Jump to content

Aliens vs. Predator (2010 video game): Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
Line 53: Line 53:


===Predator===
===Predator===
As a Predator the game starts in the Jungles of an unnamed planet, where a "young blood" Predator goes through trials to become an Elite, once the trials are done he is given the rank of Elite, and dispatched with a group of other Elites to be taken to a planet to investigate the disappearance of some young bloods. Once at the planet the Predator ship destroys an orbiting Human Ship and launches the Elites to the planet surface. There the Elite finds one of the young bloods dead, and sets its wristband to self destruct, in order to keep the Humans from discovering their technology. The Elite encounters Human Marines, of whom he kills before encountering a pack of Aliens. The Elite quickly infiltrates the Human base, disabling the systems and killing all in sight, Human and Alien. Continuing its search, the Predator makes its way into the Human colony where it makes its way to the ruins and finds the Mask of an ancient and legendary Predator. Venturing through the forest the Elite finds another of the young bloods killed, he takes a smart disk weapon, and like before sets the fallen Predator's wrist band to self destruct. Making his way to the ruins and an arena the Elite finds itself battling a preatorian, which he kills, and finds a spear like weapon. The Elite then searches for an arm band that belonged to the ancient Predator who owned his new mask, the band being required to activate a self destruct device inside the ruins to destroy the ruins and thus the Human colony, in a last effort to keep the Humans from discovering their technology. Inside the Human colony he finds the wrist band and also sees Mr. Weyland, who plans to capture him dead or alive to take his technology. The Predator makes it to the tomb where he activates the self destruct, moments after he is attacked by a "Predalien"(an alien born from the body of a Predator). The two battle in an underground lava chamber, the Predator emerging victorious. The Predator returns to the ship as the Human Colony is destroyed, and the ancient Predator's mask shows him the locations of the Nigger (Predator word for Aliens) home world.
As a Predator the game starts in the Jungles of an unnamed planet, where a "young blood" Predator goes through trials to become an Elite, once the trials are done he is given the rank of Elite, and dispatched with a group of other Elites to be taken to a planet to investigate the disappearance of some young bloods. Once at the planet the Predator ship destroys an orbiting Human Ship and launches the Elites to the planet surface. There the Elite finds one of the young bloods dead, and sets its wristband to self destruct, in order to keep the Humans from discovering their technology. The Elite encounters Human Marines, of whom he kills before encountering a pack of Aliens. The Elite quickly infiltrates the Human base, disabling the systems and killing all in sight, Human and Alien. Continuing its search, the Predator makes its way into the Human colony where it makes its way to the ruins and finds the Mask of an ancient and legendary Predator. Venturing through the forest the Elite finds another of the young bloods killed, he takes a smart disk weapon, and like before sets the fallen Predator's wrist band to self destruct. Making his way to the ruins and an arena the Elite finds itself battling a preatorian, which he kills, and finds a spear like weapon. The Elite then searches for an arm band that belonged to the ancient Predator who owned his new mask, the band being required to activate a self destruct device inside the ruins to destroy the ruins and thus the Human colony, in a last effort to keep the Humans from discovering their technology. Inside the Human colony he finds the wrist band and also sees Mr. Weyland, who plans to capture him dead or alive to take his technology. The Predator makes it to the tomb where he activates the self destruct, moments after he is attacked by a "Predalien"(an alien born from the body of a Predator). The two battle in an underground lava chamber, the Predator emerging victorious. The Predator returns to the ship as the Human Colony is destroyed, and the ancient Predator's mask shows him the locations of the Serpent (Predator word for Aliens) home world.


==Development==
==Development==

Revision as of 19:34, 25 February 2010

This article is about the 2010 game. For other similarly titled games, see List of Alien and Predator games.
Aliens vs. Predator
Developer(s)Rebellion Developments
Publisher(s)Sega
EngineAsura[1]
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360
Genre(s)First-person shooter, Survival horror, Action[2]
Mode(s)Single-player, Multiplayer

Aliens vs. Predator is a science fiction first-person shooter video game, developed Rebellion Developments, the team behind the 1999 original PC game, and published by Sega for Microsoft Windows, the PlayStation 3 and the Xbox 360. The game is based on a combination of the characters and creatures of the Alien franchise and the Predator franchise. It was released February 16, 2010 in the US, [4] February 19 in Europe[5] and February 18 in Australia.

