Aliens vs. Predator

Overall: 7
Gameplay: 7
Graphics: 6
Sound: 8

Pros: 3 unique classes. Some very tense moments. Predator is pretty hard!
Cons: Clumsy controls. Heavy reliance on context sensitive actions. Dated looks

Is it better than the films?

Way back in 1994 Rebellion and Atari created a genre defining first person shooter called Aliens vs. Predator (AvP) for the ill fated Atari Jaguar (god I feel old now). It was an atmospheric and tense shooter that played on all of the greatest aspects of the franchise. In 1999, this classic was re-imagined for the PC and was again an instant hit, scoring decent scores at the time.

Eleven years later (and a few iterations of the game later) and we are being given another version of AvP, this time for the next generation consoles and of course PC.


This is distilled down to give it a very retro feel.
Following the theme of the original games and movies, you get to play through the story as an Alien, Marine or Predator. Each has its own unique skills, weapons and playing style as well as reason for being in the story.

Let's start with the marines, the place most players will choose to pick up the game. Armed initially with the classic Pulse rifle and assisted by the essential and iconic motion tracker, the Marines have one simple task. Survive long enough to escape. If I am honest it does feel like the Marines story is the one that Rebellion spent the most time on. The atmosphere created when walking down dark corridors, with just a flare and the increasingly panicked beep of the motion tracker, is truly scary. Rebellion has taken a leaf out of the original Alien movies and has used the effect very well. But although the Marine is the prey for both the Predator and the Alien, they are not helpless. As I mentioned there is the classic Pulse Rifle, but there are also a nice array of extra weapons to be had. My personal favorite is the flame thrower, although the sniper rifle is well worth having with you.

Don't expect a modern feeling, Halo beating FPS experience here. This is distilled down to give it a very retro feel. There are no iron sights and no crouch or prone. This is shooting from the hip and praying you hit the target stuff. But it works, for the most part. Another strange inclusion is boss battles, giving this a more arcade feel than I would have liked.

Next up is the Predator, my personal favorite. Taking you through its own unique story, that interweaves with the other ones nicely, this is a chance for a teched up stealth mission. Making brilliant use of the stealth cloak and a host of film inspired gadgets, the Predator is by far the most powerful of the trio. If I am honest, it is a bit over powered, especially in multiplayer games! Whereas the marines and to some extent the aliens are pretty much grounded, the Predator prefers to sit in the tree tops and stalk his prey. The heat vision is intact and as brilliant as ever, making it easy to pick out hidden marines with ease.

The problem comes with the way getting to the tree tops is handled. With a finger bending combination of key presses you must first target an area to jump to. If it is allowed then you can jump. Not very practical when you are running for your life from a swarm of Aliens! All is not lost though as there is a rather fun trophy kill system. Get close to a stunned marine and you are given a context sensitive notification. The resulting animation is, initially, very satisfying, as you tear the Marines head off and keep it for later. The trouble with this is, you cannot cancel it, and so make sure there is no one about to kill you! Next on the snag list is the distraction ability. You can choose an unsuspecting marine to demonstrate the little know Ventriloquist power that all Predators possess. The idea is that you target a marine, then target the spot you would like him to go to and he rather obediently heads over to see what is there. Whilst this is fun, it does show one very large hole in the game. The AI. These marines are as dumb as dirt, following random noises at the drop of a hat. They are not much better at the whole fighting thing either. They just either run at you shooting or run away.


Boo!!Finally (and least interesting in my view) are the Aliens. The main mechanic is again stealth, using the shadows to hide and the ability to climb on almost any surface, the Aliens can strike without being seen at any time. Once you have found your prey you have no choice but to get up close and personal. Attacking with light and heavy blows, it takes very little time to kill your victim. Again there are some truly wonderful trophy kills to be had, my favorite being the one that sticks your tail in the victims' eye! Great fun.

Again though, this is not as easy as it sounds. The alien cannot just climb on to surfaces smoothly. You need to use a transition button to move from one to the other. This can lead to some really frustrating moments, like going round and round a tree branch waiting for the context sensitive notification to pop up!

Overall the single player campaigns are fun, if not ground breaking. Where there is a little shining star to this is in multiplayer. Not for the usual death match style modes, but for the modes that could only work for this type of game.

Survivor sees you and up to 3 other friends trying to stay alive as long as possible with wave after wave of aliens trying their best to kill you. It is during this that you get the most refined Aliens feel. Following this is the Infestation mode. Here a single Alien must try to kill all of the marines. Each Marine that is killed then becomes an Alien. Again this gives a very distilled and tense - if short lived - experience. The final not worth mode is Hunter. You take turns playing as a Predator trying to kill marines. When you kill one, they become the Predator. Fun, if a little short lived.

All in all this is not a terrible game. It looks a bit dated, with some clipping issues, its controls are clumsy to say the least, but it does deliver in the game play department most of the time. Multiplayer really is the highlight.

A flawed, but fun distraction from hardcore shooters. Oh and watch out for a great performance from Lance Henriksen reprising his role as Bishop!

Review written by daverage for Yet Another Review Site