Rebellion developed the first Aliens Versus Predator game on PC back in 1999 creating one of the most terrifying PC game experiences to date. It was very well received by critics all around the world, marking its name a classic in PC gaming. Trying to recreate that success once again, Rebellion has now developed Aliens vs. Predator (AvP 3).

The Australian Gamer Sydney crew was invited by Sega to take part in a special multiplayer preview event; here is what we thought...Being Rebellion’s big title for the year you’d have to have high expectations of AvP. I didn’t as I had never played the first title released in 1999 (An updated version is available on Steam for $5USD) but the concept of a rock paper scissors FPS experience with Aliens, Predators and marines sounds too awesome to pass up.

Recently Sega organised a multiplayer preview for us Sydney boys to attend. I can’t speak for everyone else but I’m now pretty keen to pick this one up come Feb 18th. The emphasis of the preview was to check out the multiplayer modes in the game.

AvP has seven different modes which vary in degree of fun. You’ve got your usual deathmatch, domination and species deathmatch modes. The modes that really stand out, for me, are infestation and survivor. In survivor you are one of four marines that fight waves of Aliens ambushing you. The clear strategy is to always stay together with your team mates and grab as much ammo and health as you can when you get a small break. I got to play survivor in two stages, one that was like a small ancient ruin where sunlight shines in the centre. The walls around the room are pitch black and you have little view of Aliens coming in all directions till they leap at you. It really brings in that level of suspense you get when watching the Aliens movie. Infestation is when everyone is a marine with the exception of one character as the Alien. Once the Alien kills a marine then they respawn as an Alien. This goes on till the last man standing dies. It’s surprisingly simple but entertaining none the less. I wasn’t keen on the Predator Hunter mode of multiplayer as I found the arenas too large to locate the invisible Predator. Also I’m really bad at FPS games.It’s a pity that the preview we played was on the PS3, the least-preferred for FPS controls out of the three platforms. When controlling an Alien, who can climb walls, the controls on a Dualshock 3 become a bit of a mess. I can imagine PC controls would be better and give you greater accuracy with targeting. I am a fan of using the Alien as its fast and the grab kills from behind are really fun to do. Speaking of the grab kills, when you’re behind an enemy the icon comes up to press the grab button but I think the prompt is a little premature. Our trained eye to hand coordination works fast so sometimes you go for a grab but miss because the icon pops up too early. I hope they fix this before the release.Some really great highlights I experienced will always be memorable. Like the time I got revenge by killing the Alien that would constantly and magically appear after I immediately respawned. Or that time that Starks was the Predator and he speared me from across the map, the bastard. These highlights were fun and for a multiplayer game like AvP and keep you coming back for more.The original Aliens vs Predator was one of those games I played and enjoyed quite a lot. The combining of two of science fictions greatest killers was both intriguing and thrilling to play in a game. Indeed, the humans are as always a bit part when they both come together. When playing through the newest installment, the game had a real buzz to it. Indeed, my competitive juices got flowing and although I got clobbered in almost every game, I could see it having a huge amount of potential for a competitive as well as casual following. The Rock, Paper, Scissors style of gameplay meant each class had its strengths and weaknesses.

Probably what was most enjoyable, however, was playing as the Predator. Everyone loves the Alien, everyone forgets the Human, and yet I find little is said about the 8 foot killing machine with a wicked looking spear. From the stalking of your victim to the outright glee you glee you get when you can stick your claws into the chest of your victim, the Predator was clearly the choice for me. The maps themselves are both pretty and very good for battles. A combination of Predator temples, in-ship environments and human colony’s, they were both detailed and a whole lot of fun to play through. The little nooks and cranny’s that the Alien and Predator could get to that would generate a hunter and prey scenario with the humans were both clever and gave anyone playing a marine that ‘fearful’ feeling.

The Multiplayer modes available are quite outstanding. Combining many that people will be familiar with and some that they won’t, I am positive that there will be plenty of fun to be had. This game will be good. Not just good, but brilliant. Although the night was only a look into the multiplayer, the actual engine, physics and enjoyment of the game itself was huge and I don’t doubt the single player will be just as good. I’m positive this will be one of 2010’s biggest titles!When the original AvP was released some years ago, it astonished me as to how well Rebellion was able to capture the horror experience that was presented in the Single Player campaign and bring it across into the multiplayer side of the game. I still remember the first time I jumped into a LAN game for the classic. Playing as a marine came with tension as you ran around the map while your heartbeat sensor registered the movement of something right in front of you, something you probably could not see. The atmosphere in multiplayer was executed extremely well, so I was very keen to get my hands on the latest instalment of the Aliens Vs Predator game when Sega invited Australian Gamer along to the preview.

As with the previous AvP games you choose from 3 species; Marines, Aliens, or Predators. Each of the species have their own strengths and weaknesses, including a new block and counter system that has been introduced for close melee combat. A range of classic and new weapons have been added to your arsenal when playing as a Predator or Marine. The pulse riffle, smart gun, smart disc and plasma cannon are some of the favourites that have made a return. As for the new weapons I only managed to find the Predator spear which you are now able to throw as a Predator. For those of you that like a mixture of modes for multiplayer games, Aliens vs. Predator delivers. Of the matches we played throughout the night my favourite was definitely the Infestation mode. As Jae mentioned, players spawn as a Marine while one is randomly picked to start off as an Alien. The Alien must then kill one of the marine players and in doing so the killed player will then respawn on the Alien team. As the Aliens “recruit” new team members, it’s the objective of the Marines to be the last man standing. A favourable mention also goes to the Survivor mode, where your team of Marines must stick together while you battle waves of Aliens.

The maps also fit nicely with each of the modes while keeping the horror atmosphere of the game right with you. Jae already mentioned one of the maps being the ancient ruins, the way the map is executed is simple but very cool. The other map I thoroughly enjoyed was one where the Marines are situated in a very short, confined tunnel. At one end is a blast door, at the other is a wall of boxes, chairs and other items stacked to the roof blocking the Marines from passing. Aliens crawl out from around the stacked items, so it’s in the Marine’s best interest to place their backs against the blast door. After you pass about the first 3 waves the blast door behind you opens and a much larger area of the map is revealed. The first time this happened my mind was blown! It was something that I did not expect.
We played the game using the PS3; the controls do take some getting used to. If you are the type of person that desires precision for multiplayer, the PC version would be a lot easier to control with the mouse and keyboard layout. My favourite species to play was the Alien; initially however it was definitely the most difficult to control due to the wall climbing. Though once you can master the movement for the creature it becomes very entertaining.

It’s great to see so many outstanding games being released so early this year. Aliens vs. Predator looks like it’s shaping up to be one of the top titles of 2010, so I am pumped to get my hands on the full game once it has been released. PC is where I’ll be playing this one so if you do get a copy hit me up and we will have a few games.

So there you have it, looks like we have 3 ticks of approvals by the Sydney team of Australian Gamer. Aliens vs. Predator is due out on the 18th February for the PC, Xbox 360 & PlayStation 3. Keep an eye out on Australian Gamer for the full review.