The game Aliens: Colonial Marines is perhaps somewhat of a metaphor for the state of the gaming industry, or at least the more commercial side of it.
The 34-year-old Alien franchise is a revered one and there have been dozens of Alien games on nearly every gaming platform. Butnone have seemed like more of a shameless cash-in than the latest from Gearbox and Sega - Aliens: Colonial Marines.
It's a slap in the face, for gamers and fans of the fiction. It's like the developers sat around a table and wrote a big list of things that need to be included in an Alien game.
Then they threw them all in the game and gave no historical context whatsoever.
The Xenomorphs barely react when you shoot them and just clumsily lurch forward in a heap when you've filled them full of enough lead. They reminded me of killing a Cacodemon in the original Doom. In fact, the most reaction I got out of an alien was one that ran and took cover behind a crate - and I don't need to tell any Alien fan what's wrong with that scenario.
The multiplayer shows some promise and has some good ideas with Marines vs Aliens - but with the clunky and mechanically awkward combat, this is no Left4Dead.
Aliens: Colonial Marines is a game that shouldn't be released in this day and age, and anyone who wants a better and more atmospheric Alien game, pull out your PS1 and play Alien Trilogy.
