5 years after it was yanked off stores, GOG's bringing underrated spy RPG Alpha Protocol in from the cold with fewer crashes and new achievements

GamesRPGAlpha Protocol5 years after it was yanked off stores, GOG’s bringing underrated spy RPG Alpha Protocol in from the cold with fewer crashes and new achievementsWhen you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission.Here’s how it works.

(Image credit: Sega)

Mike Thorton in a tuxedo.

Good news for those of still fighting the good fight, still holding aloft the proud banner of truth and justice, still committed to struggle for what’srightinstead of what’s simply popular. Five years after it was unceremoniously yanked from sale,Alpha Protocol is back via GOG.

If you’re of stout heart and righteous spirit, you’ll already know that Alpha Protocol is a straight-up banger, an Obsidian RPG set in the high-stakes world of modern international espionage rather than a more familiar fantasy or sci-fi setting. Yes, okay, it was deeply flawed—the game was either a cakewalk or surreally difficult depending on which skills you chose to specialise in—but it made up for it with a robust system of choice and consequence: How you chose to behave really mattered in a way few games have managed since.

(Image credit: Sega)

Alpha Protocol

But thrilled as I am that Alpha Protocol is finally back in stores (or one store, anyway), it’s not all that’s going on here. In a chat with GOG’s Zuzanna Rybacka, the company told me it considered Alpha Protocol a key part of the process of “going back to the roots: the good old games.”

GOG announced it was returning to its roots as the internet’s premier destination for DRM-free stone-cold classicsback in 2022, but I get the impression thatCD Projektis keen to start ramping that return up now that Alpha Protocol’s “very long release” (the company told me bringing the game back to life has taken longer than usual: around half a year) has hit its climax.

Rybacka told me that GOG was, naturally, incredibly excited to have titans like Sony releasing modern blockbusters on the platform, but that a proliferation of modern titles had “kind of lost this whole ‘Good Old Games’ vibe.” So the store is “going back to our core, to bringing back classics… basically, our point [is] to not let all those games that would go to perish, and make them accessible for younger generations.”

(Image credit: Sega)

A German woman with a very large gun on her shoulders

Which means the zoomers can finally experience the magnificent joy that is Alpha Protocol’s agent Mike Thorton, and the three diverse flavours of dickhead—Professional (Jason Bourne), Suave (James Bond), and Aggressive (Jack Bauer)—you can play him as.

Thing is, of course, that on top of its pitfall-ridden skill system, Alpha Protocol could also be a technical chore to play. This is a game from the “Bugsidian” era, when Obsidian was renowned for putting out ambitious (and, if you ask me, exceptional) RPGs that left a little to be desired on the technical side. AP was no different, and its original release had more than its fair share of bugs and crashes for players to navigate when they weren’t lamenting putting all their points into assault rifles.

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals

But GOG reckons it’s got most of that stuff fixed. The company tells me that “the most known and crucial bugs from the original Alpha Protocol are currently ‘very rare’” thanks to the efforts of its reverse engineering team. Or, well, it sounds like less of a team and more a single wizard GOG keeps around the office, who is the one mostly responsible for “doing all this crazy stuff that our minds cannot comprehend,” says Rybacka.

(Image credit: Sega)

Mike Thorton holds a man at gunpoint.

On top of the bug fixes, GOG says its version of Alpha Protocol will come with full support for your DualSense, DualShock 4, Switch Pro, and Xbox controllers, compatibility with modern OSes, cloud save support and—new for PC—achievement support. Also, yes, it’ll have its “licensed soundtrack,” so I’m pretty sure that means themusic for the Brayko fightis majestically intact. GOG wouldn’t tell me if the game was a permanent exclusive, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Alpha Protocol magically re-manifested on stores like Steam and Epic a year or two from now, too.

I’ve had a chance to mess around with the game via GOG Galaxy myself and, friends, I can tell you it’s definitely Alpha Protocol. Don’t come in expecting a remaster—for all the work GOG’s done, it’s still indistinguishable from the game you remember at first glance—but I can confirm my controllers work, the game didn’t crash, and I was running around behaving like the most insufferable agent in town with zero faff. As much as I dream of a sequel or full-fledged remaster, I’ll certainly take it when it comes to a game I’d thought dead up to now. It’s finally time for this spy to come in from the cold.

