Allright, time for another random rambling after finishing some new title.
First off, allow me to say that whether or not you enjoy Alpha Protocol will depend on your approach - if you're in it for the RPG you'll most likely enjoy it, but if you're in it for the action, you should look elsewhere (the action is decent, but it's not the reason anyone should pick this up). I believe this is why the reviews are so varied.
I'll make some general comments on the various aspects. As always - if there are any questions, feel free to ask.
Gameplay
It starts out rather slow, but once you get the hang of it, it's actually quite good. Roughly on par with Mass Effect. I played a fairly straight forward soldier that focused on martial arts, assault rifles and toughness (increase hitpoints, damage reduction, etc). I'm not sure how the other characters play, but I suspect they are considerably harder, based on the locations I've seen so far (quite a few heavy gunfights).
I intend to try a pistol/martial arts/stealth character soonish, so I'll see how that turns out. I played on normal, by the way.
Story
Fairly good, definetly above par. It's well written, didn't see any inconsistencies (unlike ME2 where there are a lot of them). Not a whole lot to say here without it being a major spoiler.
Characters
Very good. A ton of interesting characters that are involved in various intrigues. Also a lot of extra background information on most characters (can be found throughout the game, available in your "journal"). Trying to figure out the various characters and their motivations will help you gain influence with them, which makes dealing with them easier - a lot of bonuses can be gained this way. Overall, the writing is excellent, but that is no surprise.
World/atmosphere
The various places Mike visits are well made and interesting, though they sometimes feel a bit constrained. Luckily they are more varied than ME2, so the action parts aren't as obvious or linear. Still, I feel that it should've been possible to visit more landmarks to get a feeling of being somewhere specific instead of somewhere generic. I'm not saying the action should be placed near a landmark, as such things tend to be filled with tourists, but it would've been fun to have undercover assignements or informant meetings etc near landmarks.
Quests/missions
Not a lot to say about missions. Quite a lot of variation, though they are mainly along the lines of Jason Bourne, not James Bond. Could've had a few more infiltration quests. The dialogue system would work great in such missions. Other than that, it's all good.
Choices/consequences
Amazing. Period. It's as if Obsidian wanted to prove something - how many decisions can we throw at the player within a given timeframe? They're everywhere, popping up non-stop, either between missions or during them (they're not even obvious, you could get a call smack in the middle of a mission where you have to choose really fast and then live with the consequences). The consequences are huge, both in terms of how you play the game and how various sequences in the main quest play out. I don't think I've ever played a game where I've had to make decisions as often as in Alpha Protocol - in a way it was incredible, but also fairly intense, because there's no way to systematically replay the game to experience everything - there are just way, way too many options to keep track of.
Needless to say, this aspect is deeply impressive in Alpha Protocol.
Graphics
The graphics are below Mass Effect 2, so I assume most it will be subpar for most. However, in all honesty, it gets the job done. It's just not something you'll even notice once you're playing the game. For us RPG fans, this is pretty much as good as we can expect while still getting a complex RPG behind the graphics - the RPG elements in AP are far stronger than ME1 or 2, and the quest structure is also more advanced with a lot more options and outcomes.
Sound
Good music, good voice acting. I like it. I like the main character - he may not be as slick as James Bond , he's a lot closer to Jason Bourne no matter how you try to play him, but that's fine by me - I prefer Bourne over Bond anyway. Not a lot to say here; the music is good enough to create a decent atmosphere, but nothing exceptional like Gothic 3.
Technical
I've seen reports of bugs and technical issues on consoles, but I experienced no issues at all. None. I had a single reload because a named enemy I had to take out decided to never leave a cover I could not reach. Other than that, I had no crashes, no slowdowns, no bugs of any kind, despite playing the majority of the game in long gaming sessions. Without a doubt the most polished product from Obsidian.
Overall
I like it a lot, though it has its flaws, such as weapons being somewhat unbalanced (from my brief tests with all weapons, it seems the assault rifle is overall superior, with pistol being the weakest, but I need further testing before I can say anything final). Also, there could've been more James Bond, as I've mentioned before.
Beyond that, it's a great RPG with a very impressive amount of options and decisions. Anyone enjoying Mass Effect, but feeling it was a bit "light" as an RPG, should definetly try AP - the action is roughly on par with ME, and the RPG elements are significantly stronger. ME definetly has a more interesting setting though, but that goes without saying (sci-fi vs modern).
Unless your gaming budget is extremely tight, the 20 hours or so you'll get out of a single playthrough is definetly worth it. Of course, if you want to fully explore all options, you'll be stuck for weeks or months, but only the most dedicated gamers will do that. Personally, I'll do one more playthrough immediately, to try out a completely different approach - change the order of the locations I visit (yes, even that changes certain things), the way I fight, and the way I respond to people. Should be very interesting.
.. aaand that's about as much as I'm willing to write right about now. Like I said, feel free to ask me anything.
Edit:
A tip to everyone playing the game: Invest two points in sabotage to get the minigame improvement. Trust me. They'll get increasingly hard later on, so having a little extra time comes in handy.
