3. Most Alien Games Are Decent
Of the entire swamp of ill-fated licensed movie based games, Aliens can hold their elongated oblong heads above most. While not quite regarded in the same lofty, rose tinted heights of the much loved Super Star Wars Trilogy or GoldenEye, Aliens has an above average grade that puts most franchise tie-ins to shame. The first time I ever played a game based on the Aliens franchise was at a Dale Mill department store in Rochdale. Faced with the prospect of having to entertain her annoying son whilst tending to her errands, my mother shockingly agreed to give me 20p to "waste" on an arcade machine. However, it wasn't just any old machine, it was the seminal Konami arcade, based on Aliens. This for many was one of the best coin-ops of all time and instantly became a favourite of mine. The graphics and sound were far more advanced compared to any of its home competition of that era, but it was apparent from the get-go that this particular universe lent its hand perfectly to video games. Even back then you could identify the different weapons and breeds of Aliens just as easily as the chilling screams of the beasties waiting to pounce. The game may have been a simple shoot em' up, but it was ridiculously satisfying to slay swarms of Xeno-drones back to their maker. I believe that this version needs to be re-released and rediscovered. It would be great to see it on Xbox Live and the PS3 Network much like the treatment the X-Men Arcade got, as I think it still holds up. Best 20p ever! Cheers Mum! In the 90s the 8 and 16-bit era saw decent action/platform adaptations of Aliens, most notably under the guise of Alien 3. Whilst it shared the title of the film and portrayed Ripleys crew cut hairdo and trademark vest admirably (despite limited system capabilities), the games unashamedly resembled James Camerons far more action orientated Aliens than the source material. The reasoning behind this was valid; the third film had basically no weapons. Gamers want action and want to play with the big guns and feel like theyre in there with the rest of the Marine Corps. I have fond memories of Alien 3 on the GameGear and Super NES, busting around, popping caps in anything that moved and rescuing prisoners as I went. It may look dated now, but it played well and as we all know, gameplay is King. The more advanced the technology became on home consoles and PCs the more authentic the gaming experience became. Alien Trilogy, Alien Resurrection and the Alien vs. Predator games pushed gamers further into the locale of the beast. Atmosphere was becoming more and more crucial and the preferred outlook had switched from a loud, side-scrolling, brightly-lit 2-dimensional platforming romp to a dark, foggy, claustrophobic and eerily quiet first person perspective. This change up from Arcade style to simulator (if you will) has been the bread and butter of the franchise right up until now and if it aint broke, dont try and fix it. Segas last offering into this universe on current gen consoles (Alien vs. Predator) had some great moments and got plenty right, especially with the first couple of levels which were exclusively alien based. While you could argue that it had mixed reviews and was overshadowed by the likes of the Call of Duty and Battlefield, in terms of capturing the atmosphere of the movies, it was very successful. Blasting countless evil Aliens is almost impossible not to enjoy and is essentially a guilt free experience that in no way tries to emulate real-life conflicts. Set firmly in the realm of science fiction, players had a more justifiable excuse to unleash carnage and rack up high scores. In the crowded sub-genre of 1st person shooters, I would argue it had a lot to offer and perhaps more importantly, this will have (hopefully) served as a good stepping stone for Colonial Marines to build upon with Gearbox at the helm. "Stop your grinnin' and drop your linen!"