Gameplay

There are three campaigns in the game, one for each race/faction (the Predators, the Aliens and the Colonial Marines), that, while separate in terms of individual plot and gameplay, form one overarching storyline.

Following the storyline of the campaign modes comes the Xbox Live aspect of the game. In this Multiplayer section of the game, players face off in various different gametypes in various different ways. [2]

Predators

As in the films, the Predator prefers to stalk its prey from the safety of treetops and the gameplay reflects this, the player leaping from branch to branch automatically with the help of a "focus jumping" game mechanic. The Predator has different vision modes, the most recognizable from the films being a thermal imaging scanner, but the player also has different vision modes for spotting Aliens and viewing the world normally. Each vision mode only allows for targeting a specific race. For example, the Heat Vision mode renders Aliens nearly invisible, making battles between two or all three species a tactical juggle to prioritize enemies based on their threat to the player.[2]

The Predator’s gameplay is more based on stealth and tactics than the average first-person shooter. The player has to be aware of Aliens, which have the ability to see through a Predator's cloaking device, that may climb up a tree and attack from below as well as taking care not to reveal themselves to marines too early as the marines’ weaponry and numbers are more than a match for the Predator. For long-range weaponry, the Predator can use a shoulder-mounted plasma cannon in addition to a glaive-like disc and a combi stick (or throwing spear). For close-range combat, the Predator has four retractable wristblades on its arms.[2]

The wristblades allow for the Predator to perform a "trophy kill," a nod to the movies in which the Predators take trophies, usually skulls, from their defeated enemies to show their prowess in the hunt. OXM labelled the trophy kill mechanic as "spectacularly violent" and it has been partially censored to avoid an Adults Only rating in the United States as it was "several measures more graphic" than any other recent games. There are several animations, one of which is, a "terrified" marine dragged into the center of the screen by his or her throat, which the Predator then snaps effortlessly with the accompanying sound of "someone biting into raw celery." The neck broken, the Predator decapitates the marine, a "sizeable portion" of the spinal cord following. Even after this, the marine is still alive for a short period of time, "gasping his last, with nothing but bloodied, glistening vertebra beneath his chin."[2]

A screenshot showing a player being attacked by a group of Aliens

Other animations include impaling on the wrist blades, twisting the head off, and, in the case of attacking an Alien, ripping the skull off. Jason Kingsley, the CEO of Rebellion, defended the brutality of the trophy kill system, stating "This is obviously a game based on adult-rated movies, and we want to make sure it’s very clearly an adult-rated game. It's an issue for me; some computer games are for kids – we're not making a computer game here for anyone other than adults. That's very clear and within that context, I think the violence is part of the character and the world – so we're talking about a fantasy world here and fantasy creatures and we're talking about trying to build up a mythos. I remember the first time I saw it, one of the particular Predator kills, everyone went 'Oooh.' But it's what the Predator does in the movies."[2]

The Predator campaign explains how their species considers the war tactics of the human Marines juvenile. A quote from the intro states “We are old, my brother. Our race is few and scattered. Our ancestry lost to myth. The humans are still children, creatures of desire and hubris, with no comprehension of the long hunt. Still, they make good sport.. They have discovered a trophy long locked away. They must not be allowed to find the crucible that spawned our most respected prey. If they succeed, all life will succumb to the crawling dark...” The Predator played is never actually named, or even given a personal title (unlike the other two characters), the closest thing he has to this is his rank, which is "Elite", only something he obtained after completing his trials. It is clear however, that the constant events he fights and survives through gains him a massive amount of respect by the end of the Predator campaign, including gaining an ancestral Predator mask from an ancient temple, (which grants him the Alien vision site). It is also interesting to note, that the Predators refer to the Aliens as "Serpents". [6]

The Predator Plasma Caster is very powerful, capable of blowing an Alien (or Marine)to pieces. To prevent overuse, it uses a energy system which means if you use less-powerful shots it will conserve its energy, but by using a "locked-on" shot, (which is very powerful), you will quickly burn through your energy. Energy can be recharged at any charging console. Energy is also used for Proximity Mines and to re-charge the Predator's health in multi-player.