First off, allow me to say that whether or not you enjoy Alpha Protocol will depend on your approach - if you're in it for the RPG you'll most likely enjoy it, but if you're in it for the action, you should look elsewhere (the action is decent, but it's not the reason anyone should pick this up). I believe this is why the reviews are so varied.
I'll make some general comments on the various aspects. As always - if there are any questions, feel free to ask.
Gameplay
It starts out rather slow, but once you get the hang of it, it's actually quite good. Roughly on par with Mass Effect. I played a fairly straight forward soldier that focused on martial arts, assault rifles and toughness (increase hitpoints, damage reduction, etc). I'm not sure how the other characters play, but I suspect they are considerably harder, based on the locations I've seen so far (quite a few heavy gunfights).
I intend to try a pistol/martial arts/stealth character soonish, so I'll see how that turns out. I played on normal, by the way.
Story
Fairly good, definetly above par. It's well written, didn't see any inconsistencies (unlike ME2 where there are a lot of them). Not a whole lot to say here without it being a major spoiler.
Characters
Very good. A ton of interesting characters that are involved in various intrigues. Also a lot of extra background information on most characters (can be found throughout the game, available in your "journal"). Trying to figure out the various characters and their motivations will help you gain influence with them, which makes dealing with them easier - a lot of bonuses can be gained this way. Overall, the writing is excellent, but that is no surprise.
World/atmosphere
The various places Mike visits are well made and interesting, though they sometimes feel a bit constrained. Luckily they are more varied than ME2, so the action parts aren't as obvious or linear. Still, I feel that it should've been possible to visit more landmarks to get a feeling of being somewhere specific instead of somewhere generic. I'm not saying the action should be placed near a landmark, as such things tend to be filled with tourists, but it would've been fun to have undercover assignements or informant meetings etc near landmarks.
Quests/missions
Not a lot to say about missions. Quite a lot of variation, though they are mainly along the lines of Jason Bourne, not James Bond. Could've had a few more infiltration quests. The dialogue system would work great in such missions. Other than that, it's all good.
Choices/consequences
Amazing. Period. It's as if Obsidian wanted to prove something - how many decisions can we throw at the player within a given timeframe? They're everywhere, popping up non-stop, either between missions or during them (they're not even obvious, you could get a call smack in the middle of a mission where you have to choose really fast and then live with the consequences). The consequences are huge, both in terms of how you play the game and how various sequences in the main quest play out. I don't think I've ever played a game where I've had to make decisions as often as in Alpha Protocol - in a way it was incredible, but also fairly intense, because there's no way to systematically replay the game to experience everything - there are just way, way too many options to keep track of.
Needless to say, this aspect is deeply impressive in Alpha Protocol.
Graphics
The graphics are below Mass Effect 2, so I assume most it will be subpar for most. However, in all honesty, it gets the job done. It's just not something you'll even notice once you're playing the game. For us RPG fans, this is pretty much as good as we can expect while still getting a complex RPG behind the graphics - the RPG elements in AP are far stronger than ME1 or 2, and the quest structure is also more advanced with a lot more options and outcomes.
Sound
Good music, good voice acting. I like it. I like the main character - he may not be as slick as James Bond , he's a lot closer to Jason Bourne no matter how you try to play him, but that's fine by me - I prefer Bourne over Bond anyway. Not a lot to say here; the music is good enough to create a decent atmosphere, but nothing exceptional like Gothic 3.
Technical
I've seen reports of bugs and technical issues on consoles, but I experienced no issues at all. None. I had a single reload because a named enemy I had to take out decided to never leave a cover I could not reach. Other than that, I had no crashes, no slowdowns, no bugs of any kind, despite playing the majority of the game in long gaming sessions. Without a doubt the most polished product from Obsidian.
Overall
I like it a lot, though it has its flaws, such as weapons being somewhat unbalanced (from my brief tests with all weapons, it seems the assault rifle is overall superior, with pistol being the weakest, but I need further testing before I can say anything final). Also, there could've been more James Bond, as I've mentioned before.
Beyond that, it's a great RPG with a very impressive amount of options and decisions. Anyone enjoying Mass Effect, but feeling it was a bit "light" as an RPG, should definetly try AP - the action is roughly on par with ME, and the RPG elements are significantly stronger. ME definetly has a more interesting setting though, but that goes without saying (sci-fi vs modern).
Unless your gaming budget is extremely tight, the 20 hours or so you'll get out of a single playthrough is definetly worth it. Of course, if you want to fully explore all options, you'll be stuck for weeks or months, but only the most dedicated gamers will do that. Personally, I'll do one more playthrough immediately, to try out a completely different approach - change the order of the locations I visit (yes, even that changes certain things), the way I fight, and the way I respond to people. Should be very interesting.
.. aaand that's about as much as I'm willing to write right about now. Like I said, feel free to ask me anything.
Edit:
A tip to everyone playing the game: Invest two points in sabotage to get the minigame improvement. Trust me. They'll get increasingly hard later on, so having a little extra time comes in handy.