Proteus

 PlayStation 3
User Score
4.9

Generally unfavorable reviews- based on 53 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 18 out of 53
  2. Mixed: 9 out of 53
  3. Negative: 26 out of 53

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. Antiquecardboar
    May 18, 2016
    10
    A transfixing game. The aesthetic ambiance is beautiful and meaningful. No stress. Just the wonder of exploring and feeling the seasons change around you. The theme of this game is "time". I wish more people could appreciate this game. Video games are a lot of things: entertainment, puzzles, challenges, etc... This game is medicine. It calms your soul. People who hate on this game areA transfixing game. The aesthetic ambiance is beautiful and meaningful. No stress. Just the wonder of exploring and feeling the seasons change around you. The theme of this game is "time". I wish more people could appreciate this game. Video games are a lot of things: entertainment, puzzles, challenges, etc... This game is medicine. It calms your soul. People who hate on this game are like bullies who pick on the quiet, sensitive kid in the back...not realizing the he is one of the few that truly "gets it". Genius game. Please enjoy it for what it is: a masterpiece. I applaud the creators.… Expand
  2. Linus117
    Nov 9, 2013
    7
    Proteus offers a unique experience. The lack of conventional 'gameplay' or objectives was a bit hard to get used to, but obviously that's a very subjective experience. I would definitely recommend checking this out if you're into artistic indie games that are not necessarily all about the gameplay.
  3. BaronMonaco
    Oct 20, 2014
    2
    I apologize for any mistakes, I'm french and my English is far from perfect.

    I played this game thanks to the PS+ subscription but I'll be reviewing it like if i paid its full price as it is no longer free to download. I would also like to add that i like indies ovni (like Doki Doki Universe or Flower for examples) and if i didn't like Proteus it is not because "you can't shoot anyone    I apologize for any mistakes, I'm french and my English is far from perfect.

    I played this game thanks to the PS+ subscription but I'll be reviewing it like if i paid its full price as it is no longer free to download. I would also like to add that i like indies ovni (like Doki Doki Universe or Flower for examples) and if i didn't like Proteus it is not because "you can't shoot anyone and its bad graphics".
    I personally didn't understand on myself the point of this "game" and that's basically the whole reason this doesn't feel as a game but more as an experience in psychology school : "Here you have that, now what will you do ? We'll monitoring your actions from the other room" should be the only use of Proteus. And finally i hated almost everything in its artistic direction, except the colours, specially the musics that are awful, i was expecting something relaxing and almost poetic but instead it's like a 6 years old child playing with a very old musical software (my girlfriend actually made me cut the sound, that's how annoying it was).
    To conclude i think Proteus has been a very bad publicity for the indie games, a genre that has a lot more to offer than this "almost nothing" of game that will be boring after 15 minutes (personally i deleted the game after 50 minutes "playing"). Not worth the time nor the money.    … Expand
  4. diehard-gamer
    Aug 8, 2014
    0
    Awful. Silly pastel colour scheme. Jagged, blocky graphics. Terrible electronic ambient musix/fx, Sluggish controls. No story. No interaction. No gameplay. Tiny playing area. This is quite possibly the worst 'game' I have every played. But Proteus is not 'a game'. I liked Journey. I liked TotalMiner, Terraria, DokiDoki ......... I dont have any problem with minimalist, unusual or indieAwful. Silly pastel colour scheme. Jagged, blocky graphics. Terrible electronic ambient musix/fx, Sluggish controls. No story. No interaction. No gameplay. Tiny playing area. This is quite possibly the worst 'game' I have every played. But Proteus is not 'a game'. I liked Journey. I liked TotalMiner, Terraria, DokiDoki ......... I dont have any problem with minimalist, unusual or indie stuff. But Proteus is absolutely awful. Some will say its a miimalist game. Its not. Proteus is no more a minimalist game than a blank piece of papar is a minimalist novel. Proteus was one of the free game on PSN this month (Aug 2014), so I played it for a good hour trying to like it - but frankly I wouldn't bother even for 'free'.… Expand
  5. TheQuietGamer
    Sep 24, 2014
    7
    A directionless game without any real objectives. There is a way to progress through the game until you "beat" it, but there's no explanation as to how. For many this lack of any sort of direction will make the game feel pointless, and therefore worthless. However the trophies might be the saving grace of the experience, as they help to give gamers some something to work towards.

    Odds    A directionless game without any real objectives. There is a way to progress through the game until you "beat" it, but there's no explanation as to how. For many this lack of any sort of direction will make the game feel pointless, and therefore worthless. However the trophies might be the saving grace of the experience, as they help to give gamers some something to work towards.

    Odds are you'll have to look up how to get them, because there really isn't any explanation as to how to do so. Once I started digging into unlocking the trophies it really helped Proteus feel more like a game, and less like a semi-interactive experience. Something that saved it for me. Without them all there really would've been to do is explore each season for a bit until it gets boring then move on to the next one until it's over. Not exactly satisfying for many.

    Admittedly it is kind of interesting to see what certain landmarks will do at certain times. Certain events only happen around them during certain seasons and during certain times (day, night). Each playthrough takes place in a randomly generated world so it's clear that there's an emphasis on re-playability. However unless you really just find yourself enthralled with the experience there's really no reason to stick around for long. Especially after you've completed all of the trophies.

