"Aliens: Colonial Marines" Review

I've been a fan of the Alien franchise for a long time and I couldn't have been more excited for this game. I was excited for the atmosphere, the chance to fight against xenomorphs, the multiplayer and the story. Now that I've played the game, I’m left disappointed, mainly because of the single player.

SINGLE PLAYER

Aliens: Colonial Marines didn't deliver where I wanted it to deliver. The story felt rushed, the gameplay felt incomplete and the AI is hit or miss. Yes, I said the AI is hit or miss because sometimes it worked for me and other times an alien would just be stuck in the corner of the room.

This all frustrates me for the simple fact there is some glimpses of a good game buried under a bad game. You can see if they tweaked or even cared about the game there could have been a decent experience here, but it’s ultimately lost.

The single player is what suffers the most. I’m not going to say anything about the graphics, because there have been great games that had sub-par graphics, but I will say that it is rather repetitive. As you’re playing it, it just feels like the developer was going through the motions.

The game didn't even make me jump or even get freaked out. After fighting the first 50 aliens fighting them becomes tiresome. I was just annoyed that I had to constantly kill them. I shouldn't be annoyed!

Towards the end of the game I just felt worn out. Also, I really didn't like the checkpoints.

MULTIPLAYER

Now, I’m not saying that there are not some redeeming qualities in the game. Those can be found in the multiplayer. I had fun with the multiplayer, it feels very similar to the game “Left 4 Dead” and overall I found myself enjoying each of the modes.

There is also a “Call of Duty” style leveling, as you level you unlock different equipment and you can even customize the look of your marine and alien.

The biggest problem I do have with the multiplayer though is its map selection. I’m tired of playing the same maps over and over again. I honestly feel like there are only two maps in the game because I keep playing the same ones.

So, in reviewing this game it feels like I’m reviewing two different games. The single player is a mess and could have been great if more attention and care was placed into it. The multiplayer on the other hand I found fun and enjoyable despite playing the same maps over and over.

5 out of 10