Posted on: January 3, 2015
PatrickCT
Games: 318 Reviews: 13
The definitive Aliens game
The 4 stars are for a game which achieves its few aims superbly. Although the campaigns of all 3 entities are worth playing, I have based the review upon the marine one, as it had the most impact upon me. AvP is disconcerting,and frightening. The designers captured the essence of the aliens experience and atmosFEAR, and in so doing achieved the holy grail of pc gaming: complete immersion. You don't play the game; you experience it. Everything in the game is subordinated to this one objective. The game is pure; uncomplicated and intellectually simple. No complex storyline, rpg or strategy elements. The environments are dark, oppressive and claustrophobic, illuminated with flickering lighting, mirroring the drab, utilitarian, industrial LV426 colony after the aliens took over. The screeching, hissing and scampering of the aliens adds to the terror, as does the individual and co-ordinated attacks of ruthless, intelligent creatures. You will not be inclined to relax & admire the scenery . Nothing here sets you at ease. Complete the assigned tasks and survive. This is a simple survival horror fps. If that sounds contradictory, then understand that no amount of powerful sophisticated weaponry gives you an overwhelming advantage over the aliens. The product of Geiger's dark imagination is the terrifying star of the show; fast, agile, stealthy, deadly, with superior senses, the ability to crawl on walls and ceilings, and who co-operate in their attacks. And there are lots of them! You are always weaker & vulnerable; almost always the hunted. The creatures attack anywhere, anytime. Weapons jam. It's difficult to see in the dark. You get lost easily. Objectives and paths are not obvious.You die easily and often. And that's on the easy setting. AvP is almost purely a visceral experience; one that induces fear and terror, and requires you to step away from the pc at times. If Alien: Isolation is the definitive Alien game, then AvP is the definitive Aliens game.
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