    There is fun to be had with Proteus, but it requires you to sort of make your own. Whether it be collecting all of the trophies or just random exploring there are things to keep gamers busy. However it's definitely not for everyone, and will only be praised by a certain audience. Perhaps this indie game tried to be too artsy, but overall I found some fun with it.    … Expand
  6. Parallax
    Jan 4, 2015
    0
    What is this? A game made in Microsoft paint? What a joke and so boring and ugly to look at and terrible to listen to! I only played it because it was a PS+ free game. What a waste of an hour I could've spent on a better game!
  7. kg1
    Aug 11, 2014
    0
    Absolutely disgusting.
    No gameplay.
    Awful music.
    There is NOTHING in this game.
    Another pretentious piece of s*** walking simulator.
    This is like a resume of part of what's wrong with the industry right now.
  8. Kinnyth
    Aug 22, 2014
    10
    This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. As most have said this is a bizarre game, but to me in a good way. What most don't understand though is its mysterious. Like when you climb a mountain and find the demonic-like statues in a circle or the awesome rune stone circle at night that speeds up the timeframe and transports you to another world. If you stand still long enough you can start to float all the way up into the sky. I want to know if there's more here, I get a strange sense of wonder and adventure. Sometimes I even get that spooky child-like feeling of "is there something behind me?" or when my controller vibrates for some unknown reason even when I never bump into anything. I loved it, its great for those who want to just let go for a minute.… Expand
  9. Barabus
    Aug 7, 2014
    0
    It is not a game. This is the demoscene, but not a game.
    It is...................................................................................... FAIL.
  10. Eleven1Q83
    Aug 7, 2014
    4
    This game has serious issues. you cannot do anything about it...................................................................................... FAIL
  11. Tokyochuchu
    Aug 16, 2014
    4
    Proteus is fun for fifteen minutes and has a few cool graphical moments... But ultimately there is nothing to actually do in the game. No problem for a game priced at 3 bucks, but Proteus goes for 14. It simply is not worth the money it asks for.
  12. VonSeux
    Dec 10, 2014
    2
    A visual experience that will last for 15... 20 minutes. After that there's nothing to see, unless you're on some psychology test. It's interesting, but it's only value is FREE.
  13. SuperkenGaming
    Dec 4, 2015
    5
    Proteus
    a pretty walking simulator
    Proteus is an exploration game that takes place on an island. There’s not much to say about this game. You just walk around, that’s it. Every time you start a game the island is different, all you have to do to beat the game is go through all 4 seasons, you go to a new season by waiting for night time and then going to these glowy white orbs, the    Proteus
    a pretty walking simulator
    Proteus is an exploration game that takes place on an island.
    There’s not much to say about this game.
    You just walk around, that’s it.
    Every time you start a game the island is different, all you have to do to beat the game is go through all 4 seasons, you go to a new season by waiting for night time and then going to these glowy white orbs, the colors and changing seasons are great pieces of eye candy, but only for like 12 seconds
    then your over it
    I found nothing engaging about this game at all beyond my initial introduction and trying to figure it out.
    The randomly generated islands are all solid, so there aren’t caves, or buildings to explore through, just hills to climb over, and musical animals to listen to as they hop around.
    There’s really nothing to explore here, get to the island, look at it for 10 seconds, this is all you need to see, game over.
    I do appreciate the ambient music, and could see the potential of someone going to proteus to just escape to a colorful land, but maybe I’m just saying that to find a positive, because there are games out there with tons more to do that you could get that same experience from like Minecraft.
    There’s nothing to do here but do mundane tasks like walk around the island, or follow the bath from end to end for trophies, that’s about it.
    Not worth exploring.
    There’s nothing to see here
    Proteus isn’t a bad game, it’s just not a good game either... it’s kinda just nothing.
    For what it is
    Exploration game 5.0/10
    overall: 5.0/10    … Expand
  14. Budomen
    Mar 7, 2018
    0
    This is not a game. It is some kind of interactive picture. I don't like it.
  15. PSGaming
    Mar 15, 2020
    4
    For me it was boring.Maybe i didnt understand what the dev wanted to present to me with this game.

Awards & Rankings

78
#78 Best PS3 Game of 2013
79
#79 Most Discussed PS3 Game of 2013

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
72

Mixed or average reviews - based on 13 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 8 out of 13
  2. Mixed: 3 out of 13
  3. Negative: 2 out of 13
  1. Atomix
    Feb 8, 2015
    85
    Proteus gives a very particular sensory experience. Even if it's virtual, it won't be hard to forget it. After turning on the screen we won't be able to feel nothing but melancholy.
    Read full review
  2. GameCritics
    Nov 26, 2014
    80
    It becomes like a dream, and when it concludes, players will wake up refreshed. They will not be able to perfectly describe what they've just experienced, but the feeling and memories will linger.
    Read full review
  3. LaPS4
    Aug 20, 2014
    42
    Proteus is an interesting curiosity, but it doesn't have enough variety to be at the same level of those indies the players really want. Enjoyable for a few hours, and with some interesting details once the night comes.
    Read full review
See all critic reviews »