14 DAY TRIAL // Prey 2, the new shooter from Human Head Studios and Bethesda, will still see the hero of the first game, Tommy, play a large role in the story, even if we're dealing with a brand new protagonist, in the form of former air marshall, now bounty hunter for aliens, Killian Samuels.
Prey 2 was announced earlier this year and, to the surprise of quite a few fans of the original, is focused on a brand new main character, Killian Samuels, instead of Tommy, the Native American protagonist of the first Prey.
According to Human Head's Chris Rhinehart, this doesn't mean we won't see Tommy in the story, as it seems that he plays quite an important role in the game's narrative.
"He's a character that you encounter many times throughout the game," Rhinehart told IGN. "It's not just a single cameo where he shows up and takes off. He's integral to the story and events on Exodus. One of the big things is, the unique abilities that Tommy has, specifically spirit walk and death walk, are integral to his role and how he actually fits into the story."
Prey 2 is a big departure from the original, as instead of focusing on Tommy trying to survive in the dark corridors of an alien ship, the new title sees Samuels become a bounty hunter for various aliens, whose adventures take him through all sorts of environments.
These changes serve to showcase just how big the Prey universe is, according to Rhinehart, who talked about the decisions taken at the beginning of the development cycle.
"When we started we didn't want to reveal Tommy initially. We wanted to hold it back and make it a surprise for people that Tommy is still an important part of the game. Really what it comes down to is we wanted to tell other stories in the Prey universe. We wanted to expand it and show the breadth of this universe that we were creating. New character, different mechanics, new visuals, but Tommy is still a critical character."
As you can see, even if Prey 2 seemed a completely distinct game from the original, at least Tommy is still present in its story.
The game is set to be released in March, 2012, for the PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360.