Aliens

The Alien campaign tells the story of "Six", which is a captured Xenomorph that Weyland-Yutani has "very special plans for". To best utilize the Alien as a weapon, players are forced to get in close to their enemy as their only methods of attack are physical - this being the Aliens' ability to cling to walls and ceilings, cover great distances using its speed and leaping abilities and to attack with claws (light attacks), tail (heavy attack), leap attacks (whilst in Focus mode) and inner and outer jaws (used during Stealth Kills or to disable Predator power sources). Aliens are able to blend with shadows (it is also possible to destroy light sources to aid their concealment) and; using their enhanced senses, Aliens can seek out prey through walls (whilst within a certain amount of range). These senses also allow the Alien to clearly observe cloaked Predators. In the single player campaign, players will have the opportunity to harvest 'hosts'. By securing your prey, your character allows a nearby facehugger to latch on to it, thereby propogating your Hive. Throughout the game, the player also has the opportunity to perform 'Stealth Kills' by pressing the Action button / key when the player is aligned behind the target, causing the prompt to appear. The animations for this include headbiting with your inner jaw, impaling an enemy's chest, or ramming your tail up or down their throat.

Colonial Marines

The Colonial Marine campaign is far closer to that of a standard first-person shooter. Confirmed weapons are the iconic M41AV2 Pulse Rifle (with underslung pump action grenade launcher), M56 Smart Gun (able to detect cloaked enemies using its variable electronic targeting system), M260 Flamethrower (capable of a 'wet shot' where fuel can be fired before igniting it manually with the weapon), the twin barreled Shotgun (which can fire a simultaneous shot through both barrels for maximum stopping power), the M42A Scope Rifle (a sniper rifle which can detect and outline cloaked or hidden enemies) and the VP60 Pistol (capable of three round burst fire). To help navigate your surroundings you are supplied with the use of a shoulder mounted halogen TNR lamp which gives some directed light, surveying flares which help to briefly illuminate darkened areas, and the Motion Tracker, able to provide info on hostile positioning as they move. When trying to capture the atmosphere of the Marine single player campaign, Rebellion best describe it as immersing the player in: "the sheer terror of facing off against the two movie menaces of the title". The Marine campaign also contains the most information about the game's plot, whereas the others simply feature overheard conversations between marines, "shortly before you dice the marines into meaty chunks"[2].

Plot

Marine

As a marine you come to the planet with your team and other marines on the US Marlow. However whilst on a shuttle used for combat drops you watch as the predators ship comes out of cloak and destroys the US Marlow. Then Major Van Zadt says it is now a combat drop. the player drops onto the planet but is knocked out.

Aliens

As an Alien the game starts out in a lab, where Humans are being kept imprisoned, as one of them wakes up a chestburster emerges from another subject killing him, soon after another kills him too. As the scientists enter the room to collect the specimens they find that "Specimen 6" is missing. A Chestburster then emerges from the victims mouth rather then the containment tube, and as a result the room in gassed, killing the two scientists, Mr. Weyland himself prevents the death of the creature, saying he has a feeling about it. Soon after, once Specimen 6 is fully grown, during an observation of its abilities, it is told by its queen to escape, but it is gassed and recaptured. As Mr. Weyland opens the door to ancient ruins made by the Predator species' ancestors, it emits a beam of light that disables the local Human colony's systems, also releasing Specimen 6's restrains allowing it to escape. Specimen 6 releases the other Aliens and their queen. Once free the Aliens go the colony where they begin to multiply through Facehuggers, and encounter Marines. As Specimen 6 continues to kill Marines and disable the Human colony's systems it eventually finds itself at the ruins Mr. Weyland opened, where it and its sibling encounter a group of Predators, which they immediately battle and kill. An Elite Predator appears and battles Specimen 6, who weakens it to the point that a Face Hugger is able to attach itself to it. As Specimen 6 ventures through the jungle it is stopped and stunned as it senses the queen Alien is trapped in a fire at the Human colony, and dies in an explosion. As it is paralyzed Mr. Weyland's combat droids discover Specimen 6, and on Mr. Weyland's request, capture it. As they take the captured Specimen 6 off world to an orbiting ship, where Specimen 6 kills the crew and escapes. Specimen 6 is shown sleeping inside the ship, going through a metamorphosis; growing in size, and growing extra appendages. Specimen 6 sheds what remains of its skin and awakens, transformed into a queen alien.

