Alien Vs. Predator: Extinction Preview

Developer	Zono Inc.
Publisher	Electronic Arts
Genre	Strategy
Release Date	Q3 2003

Ignoring the fairly awful Alien Resurrection, neither the Alien nor Predator film series has received an update in ages, with the exception of a select few novels and graphic novels. Close to three years ago, amidst rumors of an Alien vs. Predator film (rumors that, sadly, have not since then amounted to much more), PC gamers got to enjoy one of the best franchise-based video games of quite some time.

Alien Vs. Predator, as well as its sequel and the sequel’s expansion pack, offered gamers a first-person shooter that dropped them into the boots of either a Colonial Marine, a Predator, or an Alien, offering a separate campaign for each. The way that the game managed to capture the intense fear of being a lone human amongst swarms of Aliens and Predators, or of just the inherent coolness of being a well-equipped Predator or a nimble Alien, earned it due recognition. But not once did console gamers get to feel the multi-species love, instead having to pretend that the Master Chief was a Colonial Marine and that the vast Halo was the cramped corridors of a spacecraft. But no longer; finally, thanks to developers Zono and co-publishers EA and Fox Interactive, PS2 and X-Box owners will get the chance to enter one of the most well-realized science-fiction worlds in movie and game history - just not in the way you’d expect.

Instead of trying to capture the split-second action of the PC games, which were first person shooters, Zono offers Alien Vs. Predator: Extinction as a real-time strategy game as the first next-generation title from the franchise. While this genre will be hard pressed to offer the horror of some of the Alien films, a well made RTS game is sure to keep gamers glued to their controllers - and that’s just what Zono plans to bring to the table. Although Extinction will feature many RTS standards such as unit management and upgrades, the focus here is clearly on raw tactics, on the player’s ability to manage their troops rather then their ability to create them. As such, the game will not feature anywhere near the level of micro-management that many PC RTS titles feature so prominently, both as a means of pushing tactics to the forefront, and to make the game as user-friendly as possible without forcing users to buy extra control peripherals.

The story thus far is this; as part of the latest campaign for expansion, the Colonial Marine Corps land on the planet LV-742 to rescue a human colony under fire, only to find themselves in the middle of a war between the Aliens and the Predators. All races decide that the years of smaller conflicts across the galaxy have led up to this, and it is here that the biggest battle yet is set to take place between the three races. It is yet unknown whether there will be individualized stories between each race, or whether the story will tie in at all to the storylines of the PC games, but the campaign and objectives for each race will vary based on their individual goals. For the Marines, the goal is to rescue the colony and keep Colonial presence strong in that area of the galaxy, the Aliens seek to use the human colonists in an attempt to breed the ultimate weapon, and the Predators treat the conquest of planet LV-742 as another conquest, to please the Ancients of their race.

Zono is utilizing everything they can to make Extinction as authentic as possible. Predators will have all of their classic hand-to-hand and long-range weaponry, different species of Xenomorphs will make their appearances, and the Marines take control of all the classics such as Smart Guns and Pulse Rifles. Overall, 10 different upgradeable unit types will be available per race, and the player’s focus on what to upgrade will make a difference in how they play through the game. Several different war-specific units will be brought in, such as a specialized carrier for the Aliens that is able to transport multiple face-huggers into the thick of battle, and battle-ready Exo-Suits will help the Marines even the odds against the vast numbers of Xenomorphs and the technologically superior Predators. Zono is even creating a few units just for the game. Although not a first person shooter, the developers are making sure that the different races aren’t just palette-swaps of each other, and that the techniques required for mastering each are unique.

Flattery?

The three race dynamic of gameplay that Alien Vs. Predator: Extinction seeks to capture should be nothing new to die-hard RTS fans. One of the most addictive PC games of all time, Starcraft, also featured three fully realized races that weren’t unlike those of Alien vs. Predator; the Terrans were humans with a lot of technology, the Zerg’s hive mentality was certainly reminiscent of the Aliens, and the honorable, mystical Protoss did stir memories of the Predators amongst certain gamers. Starcraft developers Blizzard haven’t officially acknowledged the Aliens and Predator films as inspiration for the game’s races, but off the books, several on the staff have cited their love of these particular SF creations.

Only a few screens have yet been released of the game, but what’s available is impressive. The game promises 21 different missions and varying locations for each, and while the current screens only show off a few types of terrain (grassy and barren), the visual presentation is shaping up nicely. The developers have opted for fully 3-D units, instead of the 2-D sprites that so many RTS games have used in the past, and there is a fairly nice amount of detail on the units considering that they occupy about a half of an inch on screen. While conflicts won’t reach epic proportions, word is that the game will be able to support 30-40 fully rendered units onscreen at once without slowdown, in addition to the background environments and some particularly cool lighting and flame effects.

With about five months between now and the projected release date, the questions are beginning to rise. It’s clear that the game has been in development in quite some time, and with enough work, Alien Vs. Predator: Extinction could be the game that shows console owners how an RTS is done right. PS2 and X-Box owners can look forward to this game some time during the summer, but between now and then, stay tuned to GWX for more info.

Preview by Adam Matlock