Difficulty:

Just Right

Time Spent:

20 to 40 Hours

The Bottom Line:

"Highly addictive"

This game is nothing groundbreaking, but what it does it does very well..


I found the controls to be repsonsive and intuitive, the Alien and Predator take a while to get used to, but once your familiar you will be stalking your prey like a pro. I have to say I had no problem with the controls, everything works well. I guess one minor issue is when I blocked Alien attacks with my Pulse rifle I would sometimes throw a flair as I scrabbled to block their fury. Its not even an issue but a few people seemed to be complaining about the controls?? Honestly these people must have tiny hands or something...?

I loved the melee system and once you have mastered it its very intuitive and feels robust. I honestly dont think ive had this much fun with a melee system since HALO, it feels weighty which is what you want in a game like this.

I love the Trophy kills and I think they make a great addition to the game. The stealth is nicely done for the Predator and Alien Campaigns. The AI is robust if not excellent, but do have occasions of brilliance. When they fall back - or even when they are shooting in at your last known postition as the Predator and you come around behind them and stick them... Nice. Or even when you watch the Aliens and marines duke it out, just sit back and see what happens, you might be surprised by some of the results. A stand out moment what seeing a downed Android with no legs fend off 3 Aliens with a shotgun - all totally unscripted!!

Theres good variety in the levels and pacing of the game across the 3 species, you really do get 3 games for the price of one.

The Multi-player is something to behold. No other online game offers this kind of MP. Its great. Only the set up options are limited, which means you cant always customise the match to suit what you want to do. This is something Rebellion need to address.


The Negative?

Like the title suggests, this is certainly not a revolutionary vision of the franchise, more of an update. The narrative could have been better - if they managed a decent narrative in SHELLSHOCK 2 (which was awful) then why not here? Also, Rebellion own 2000AD Comics, which for those of you not in the know, is where characters such as JUDGE DREDD, ROGUE TROOPER, SLAINE etc were born. Why not get in a few of the comic book writers to help them flush out the story and characters a bit more? Maybe for the sequel?
There could be more varied dialogue between the Marines, not just the 'Dont relax just yet Marines' every 5 mins. There is other dialogue of course but there are some lines that are used way too much.

The game was a good length (playing on HARD- which I recommended if you want the true experience). I would of liked a longer campaign, only because after I beat the game, I was hungry for more, especially the Predator Campaign.


But these are minor flaws.

Lastly the Alien is proberly the most frightening unerving foe ive faced in a game yet, there very well done, they way they move.... Awesome.


I highly recommend this game to fans of AVP, but being nothing groundbreaking - people who are not fans maybe be less enthusiastic? Depend how you feel about the source material?
Nonetheless, I myself am a fan, and subsequently, enjoyed every second of my time spent with AVP. Its not perfect, and they could have had more, but what there is is an incredibly enjoyable experience.


Final Score 8.9