Predator

As a Predator the game starts in the Jungles of an unnamed planet, where a "young blood" Predator goes through trials to become an Elite, once the trials are done he is given the rank of Elite, and dispatched with a group of other Elites to be taken to a planet to investigate the disappearance of some young bloods. Once at the planet the Predator ship destroys an orbiting Human Ship and launches the Elites to the planet surface. There the Elite finds one of the young bloods dead, and sets its wristband to self destruct, in order to keep the Humans from discovering their technology. The Elite encounters Human Marines, of whom he kills before encountering a pack of Aliens. The Elite quickly infiltrates the Human base, disabling the systems and killing all in sight, Human and Alien. Continuing its search, the Predator makes its way into the Human colony where it makes its way to the ruins and finds the Mask of an ancient and legendary Predator. Venturing through the forest the Elite finds another of the young bloods killed, he takes a smart disk weapon, and like before sets the fallen Predator's wrist band to self destruct. Making his way to the ruins and an arena the Elite finds itself battling a preatorian, which he kills, and finds a spear like weapon. The Elite then searches for an arm band that belonged to the ancient Predator who owned his new mask, the band being required to activate a self destruct device inside the ruins to destroy the ruins and thus the Human colony, in a last effort to keep the Humans from discovering their technology. Inside the Human colony he finds the wrist band and also sees Mr. Weyland, who plans to capture him dead or alive to take his technology. The Predator makes it to the tomb where he activates the self destruct, moments after he is attacked by a "Predalien"(an alien born from the body of a Predator). The two battle in an underground lava chamber, the Predator emerging victorious. The Predator returns to the ship as the Human Colony is destroyed, and the ancient Predator's mask shows him the locations of the Serpent (Predator word for Aliens) home world.

Development

In December 2008, a Kotaku article stated that Sega had announced that an Aliens vs. Predator video game was being developed.[7] This meant that Sega's other upcoming game, Aliens: Colonial Marines, would be pushed back so Aliens vs. Predator could be released first.

Australian controversy

An early build of the game was submitted for review to the OFLC, but was denied classification in Australia and effectively banned for sale altogether. Sega announced that there would not be a re-cut version released in Australia, and that they would appeal the decision. The game's refusal of classification again brought up the issue of a need for an R18+ rating in games, a move supported by many members of the public and government members.[8][9]

As of December 18, Sega has successfully won the appeal on the classification of the game in Australia.[10] "It is with great pleasure that we announce the success of our appeal," says Darren Macbeth, managing director of Sega Australia. "We are particularly proud that the game will be released in its original entirety, with no content altered or removed whatsoever. Australian gamers applaud the Classification Review Board on making a decision that clearly considers the context of the game, and is in line with the modern expectations of reasonable Australians."

The Board noted that "the violence depicted in the game can be accommodated within the MA 15+ category as the violent scenes are not prolonged and are interspersed with longer non violent sequences. The violence is fantastical in nature and justified by the context of the game, set in a futuristic science-fiction world, inhabited by aliens and predators. This context serves to lessen its impact. The more contentious violence is randomly generated and is not dependent on player selection of specific moves."

Reception

Critical reception

Aliens vs. Predator has received mixed to slightly more positive reviews from critics, and currently holds a 64.25% at GameRankings.[23] Metacritic rates the game at a similar 65%.[24] The PC version fared slightly better with a 73% score. GamingShogun asked how Rebellion could have made such a lackluster title after creating the incredible, first AvP title [25]. Official Xbox Magazine praised the game for its 'Superb atmosphere' and 'Unique multiplayer', but criticized the Alien and Predator campaigns for being weaker than the Marine's. [26] The most scathing review came from 1UP, who found the multiplayer hard to recommend over the prior game in the series; Aliens vs. Predator 2, describing it as 'ultimately thin and awkward'.

