- "Hello Morgan. I'm January twenty thirty five. I'm an Operator. There are many Operators aboard Talos I, but none of them are like me."
- – January introducing itself to Morgan. [src]
January is a reprogrammed Operator that guides Morgan Yu through Talos I in Prey.
Overview[]
January is an Operator modified by Morgan Yu to remember everything they forgot over the Neuromod extractions. It speaks using Morgan's voice, having either a male or female voice depending on the player's choice at the start of the game.
History[]
Background[]
When Morgan Yu discovered that they were being made to relive the same day of their life over and over again through the repeated injection and removal of Neuromods by their brother, Alex Yu, they took drastic actions to break free from the cycle. Morgan secretly reprogrammed an Operator with the codename "January" to act as a sort of back up of themselves in the event their memories were to be erased, directing it to help their future self destroy Talos I, along with all research on the Typhon species.
Morgan was eventually forced back into the simulation lab, leaving January to make preparations by hiding Neuromods around the station and gathering resources. When the Typhon outbreak began, January seized the opportunity to rescue Morgan by replacing their next round of Neuromods with blanks, leaving Morgan's memory of the previous day's events intact. It then e-mailed Morgan in their apartment warning them they were in danger, and reached out to help them escape the simulation and get back to their office. There January was able to bring the current Morgan up to speed on recent events.
Prey (2017)[]
January serves as a guide for Morgan via Transcribe, helping them navigate their objectives and offering insight into topics Morgan has forgotten. January resides in the relative safety of Morgan Yu's Office and is armed with a Disruptor Stun Gun for self-defense. Typhon generally ignore or stray away from January, but it is not an essential character and can be destroyed in the right circumstances (or if Morgan attacks it).
Shortly after first meeting January "in person" and being sent to Psychotronics, Morgan is contacted by another custom Operator, known as December, claiming it was designed to help Morgan escape Talos I using Alex's personal escape shuttle. It tells Morgan to meet it in the foyer of the Neuromod Division, however if January is still functional, it will beat Morgan there and destroy December. January states that December was unreliable and a defective project leftover from Morgan's early plans.
As the plot progresses, Alex shows Morgan a video of their original self where it is revealed that Morgan developed a device called the Prototype Nullwave Transmitter in case the Typhon ever broke containment. In theory, the Nullwave would kill the Typhon organisms but leave the station and survivors unharmed. The original Morgan was adamant that their knowledge of the Typhon were to be preserved in case Earth were to ever be attacked, a notion January struggles to reconcile with its directives. Eventually, January dismisses the idea as too risky, noting that just because that version of Morgan came first it doesn't mean they're right.
At the end of the game, provided both parties are alive, January and Alex will have a confrontation on the Talos I Bridge. If Morgan has chosen to destroy Talos I, January will knock Alex unconscious, dooming them to die in the explosion. However, if Morgan decides to deploy the Prototype Nullwave Transmitter, January will deny Morgan access to the activation console, forcing Morgan to destroy January. If Morgan has primed both the self-destruct and set the transmitter, then Alex will end his argument with January by shooting it.
January's primary directive is not to allow any Typhon genetic material to escape Talos I and endanger Earth. If Morgan has completed the mission Incapacitate Dahl and primes the station self-destruct, January will applaud them for finding a way for the survivors (if any) to escape. However, if Morgan has injected themselves with too many Typhon-based Neuromods, then January will inform them they would pose a threat if they returned to Earth. January then contacts Dahl over Transcribe and, masquerading as Morgan, tells him that they're not going to make it and to leave with the survivors. January also suggests that Morgan just sit in the chair and live their final moments before Talos I is destroyed. The time Morgan has to evacuate is reduced from seven minutes to three, making escape especially difficult if they haven't completed December's objective to unlock Alex's personal escape shuttle in the Arboretum.
Having been programmed by the original Morgan, January approves when the current Morgan helps survivors around Talos I. January comments negatively when Morgan harms innocents, preferring instead to give those still alive hope in their final hours. It argues against Morgan using Typhon-based Neuromods, acknowledging their power, but pointing out they've led to nothing but disaster, and incorrectly claims the Nightmare only appeared on the station after Morgan installed Typhon Neuromods if they have done so (it appears regardless). It pleads with Morgan not to lose sight of who they are or their goal to protect humanity.
Trivia[]
- January will speak in a male or female voice in accordance with Morgan's gender.
- January is capable of disobeying and exceeding its directives, and even states being able to do so. This makes it unique among its kind, though it is still largely bound by its programming.
- If the player chooses to destroy January early in the game, it will not respawn. When looted, players will find a note from the previous Morgan and a Neuromod. If destroyed later, you will find Spare Parts and a Psi Hypo, hinting that January may have been a Science Operator before Morgan Yu reprogrammed it. This is confirmed by scanning January via the Psychoscope.
- Though January had managed to stay hidden, e-mails reveal Danielle Sho had become aware that Morgan created an unauthorized Operator with access to station protocols. Danielle Sho was waiting for authorization to begin a search when the Typhon broke containment.
- January will make different comments depending on which of the starter human Neuromods a player installs first, several are unique, others are shared by several Neuromods.
- The player will not receive the Nightmare audio files from the quest Mixed Signals if January is killed before altering the satellite.
Gallery[]
