How does dialogue work?
Alpha Protocol features a brand new dialogue system called DSS (Dialogue Stance System). When an NPC begins speaking, you are presented with a range of choices – often 4 – while the time bar grows smaller and smaller. When you are a spy in a high-tension environment, people don’t wait 20 minutes for you to make up your mind: so you must pick your response before the time bar expires, or the default option will be chosen (the last option you chose). In many cases, similar kinds of responses will be in similar places – such as ‘aggressive’ responses or ‘suave’ ones, allowing players to choose quickly, but there are also ‘extraordinary’ options such as headslam or shoot. The options do not tell you everything Mike says, but rather a short abbreviation: the developers promise that there will be no ‘nasty surprises’ as to Mike coming out and saying not what you intended. There are various videos that show how it all works.