Sales

Despite its mixed critical reception, Aliens vs. Predator debuted at number one on the UK all formats chat. [27] It is currently the fastest-selling game of 2010 in the UK, a record previously held by BioShock 2.[28] It was also the best-selling game on Steam, as well as the retail PC charts.[29][30]

Sequel

Following the commercial success of the title, the co-founder and CEO of Rebellion Developments; Jason Kingsley, has stated that the developer is in discussions with Sega about creating a sequel.[31] Kingsley has expressed his personal desire to revisit the franchise. [32]

References

  1. ^ Kozanecki, James (August 11, 2009). "Q&A: Sega on Aliens vs. Predator". GameSpot. Retrieved 2009-08-12.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g Channell, Mike (2009-05-07). "Aliens vs Predator". Official Xbox Magazine UK (47). Future Publishing: 32–39. {{cite journal}}: |access-date= requires |url= (help)
  3. ^ "Aliens vs Predator System Requirements". Game-Debate. Retrieved 26 January 2010.
  4. ^ http://xbox360.ign.com/articles/105/1057249p1.html
  5. ^ http://blogs.sega.com/europe/2010/02/01/aliens-vs-predator-multiplayer-modes-dissected/
  6. ^ Josh (2010-02-05). "Aliens VS Predators walkthrough for all 3 species". VideoGamesBlogger. Retrieved 2009-02-16.
  7. ^ Fahey, Mike (2009-02-11). "Aliens Fight Predators Again in 2010". Kotaku. Retrieved 2009-07-21.
  8. ^ "News: Aliens vs. Predator banned in Australia". ComputerAndVideoGames.com. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
  9. ^ "News: Rebellion "disappointed" with AVP Aussie ban". ComputerAndVideoGames.com. Retrieved 2009-12-05.
  10. ^ Wildgoose, David. "Aliens Vs Predator Appeal Successful, Now Rated MA15+ [Updated] | Kotaku Australia". Kotaku.com.au. Retrieved 2009-12-18.
  11. ^ http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/xbox360/aliensvspredator
  12. ^ http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/ps3/aliensvspredator
  13. ^ http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/pc/aliensvspredator
  14. ^ http://www.gamerankings.com/xbox360/958076-aliens-vs-predator/index.html
  15. ^ http://www.gamerankings.com/xbox360/958076-aliens-vs-predator/index.html
  16. ^ http://www.oxm.co.uk/article.php?id=17455
  17. ^ http://uk.xbox360.ign.com/articles/106/1069693p1.html
  18. ^ http://uk.xbox360.ign.com/articles/106/1068446p1.html
  19. ^ http://www.1up.com/do/reviewPage?cId=3177998&p=4
  20. ^ http://www.gametrailers.com/gamereview.php?id=10843
  21. ^ http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/aliens-vs-predator-2010-review
  22. ^ http://uk.gamespot.com/xbox360/action/aliensvspredatorworkingtitle/review.html
  23. ^ http://www.gamerankings.com/xbox360/958076-aliens-vs-predator/index.html
  24. ^ http://www.metacritic.com/games/platforms/xbox360/aliensvspredator
  25. ^ http://www.gamingshogun.com/Article/6250/Aliens_vs_Predator_(PC)_-_A_Review.html
  26. ^ http://www.oxm.co.uk/article.php?id=17455
  27. ^ http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/27337/Aliens_Vs_Predator_Tops_BioShock_2_In_UK.php
  28. ^ http://www.mcvuk.com/news/37651/UK-CHARTS-Aliens-vs-Predator-takes-No1
  29. ^ http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/bestselling-pc-download-games-of-the-week-aliens-vs-predator-tops-charts-1907888.html
  30. ^ http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/gaming/news/a204739/avp-debuts-as-pc-number-one.html
  31. ^ http://mmomfg.com/2010/02/23/avp-selling-well-sequel-0223/
  32. ^ http://www.destructoid.com/rebellion-talks-avp-sequel-and-totally-sh-t-reviews-164714.phtml
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Aliens_vs._Predator_(2010_video_game)&oldid=346349737"