A game that flew under many people’s radar was the excellent Alpha Protocol from Obsidian Entertainment – released on the Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and PC. Away from the usual RPG tropes of Sci-Fi and Fantasy, Alpha Protocol is set firmly in the modern day – allowing players to take part in their own James Bond film; but much, much cooler.

The publisher Sega, famous for their Sonic games, loved the idea. “Hey, this is different. It’s not dragons, it’s not phasers. You don’t see a lot of spy RPGs.” The spy role playing game was born, but not without some serious issues along the way. A lack of direction from the management and publisher meant that Alpha Protocol was, for long periods, caught in limbo between a game for RPG fans and shooter fans – something that is clear even to this day on repeated playthroughs. Despite some mixed reviews though, Alpha Protocol has become a cult classic.