The Talos Principle: Prototype DLC DLC

Honestly? Maybe the worst DLC I've seen. Why are ALPHA STAGE levels being sold as DLC? This feels like a scam and should be free. I only own this because I bought the Gold Edition of the game.

[b]TLDR[/b] This DLC adds levels in draft stage, most similar to those in the game, and others unplayable. It’s interesting but not worth the price. [7/20⭐, 4h🏅, 3/5💡] [b]Context[/b] First, let me just say that I love the [url=https://steamcommunity.com/id/macwh/recommended/257510/]base game[/url], and consider it one of the best puzzle-platformers out there. Also, I always enjoy knowing a little bit more about the development process and the developer’s reasoning behind certain choices. With the Prototype DLC you get over 100 puzzle drafts, a level close to a finished state (the “LostLevel”), and a couple of draft voice for Elohim. [b]Writing[/b] There's no plot on this DLC, just puzzles to solve. [b]Aesthetics[/b] Most of the levels are similar to levels in the main game but stripped of context and art design. The "LostLevel" actually looks quite good, but it is simple and only provides about 10m of gameplay. [b]Gameplay[/b] The DLC provides some interesting insights into the level design of Talos, if only the mines weren’t in a buggy, or very overpowered, version. In particular, they are able to detect the player and kill him through walls, which made some levels unwinnable, and others plain frustrating. And there are a LOT of levels in the DLC with mine obstacles. [b]Value[/b] I suffered through about 4h of gameplay to explore this DLC. So, is this worth checking out? If it was free, sure. Why anyone would pay 5€ for this is beyond me (I’ve got it as part of the Gold Edition on a sale). [quote][i]For more puzzle-game reviews and curated lists check out the [url=https://store.steampowered.com/curator/43326007-The-Clueless-Adventurer-Puzzle-Trove/]Puzzle Trove[/url].[/i][/quote]

Lots of extra puzzles minus all the nice scenery and texture. I'd say most of the puzzles made it into the final game in one form or another, but there are a couple that seemed like a new challenge.

Don't bother. I picked this up for 99c because I'm a completionist, but the negative reviews of this pack are totally on the money. You might like this if you didn't think the mines were annoying enough in the original game, or thought that the graphics were too good. Nearly all the puzzles are early versions of levels that showed up in the original game, so there's not a lot new here.

Base game is great and road to gehenna is a must buy if you liked base game. This, however is completely skippable. Has an annoying bug where mines will sometimes hit you through walls. Probably only worth buying if talos principle is like literally your favorite game ever and you want to see early versions of the levels really, really badly.

What you're really getting here is the alpha / early beta version of the puzzles in the base game. Of course they're going to look worse, and of course they're going to play worse. They were changed in the final version for a reason. I believe that the puzzles in The Talos Principle get better and better the further you get, with Road To Gehenna being some of the best. The stuff in this Prototype DLC is, unsurprisingly, a step in the opposite direction. I'm not upset about buying this; every dollar I give Croteam helps them continue their magnificent work. But unless you have a serious antropological bent I wouldn't recommend spending the time to actually play any of this content.

Since apparently nobody actually read even the title of this DLC which clearly states that it's a PROTOTYPE, here's an actual review: These levels are unbalanced, janky, ugly, frustrating and sometimes plain awful (and one even unwinnable to my knowledge). But that's because they're PROTOTYPE levels. Alpha stages. Basically just concept sketches. Do NOT expect the same quality as the base game, but why would you? If you just want to see how the game came to be, get them. Otherwise, don't. It also includes a set of 4 lost levels with better graphics and gameplay, which is kind of neat, but not worth your money if that's all you want. Don't expect more than what the title suggests, people.

There's no point in me going on with my typical structured form of reviews I do, so I'll just say what I think about the levels in this DLC. They're for the most part blockier versions of levels that exist in the main game (I don't know an exact number, but I'd say about 60% of the levels in the DLC are just that) and concept pieces. I'd only recommend this if you're interested in seeing how much the levels have developed over the years, both in terms of puzzle design and world design. Also, this DLC will make you glad that the mines don't have the sound they have here. No seriously, the mines gave me an actual headache. There's no story, so once again the only point to getting this DLC is to see how the game has developed. If you're looking for more puzzles, don't get this. I beat it in about four hours. I won't bother giving this a score; rather, I'll just say that if you're interested in Game Dev stuff, you may wanna look into this; if you just want more puzzles, go to the Steam Workshop. That'll get you more bang for your buck.

This DLC is exactly what it says on the tin: a compilation of alpha-stage levels, in their entire Early Development glory. This includes, but isn't limited to: - Ridiculously basic appearance of the levels; - Some of the models and sounds being replaced with placeholder ones; - Very obviously and hilariously half-arsed solutions, like floating film reels with names (or rather, numbers) of the levels on them, or the levels having very visible borders; - Comically bad voice acting; - An obvious style clash of placeholder and final-version elements being mashed together. All of this results in a setting so hilariously unlike the final game and so hilariously amateurish that it all crosses over into the "So Bad It's Good" category. I definitely can see why the devs wanted us to see what the game was like in its early stages, and I agree with them. It certainly has its charm. The levels themselves are fine. The early ones (Level Sets 01 and 02) are a bit too easy, and I found myself breezing through them with little thought necessary, though it definitely started getting a little bit more challenging when the floating bombs started appearing in abundance, especially in the second Level Set. The later levels were a bit more evened out challenge-wise, and some of them managed to keep me occupied for a while. I especially liked the unique level that featured an unused gameplay mechanic: the ability to chop down trees with an axe. It kinda makes me wish it was kept in the game proper, though I can understand why the devs decided against it (it's very easy to lose track of where you left the axe). If you are looking for something relaxing, then I especially recommend the third Level Set, since the challenge level is just right to be able to simply walk around and think, and there are no floating bombs around. My only real complaints about this DLC would be the abundance of the floating bombs in the early Level Sets and the fact that a number of levels are just bare versions of the levels from the game proper. Also, it kinda makes me wonder... some of the objects use placeholder models and such, but others are kept the way they are in the final game. Does that mean that these elements were created straight away in their final form? Or is it simply because the devs lost the early placeholder files for them? If it's the latter, then it surely would be interesting to see what these objects looked like in their early versions... Do I recommend this DLC? Well... I personally liked it, some parts of it better than others. If you are interested in seeing what the game looked like in its early stages, or if you simply want more levels to play through, and you aren't bothered by the hilariously amateurish looks of it all, then go right ahead and get it. Otherwise, you might want to skip it.

TL: DR do not buy this unless you have a huge interest in how the early stages in level design looks. First off I love the base game, it is really really good and after completing it 100% I was left wanting more, so I thought I'd buy this, huge mistake. The DLC purports to have more than 100 puzzles, many of them from the full game but in their early stages, so like the base game just blockier and without the story connecting them, or even the themes, worst of all, with what I assume is the alpha state of the mines. You may ask yourself, "Why are the mines a problem, are they different?" Yes, they are, though not their mechanics, but in design and how they sound, now looks are something I could easily look past, but the problem is that they make a headache-inducing whine, and they are present en masse in many of the levels, by the end I resorted to turning off most of my in game sound. In the end, 5 euros (or your regional equivalent) is a high price to pay if you already have the base game, as you already own much of the content, but in a prettier and all together better version that will not leave you with a migraine. I can only recommend this to people who have a huge interest in early stages of level design, or someone who really just want to solve puzzles but does not want to be bothered by the story.