Aliens Vs. Predator (2010) Review

An Exceptional Review by Haulz.NapkinZ

System Requirements:

• OS: Windows XP/Vista
• Processor: 3.4 GHz Intel Pentium 4 or equivalent processor
• Memory: 1 GB System RAM (XP)/ 2 GB System RAM (Vista)
• Graphics: DirectX 9.0c compliant video card with 128 MB RAM (NVIDIA 7900 or better, ATI X1800 or better)
• Hard Drive: 16 GB free hard drive space
• DirectX®: DirectX 9.0c

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Foreword

Aliens Vs. Predator (2010) is a science fiction first-person shooter game with a hint of horror. It was developed by Rebellion Developments and published by Sega. Rebellion Developments is also responsible for the 1999 PC game “Aliens Vs. Predator”. The game is designed around the movie franchises of “Alien” and “Predator”, respectively. Released on February 16^th, the 2010 version of the game is also available for the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 consoles. It features 3 separate campaigns, as well as several different multiplayer modes for online play.

Summary

The plot of Aliens Vs. Predator is difficult to explain – albeit not confusing – it takes three separate points of view. You cross paths a few times and revisit some of the same areas on the different campaigns. I will try to give a description of all three while attempting to maintain the utmost brevity without spoiling any of the campaigns.

• Marine Campaign: Begins with you orbiting an unknown planet in a spacecraft named USS Marlow examining the planet. You receive orders from your superiors for a combat drop to explore the planet. As your shuttle is descending to the planet a Predator ship appears and destroys the USS Marlow causing an evacuation using the ships emergency escape pods. The story begins with your shuttle landing on the planets surface.
• Alien Campaign: The Alien campaign starts with your birth by bursting through the chest of an imprisoned human. You follow a series of scripted and cinematic events up to adulthood before you make an escape.
• Predator Campaign: You begin as a “Youngblood” in the jungles on said planet in the Marine story. You are on a proving grounds to prove that you deserve the title “Elite”. This level is meant to be a tutorial which gets cut short with the distress call from one of your “brethren”.

The game also features a multiplayer mode with several different types. It features a rank system with experience points and achievement.

Gameplay

Again each campaign has a very unique gameplay element. I will give a brief description of each and list some of the unique aspects of each.

• Marine: This is most like the traditional first-person shooters that we are used to. As a Marine you will get Pulse Rifles, Flamethrowers, Smartguns which auto-track enemies, and your basic handgun. You are also equipped with a flashlight and flares to help you navigate and light up dark areas – and there are a ton of dark and creepy areas to light up! Also, as in the movies you will have a motion tracker to help detect any hostiles in your immediate area.
• Alien: As an Alien you will have to ability to climb on every wall and virtually all other surfaces. You can jump over great distances to stalk Marines and other Human targets. Aliens can only fight in close-quarters using their claws and spiked tails but you will not having any difficulty taking down enemies; as an Alien you can use shadows to blend into environments and sneak up on enemies for a stealth kill. You can also smell nearby enemies which lets you see their location even through walls. And if you are sneaky, you can even pounce on a Human and ‘harvest’ them with facehuggers!
• Predator: By the far the Predator has the most interesting gameplay. You can use all the bells and whistles from the movie, such as: thermal scanner, Alien scanner, shoulder-mounted Plasma Cannon, Combi stick, wristblades, glaive disc, and proximity explosives. Also, as a Predator you can cloak to turn invisible to enemies and “focus jump” over great distances. You can even collect trophies from the Humans and Aliens that you hunt (this sometimes involves you decapitating them)!

My Thoughts

I played through all three campaigns in order before I began scrutinizing the game. I have to admit that this game is actually pretty good. It took me 10 hours to beat all 3 campaigns, but I hurried through them without finding all the hidden items (there are unlockable achievements if you find hidden objects in all the levels). There were a few scenes as the Marine that were made to make you jump and startle you. Most of the Marine campaign takes place in very dark areas with plenty of hiding spots for Aliens and Predators. As an Alien you can jump from wall to wall before finally landing on some poor guys head and taking it off! Aliens are the hardest to get used to simply because of the fact that they move so fast and run on everything. Predator was my favorite campaign to play. You can turn invisible, sneak up on a Marine, and then lunge your wristblade in his back and out of his chest! I can say that I would definitely recommend this game to anyone wanting something that will take some time to complete and offer some decent reply value. It has been a few days since I beat the game but I already have plans to install it and play it again within the next few months.

Bibliography

“Aliens vs. Predator (video game).” Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Web. 7 Jan. 2011.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aliens_vs._Predator_(video_game) >.

Anonymous, Austin J. “ID :: Haulz.NapkinZ.” Steam Community. 29 Dec. 2010. Web. 7 Jan. 2011.
<http://steamcommunity.com/id/sukomabawls>.