Game reviews: Alien vs Predator

I’ve been waiting an eternity to play Predator vs Jeremy Clarkson; a first-person shooter seen from the perspective of a vindictive alien who hunts down a tubby, opinionated, petrol-wasting boomer. Unfortunately, PvJC is in development limbo, so I’ll just have to settle for decapitating marines in Sega’s latest extraterrestrial killfest, Aliens vs Predator.

Based on the film franchise that took the intellectual property of two sci-fi classics, combined the basic elements then ruined them, Aliens vs Predator has a lot to live up to.

Its creator, British gaming house Rebellion, is responsible for the AvP released back in 1999. In fact, the company told Tone that this latest iteration actually runs on an engine first designed for the earlier game, so it’s lucky it was pretty good.

Like the Old AvP, the New AvP features three individual campaigns, each concentrating on a particular species. The Predator section, in which the player employs stealth tactics to hunt and brutally mangle hapless marines, is the strongest by a long shot. Anyone familiar with the original Predator film will love stalking through the jungle kitted out with cloaking devices and infrared vision, and Rebellion deserves real credit for masterfully putting the player in the character’s mindset.

The Alien section also has its gory pleasures taking on the role of ’6′, a dripping Geiger beastie held captive by The Company, whose perpetual negligence in the face of the fact THE ALIENS ALWAYS ESCAPE must drive shareholders crazy. Another stealth affair, the only real way to approach combat is by being sneaky, although the ability to walk on any surface keeps things interesting.

The longest – and weakest – section is the marine campaign, which is essentially a paint-by-numbers first-person shooter played in the dark. That said, there are moments in the campaign that actually feel like you’re in James Cameron’s Aliens, which is all I really wanted.

Apart from the three campaigns, equal attention seems have been paid to AvP multiplayer. Mixed species deathmatch offers an uncomplicated way to get your arse handed to you by 18 nine-year-olds, but the creepier team games, like survivor and infestation, are more fun.

AvP is good but it could have been great. No doubt there’ll be another chance for the franchise – personally I can’t wait for the downloadable Aliens vs Paul McCartney pack. TG

Aliens vs Predator

PLATFORM REVIEWED: Xbox 360

PLAYERS: 1-18

RATING: 18

GENRE: Sci-fi FPS/Stealth

OVERALL 3.5 stars