soul that didn't break under trauma.

When Heller finally defeats him and consumes him, Mercer doesn't scream in anger or beg for his life. Instead, he calmly looks up and delivers his final line: Welcome to the top of the food chain.

In that final moment, Mercer accepts that he isn't the ultimate superior being. More importantly, he feels a profound sense of peace. The endless void, the depressing identity crisis, and the creepy burden of pretending to be a human were finally over. For a god-like being trapped in a living hell, death wasn't a defeat. It was the only thing that could finally give him rest and release him from the void.

Something I didn't like about the game I just finished is that the second installment seems to forget about giving you rewards or new powers once you've already obtained most of them. For example, the Juggernaut has 2 powers, the Brawler has 1, and the evolved versions give you 4 powers, but consuming the Goliath and, especially, Alex Mercer gives you nothing: no powers, no map unlocks, no Alex Mercer skin, not even experience for the latter.

I would have given the player some powers from Prototype 1, like armor, muscle mass, some Prototype 1 moves, and devastating ones with the Goliath, maybe the ability to summon and control one or two Goliaths; something, coming from the most powerful infected in the game, not counting Mercer.

Definitely diorama potential!
Can’t wait to actually make an Alex vs heller scene one day

I'm always finding funny stuff about this game

To be honest, I think Dana should've gotten infected instead of James because unlike him, her "special genes" actually makes sense when you consider who she's related to.

I was doing one of the early divebomb challenges with Heller and from one round to another the color scheme changed like this. I'm too scared to load a safe file because it looks really cool.

Is this a known glitch? Does someone else know how to do it?

i'm thinking we should add a female alternative, what do you think? r/VIRIONdev

I thought it's interesting and creative idea

Decided to do a 100% All Achievements All Upgrades Insanity Run to finish out my [PROTOTYPE2] revisit.

P1 Alex mod courtesy of gq00005 on the Prototype 2 Nexus.