Robert Jung risks life
and limb - literally!
Overview It was a routine daycycle at the Camp
Golgotha Colonial Marine Training Base when the first
ship arrived. After it failed to answer hails, Captain
Hampton had a tug sent out to tow it in. With
its arrival came a load of acid-blooded alien xenomorphs,
who quickly invaded the station. As the Marines fight
for their lives, they send out an emergency distress
call, and a second ship arrives. It carries a team of
the mysterious race of Predators, who see the situation
as a rare opportunity for a glorious hunt...
And so begins
Alien vs. Predator, one of the most anticipated titles for the
Atari Jaguar. You can play as a Marine, an Alien, or
a Predator, romping through this besieged war zone in
a first-person action-adventure. Each character has
different strengths, abilities, and goals: the Alien
uses its speed and natural powers to rescue the Queen,
the Predator must prove himself in the hunt, and the
Marine tries to destroy the station and escape with
his life. Depending on the character, useful items can
be found and computer databases are available for more
information. The game ends when you take too much damage,
though up to three games-in-progress can be saved.
Gameplay If there is one word that can summarize
Alien vs. Predator (and it's hard to do so), that word is "suspenseful."
This is not a rapid-fire gore festival with creatures
waiting behind every corner for you. Instead, there
is a lot of emphasis on caution and stealth. The Marine's
game, especially, is more like an action-adventure:
in order to win, he must thoroughly explore the station
itself and its computer system. In balance, the other
two characters provide less thought and more action,
though of different flavors. The Predator's game requires
finesse to acquire "honor points" for better
weapons, while the Alien's game demands survival tactics
and is arguably the hardest of the three.
The game is
loaded with so many details that it's impossible to
cover them all in a short review. The levels are immense,
with a network of air vents running throughout, and
new players will make extensive use of the auto-mapping
feature. The Jaguar controller is used extensively for
each character and responds well, though there's no
way to configure the buttons. Assorted nuances punish
mindless shooting -- one example is that Alien corpses
continue to inflict damage, so care is needed to prevent
killing them in high-traffic areas. One big plus is
that enemy locations are randomized at the start of
a game; this prevents winning with memorization and
adds to the replay value.
A few flaws
keep Alien vs. Predator from being perfect. Worst is the lack of
a "speed" button to make you move faster,
which can be dangerous when you're attacked from behind.
Science-fiction buffs playing as the Predator will find
it incongruous to see Marines and Aliens working together
against you. Difficulty settings would have been welcome,
to make learning the game easier and increase its long-term
appeal. Finally, only a minimum of game information
is saved; opponents and supplies are randomly regenerated
when a game is restored. None of these make the game
unplayable, but they do detract slightly.
Graphics/Sound
Like the game itself, the
graphics on Alien vs. Predator are just a bit short of perfection. The station
is painted in gorgeous textures that offer a wide spectrum
of color and details. A transparent heads-up display
shows game status and the map, and its brightness can
be turned up, down, or off as desired.
Movement and
scaling is smooth and well paced, but turning with the
Marine looks a little choppy. Characters and items are
also well drawn and easily identifiable, though a few
frames of animation are missing in some places, which
disappoints.
Sounds fare
better. The only music in the game is an ominous tune
during the title sequence, while the various background
noises of the station play during the game. When an
encounter occurs, screams, howls, weapon fire and explosions
fill the air with frightening effect. Then there are
miscellaneous sound effects, such as hissing airlocks,
doors, and the Predator's vision filters. Voices and
samples are clear, with most coming straight from the
movies, and the overall effect adds to the game's haunting
mood.
Summary Alien vs. Predator
delivers everything that the title promises - a nerve-racking
quest that combines excitement, cunning and strategy.
While it's not a nonstop killing spree that can be learned
in three minutes, there's enough action and adventure
here to appeal to a wide variety of players. With sound
and graphics that make the movies come alive, this title
is a great showcase of the Jaguar's abilities and offers
many hours of hair-raising fun.
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