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Havoc's Reviews: Aliens vs Predator (2010)

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Havoc's Reviews: Aliens vs Predator (2010) Empty Havoc's Reviews: Aliens vs Predator (2010)

Post  Havoc Fri Jun 25, 2010 5:54 pm

Every now and then there are some great games out there that have such potential, but due to hype, time, internal factors or any other things, fail to deliver. Sad to say, this is one of those games.

Though most people are familiar with these iconic movie monsters, a quick little rundown. Alien is one of the most well-recognized horror films of all time in no small part due to the monster itself that was so... well. Alien! Combine that with slow building tension and surprising character development and you have a good movie!

Predator was another interesting monster movie, which seems a bit like a modernized version of Beowulf vs Grendel from the epic poem Beowulf. No really! Despite the blood and horror the creature inflicts, at its core, it is a lot like it! It's also when the hero discards the traditional and modern weapons and fights the creature in a smarter regards that it is defeated.

Anyways, a hint that the two universes might be connected showed up in the next predator movie, and since then it's been... Well, interesting. When we finally saw the two creatures on screen for the first time though... Eheheheh... It was underwhelming to say the least. And went from so bad it's good (just barely) to so bad it's horrible with the sequel! Thankfully, the games are a lot more faithful to the original ideas and far better.

SO! You have three small campaigins to play with. One for the Colonial Marine (from the second Alien movie) one for the Predator and one for the Alien. It's a shooter at its heart, but each race brings something different to the table that gives it different nuances then its opponents. As the marine, you're squishy! But you have the largest arsenal and a motion tracker that helps you pick your targets out of the darkness. As the predator, you're a stalking badass with cloaking device, bladed bracers and able to pick off your targets with ease, while as the Alien, you're the ultimate killing machine! Using the shadows and your claws to become the monster. It's all balanced by that no one race can do everything. As the Alien, you're REALLY fragile. A few hits and you go down. The Predator's gear is highly specialized, so you need to pick the right weapon for the right job and getting too close means your quarry will take you down quick. As the marine... Well... You're human. Meaning you're soft, squishy and easy to rip apart!

Story-wise, it's kinda what you'd expect. Story is something that I always look for, and I did go into it not expecting it to be too thick, and I wasn't surprised. It's really summed up in that a company wants to control and use the Aliens as a bioweapon but they get loose, the Predators are looking to remove the company from one of their temples and the Marines are there to clean up everyone's mess!

However, the story isn't what makes this game disappointing. It's that it tries to do too much. Because of it, the Marine campaign is your standard shooter fair. The Alien is tricky due to the fact that hand-to-hand can be tricky in first person and its ability to move anywhere can easily disorient a player, and the Predator is a pinch too specialized. Combine this with that each campaign is VERY short (you can prolly complete it within 5-6 hours) and you're left likely wanting more. Multilayer is alright (but I don't do a lot of multilayer` anyways, so... Yeah.) but there is just too little there.

In its defense though, it's a lot better then the movies of the same title and BOY is it bloody! Not for the squeamish, to say the least. If there is one thing that this game does right, it stays true to the gory and horrific nature of the source material. As both Predator and Alien, you can perform some nicely animated and bloody takedowns on your foes! Because this is a bit of a family forum, I won't be going into detail, but suffice it to say, if you're feelin' bloodthirsty, then you will not be disappointed (unless you play Marine. Poor humans tend to get massacred...).

So, for the price of 49.99 USD (or 59.99 for Xbox and PS3) I would say though there are some good parts of it, there is not enough to currently justify the price of admission. I'd say either rent it or wait until it's a lot cheaper. Maybe 19.99 USD or less. Or, if you're lucky you can find it for how much I did! A paltry five bucks!

My Reccomendation: Though there's a good amount here, don't go into it expecting it to be downright mindblowing. If you're a fan of the source material, you'll find it's better then the films. Because it tries to do so much though, it doesn't come together quite as nicely as it could have. It could have likely benefited from an additional cycle of development.
Havoc
Havoc
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