More about rpgElden Ring: Nightreign is getting a closed network test, and I’m totally not fuming because PC players aren’t invited to the party, or anything20 hours in, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is a mad, systems-driven sandbox that captures some of the best parts of games like Stalker

More about rpg

Elden Ring: Nightreign is getting a closed network test, and I’m totally not fuming because PC players aren’t invited to the party, or anything20 hours in, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is a mad, systems-driven sandbox that captures some of the best parts of games like Stalker

Nightreign knight holds his fist in menacing fashion

Elden Ring: Nightreign is getting a closed network test, and I’m totally not fuming because PC players aren’t invited to the party, or anything

Henry chokes out a farmer while wearing absurd spectacles.

20 hours in, Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is a mad, systems-driven sandbox that captures some of the best parts of games like Stalker

Latest

Double headed wizard man holding arms up looking sad

See more latest►

Most PopularFinal Fantasy 14 communities panic as it turns out change to blacklisting, meant to help reduce stalking, also lets players use mods to track their altsTikTok’s time in the US may be ticking to a close as it makes a last stand in the Supreme Court, though Trump now says he ‘opposes banning’ itMSI intros cheaper ‘back connect’ Project Zero Intel motherboards for super-clean PC builds you might actually be able to affordThermaltake’s new 2000 W PSU is too powerful to be sold in the USA and comes with four PCIe 5.0 GPU power connectorsAMD accuses Intel’s Arrow Lake of being a ‘horrible’ product and implies a lack of options for consumers has caused the Ryzen 7 9800X3D shortageThis Jinx-inspired gaming PC is my favorite of CES 2025 and I’m head over heels for the hardwareHarrowing report alleges years of horrific abuse at Brandoville Studios, an Indonesian support studio that worked on Assassin’s Creed Shadows and The Last of Us RemakeTencent says it’s not a Chinese military company and is willing to sue the US Department of Defense if it isn’t removed from a blacklistAll Zenless Zone Zero 1.5 livestream codesAsus reveals three new Slash Travel Bags for carting around your ROG Ally—however, none of them are particularly fashion forwardToday’s Wordle answer for Friday, January 10

Most Popular

Final Fantasy 14 communities panic as it turns out change to blacklisting, meant to help reduce stalking, also lets players use mods to track their alts

TikTok’s time in the US may be ticking to a close as it makes a last stand in the Supreme Court, though Trump now says he ‘opposes banning’ it

MSI intros cheaper ‘back connect’ Project Zero Intel motherboards for super-clean PC builds you might actually be able to afford

Thermaltake’s new 2000 W PSU is too powerful to be sold in the USA and comes with four PCIe 5.0 GPU power connectors

AMD accuses Intel’s Arrow Lake of being a ‘horrible’ product and implies a lack of options for consumers has caused the Ryzen 7 9800X3D shortage

This Jinx-inspired gaming PC is my favorite of CES 2025 and I’m head over heels for the hardware

Harrowing report alleges years of horrific abuse at Brandoville Studios, an Indonesian support studio that worked on Assassin’s Creed Shadows and The Last of Us Remake

Tencent says it’s not a Chinese military company and is willing to sue the US Department of Defense if it isn’t removed from a blacklist

All Zenless Zone Zero 1.5 livestream codes

Asus reveals three new Slash Travel Bags for carting around your ROG Ally—however, none of them are particularly fashion forward

Today’s Wordle answer for Friday, January 10

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review4Ikea Utespelare desk review5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

HARDWARE BUYING GUIDESLATEST GAME REVIEWS

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

A bunch of the best Steam Deck accessories on a blue background.

1Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

Best Steam Deck accessories in Australia for 2025: Our favorite docks, powerbanks and gamepads

2Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

Best graphics card for laptops: the mobile GPUs I’d want in my next gaming laptop

3Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

Best mini PCs in 2025: The compact computers I love the most

4Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

Best 14-inch gaming laptop: The top compact gaming laptops I’ve held in these hands

5Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

Best Mini-ITX motherboards in 2025: My pick from all the mini mobo marvels I’ve tested

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review

Thank Goodness You’re Here review

1Thank Goodness You’re Here! review

Thank Goodness You’re Here! review

2Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review

Shiren the Wanderer: The Mystery Dungeon of Serpentcoil Island review

3WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

WD Black SN850X 8 TB NVMe SSD review

4Ikea Utespelare desk review

Ikea Utespelare desk review

5Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

Asus ROG Harpe Ace Mini wireless mouse review

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals#

The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware deals