The ambitious, yet flawed Alpha Protocol is available for purchase once again. The 2010 game, which was developed by Obsidian Entertainment and published by Sega, was removed from all platforms in 2019 because Sega’s music licensing rights had expired. The game is making a comeback as a DRM-free exclusive on GOG.com, available today for $19.99, with an additional 10% launch discount lasting through April 3.
What’s now available is a definitive edition, of sorts, containing all of its original music, as well as support for modern wireless controllers (including the DualSense, Switch Pro controller, and Xbox Series X controllers), text localization support for 8 languages, Windows 10 and 11 compatibility, and cloud save support. The game also sports achievements on GOG, which were previously only available on consoles. What this re-release of Alpha Protocol is not, however, is a remaster. The visuals and core game are unchanged. GOG.com produced a mini documentary on how it brought the game back, and I’ve embedded it at the top of the post.
Alpha Protocol’s return to an online game store is a rare thing to see in the news cycle, especially in 2024 when it’s more often to hear stories of the opposite happening. For instance, in early March, Warner Bros. Discovery surprised indie devs with the news that games published under its Adult Swim Games label would be “retired.”
Polygon reached out to Sega to see if it’s planning to bring this updated version of Alpha Protocol to more platforms, but it didn’t respond in time for publication.
