Thread: Aliens Vs Predator Review

Well i am back sorry for the time i have been away i have had things with the other half to get sorted. I come back with a review in hand of a game that i had a lot of hope for being a massive fan of the franchises. Whilst i know a few people already have the game i feel like my opinions could provide a deifferent view point on the game. So onto the review

Story

The story of the game is told through 3 interweaving arcs one for the marine campaign, one for the alien and one for the predator. It is standard fare for the genres and in my opinion almost mirrors the story for the AvP film. I dont really think there is much more i can say the story as average but serves its purpose for driving the story forward

Graphics

From a graphics standpoint whilst this may not be the most profestional response its the response i had whilst playing the game and my response is simply meh. Whilst the studio nails the look for the envionments it all looks a bit dated in my opinion. Character models and animations for the marine campaign look wooden and stiff as do the animations for most of the NPC's. I will give props to the alien models and the animation especially when they decide to come out of the walls and their general movement. The frame rate for the game is solid through out although there were a few periods of slowdown that i experienced. All in all the graphics are not terrible by any stretch of the imagination but then again bu current generational standards they are not that great either.


Sound

Ok now here is where the game shines its brightest for me and i would imagine for most fans of the franchises. The sounds from the motion detector to the background music when going doen the various hallways is spot on. There were many moments where i said out loud "no way that sound is from a certain point in aliens. The sounds of the aliens are spot on as are the predator sounds for example the visor for different view modes is great. The voice acting for the NPC's and the marines is very standard. Lance Henrikson does reprise his role as Mr Weyland which is a nice fan service i have to say.

Controls

The controls for the marine campaign control as you would expect most FPS games to control these days. There are some odd design choice as in there is no ability to crouch. Whilst i will say that the levels have been designed in a way that a crouch is not needed it still feels a bit retro. The alien controls consist of a light and heavy attack and the ability to walk on walls. You also have an instint kill move if you can get close enough to your opponent. I did find issues with the controls for the aliens primarily when i was trying to get the alien to climb the walls. It prompts you to press RT however a lot of the times that does not work. The predator in my opinion has a few more controls than the other 2 and can take a tiny bit of getting used to. You use the d - pad to change visor modes, use the triggers to fire your plasma cannon and use your face buttons for using your camo.

Gameplay

Well the gameplay for the marine campaign is once again standard fare for the genre. You go from checkpoint to checkpoint following orders from one of your squadmates. It is the most polished of the 3 campaigns in my opinion and the one with the most atmosphere. It does not really stray from an established path and there is little room for exploration in the levels. It works like this you will go into a new area, hear motion and see dots on your detector, encounter said dots, kill them and then progress. The alien campaign is essentially the same thing in the sense that you go from area to area killing dudes with the only gameplay difference being that you can use the shadows to attack your prey. The predator campaign is quite fun and you really do feel like you are hunting your prey as long as you keep your self elavated. The melee attacks for both the alien and the predator are in my opinion not that good. As the player you are not really given any indication as to what attack light or heavy that the enemy will do so blocking can be a pain. Plus the ability to jump from service to service as the predator needed more polish as that can cause issues.

Multiplayer

I am going to be honest i have not playe a massive amount of the online but there are a decent number of modes. You even have the defecto horde type mode which is actually quite fun. For me though what dragged it down was the instint kills. For a start whilst they have a nice animation is it neccesary for them to go on so long and whilst they are happening you can then be killed by someone else. Also the deathmatch mode seems very unbalanced and needs some work. There is an xp type system however the only things you unlock are new skins for your character so besides that there is not much reason to keep going back. Whilst i may not be the best person to have an opinion of the online i still thought as part of the review that i should state my opinion.

Lastability/Replay value

Well each campain has several difficulty settings from really easy to a setting called nightmare which disables all checkpoints. Each campaign also has there own collectables to get in the marine its audio logs, in the alien its jelly tub things and in the predator its trophies. The marine campaign is the longest i finished it in about 5 hours on hard and the other two are shorter with the alien campaign being the shortest. The you have the online that whilst it does have legs its not enough to hold your interest for long.

Final Thoughts

As a huge fan of the franchises i had high hopes for this game maybe they were too high because i came away feeling underwhelmed. I can tell the developer has tried its best to nail the look and sound and to their credit they have done a good job but the part where you play the game is the part that i am not totally happy with. If you are a fan of the franchise its worth a rent and if your not then it wont have as much of a nostalgic effect.

Brilliant review but it isnt going to change my mind coz i played the demo and nearly s**t myself

The first time i played the demo i felt the same mate i needed new pants

i played the demo wasnt impressed but preordered the game purely on the franchise, and have to say it is brill,
brilliant laugh online playing with people you know.
a keeper for me...

ps. good to see you back warrier

cheers arctic its good to be back mate

loved the game defo worth a purchase to anyone who hasnt got it, only the marine storyline is abit 'Jumpy'

Yep that motion tracker totally messes with your head

LLOOVVEE this gamee!!! got it a week late though(even though i preordered it-long story) and missed playing it with everyone!! which im gutted about cos as arctic said it would be awesome with mates

apart from THAT 1 achievement 3 hours 15gs. traded it in the other day it was fun while it lasted but like so many before it, it had to get traded in for my next adventure or tbh more gold packs for ultimate team lol

Like the marine campaign best,enjoy the online modes,will be keeping it.