Bethesda, Human Head Confirm Prey 2 For 2012

Bethesda Softworks on Monday confirmed it is publishing the first-person shooter Prey 2, due in 2012 and under development by Madison, WI-based Human Head Studios. Prey 2 will be the first video game out of Human Head since the original Prey in 2006, which came out for PC, and was ported to Xbox 360 by Venom Games. Aspyr later brought the game to Mac. The sequel is slated for release on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3, and PC as a Games for Windows title. Whispers of a Prey sequel have been circulating for years. In 2009, a U.S. Patent and Trademark Office entry showed that ZeniMax, parent to companies including Bethesda and id Software, acquired the Prey license, giving more weight to reports of a Prey follow-up. Bethesda said Prey 2 will be built on the "cutting edge id tech engine from id Software," but did not specify if the game is running on the latest id Tech 5 engine, which is powering id's upcoming action game Rage. The original Prey ran on the id Tech 4 engine. Reps for Bethesda did not immediately respond to an inquiry about the sequel's engine. The original Prey, published by 2K Games and overseen by 3D Realms, revolved around a Cherokee called Tommy who, along with his girlfriend and grandfather, are abducted from a Native American reservation by aliens. Prey 2 project lead Chris Rhinehart said Prey 2 will have "fast-paced action in an open, alien world. We’re excited to show gamers the title we have been working on and hope they will be as excited by this title as we are."