Considering season 2 of the TV series came out, I suspect interest in the games may rise and I thought I write a review despite the game's age. I think this is still a great RPG. I read some reviews that recommend going directly to Witcher 3, but if you like the Witcher story, and haven't played the games yet, that would be a mistake. The first Witcher game certainly has faults. It was written mainly for a male audience (it is rather sexist), the graphics cannot be compared to the Witcher 3, the combat system feels weird (though once I got used to it, I found it to be a rather refreshing change). And yet this is one of the deepest and most mature RPGs I have ever played. There is no hand-holding, as in the Witcher 3 (where the game even tells you what level you should be to attempt a quest), and my impression is that indeed it was made for serious and mature gamers. Let me explain what this game is and what it is not, so that first-time players can know what they get. It is not a textbook RPG. You can't choose your character or profession, and there isn't really any variety in terms of weapons and armor. But this is because it is based on the Witcher stories (you play as Gerald the Witcher, using witcher's equipment), and what you get in return is a very detailed and interesting world to explore. The story is original, as it occurs after the last book from the saga, but you are introduced to all the characters because it starts with Gerald having amnesia. As such it is a great way to get into the Witcher world. And let's be honest, it is thanks to this game that the books and the TV series became popular. Hence if you are interested in the Witcher saga, with all faults the game has (as many reviews have pointed out), I recommend that you try to ignore them in return for discovering the world of the Witcher. I think after playing it you will also enjoy the TV series more, as you will understand better some of the small details, such as when Gerald uses a sign.
As several reviews have mentioned, this is really an immersive simulation rather than a shooter. It also gets compared a lot to Bioshock and System Shock 2, and while the world construction and the game mechanics indeed borrow from these great games, I found Prey to be a much deeper experience. In fact, I was so impressed by it, that it forced me to learn how to mod the game, in order to make it more realistic and even more immersive (I uploaded the mod to Nexus mods, if anyone's interested). The visuals, sound and music are excellent, providing superb atmosphere. The story is also quite engaging, with the influence of the Deus Ex series being evident. If in Deus Ex you enjoyed the side stories (making the game world seem more real) and the conspiracies of the main story (not knowing who to trust), you should enjoy Prey's story. However it does feel somewhat short and undeveloped in places. Prey may appear difficult at first, but I believe that is because we always approach a new game using playstyles that work in other games. And when a game like Prey tries something different and those playstyles don't work, we find it frustrating. Prey is not a traditional Doom-style shooter, not just because ammo is scarce, but because weapon handling is intentionally clunky (as mentioned, it is an immersive simulation). It is also not a traditional stealth game, where enemies always take set paths and where you just need to observe them long enough to discover the path. So my advice to new players is to take your time, not rush into combat (if overwhelmed by enemies, you can run back to a turret), and Prey will feel very rewarding. The game has a decent replay value as well. The station is huge, so full exploration is likely to take more than one playthrough. Gameplay can be quite different depending on whether you choose human or alien abilities or a mix. And the game in a way forces you to leave the alien abilities for a second playthrough, by scaring you from using them.
Playing the demo was a fun experience for me, and I wanted to play more of it. So as a teaser for the game, it is certainly a success. I will eagerly await for it to be released. As many have pointed out, the graphics are rather basic, there are sound issues (the audio logs are of poor quality, and subtitles don't seem to be implemented in the demo, despite the option in the settings), some parts are too dark, the combat is a bit weird given that there is no visible reaction from the enemies as you hit them... But all these flaws can be expected in a demo. What matters is the "feel" of it, and for me the play was very atmospheric. However, I cannot give it more than a 3/5 rating because I was unable to play the Cyberspace part. I am an "old-school" gamer, started playing games with a joystick on a Commodore 64, and hence for me the only natural way to play is with an inverted look (even when I use a keyboard and mouse). Unfortunately the demo doesn't allow this during the Cyberspace part. And, as one can imagine, I kept going up when I wanted to go down, and vice-versa, to a point where it became so frustrating that I gave up. For me this is an important shortcoming for the demo, as it doesn't allow you to experience a significant portion of the game. But the exploration of the station was great fun. And the retro feel was also cool (though, of course, younger generations may not get the same kick out of it).
If you are a fan of the Deus Ex series, this is a worthy part of it. While the story is not as interesting as in the original Deus Ex or as in Human Revolution, there are many improvements over Human Revolution in terms of the action/gameplay. There are several new augmentations that make the stealthy non-lethal approach more fun. But there are also new combat augmentations, plus the XP penalty for non-stealthy play isn't as big as in Human Revolution, if you prefer to play it that way. Finding passwords/codes is also more satisfying because, unlike Human Revolution, now you get XP when using them (though hacking in many cases still provides a bit more XP). In terms of the locations, there is less variation than in the other Deus Ex games, however the graphics are excellent and the locations are very well done. The third location that you visit, called Golem City, is dystopian cyberpunk setting at its finest. Regarding the Season Pass DLC pack, I can confirm that it is now DRM free (was indeed tied to GOG Galaxy when released, but the issue was fixed).
If you liked Witcher 1, the story and RPG elements are along the same line. Great, in my opinion. If you haven't played Witcher 1, I strongly recommend that you do that first, as the story continues here. If you disliked in Witcher 1 that all young female characters are portrayed with large breasts and revealing cleavage (if you are a woman, I guess you might), that is still the case here. This would not be an issue if all male characters were equivalently portrayed as, say, tall and muscular, but there is plenty of variety on the male side, making the game appear sexist. One fundamental difference from Witcher 1 is the combat, including boss fights. IMHO this was a poor decision by the game makers. Unless you play on 'Easy' difficulty, you will die often in fights at the beginning (especially in boss fights). This works in action games (where you are expected to die to discover what enemies do), but not in RPGs where it is about gameplay immersion. Until you put sufficient points in the skill tree, the only way for Geralt to counter attacks by stronger foes is by rolling. Geralt has a sword on his back, another in his hand, and is wearing armor, yet he rolls like an Olympic gymnast. This may work in platform games, but ruins the RPG experience. As you advance, you can rely on signs/alchemy/combat skills to counter/absorb attacks (as you would expect from an RPG) rather than on silly acrobatics, but I estimate I was about midgame when my character was strong enough to stop using rolling. In summary, if you are a fan of The Witcher stories, I would recommend the game. The story is interesting, which is what matters. If you like more action-oriented RPGs (e.g. Dark Souls), you will probably enjoy all aspects of the game, including the combat. If, on the other hand, you don't have much interest in The Witcher story as such, but like RPGs, note that for me the combat style and the boss fights, at the least for the first part of the game, were ruining the experience.
