Quote: The game’s story is being written by Battlestar Galactica’s writers Bradley Thompson and David Weddle and is set after the events of the Aliens and Alien 3 movies. The game not only features the adrift Sulaco, but also the Fiorina ‘Fury’ 161 prison facility and the derelict alien spacecraft from the original movie as backdrops to the action. One aspect of the story that ties neatly into the Aliens universe is the use of the Weyland Yutani Corporation as an over-arching evil, a puppet-master pulling the strings behind the action. Though your immediate survival against the Sulaco’s alien infestation is your primary concern, the game will build in a conspiracy story behind the gunplay. And who knows, maybe an unexpected betrayal.

 

Each mission will put you in the space armor of a different marine in the six-man squad. You’ll use commands familiar to Brothers in Arms players to guide your troop through the maze of acid-blasted corridors, trying to stay ahead of the critters. By focusing on one squad member at a time, Gearbox has been able to create an episodic feel to the action. Back stories, plot details and characters gently expand and you’ll get a deeper perspective on the action. It also means that the game will have a very immediate feel – you can dip in for an hour at a time to play out one episode of the full story arc.

 

Before you reach for the keyboard and start hurling abuse at Gearbox, this is no casual blaster. There will be more than six episodes to wade through, including some revelations that could affect the Aliens canon. The game builds slowly, emulating the slow burn pace of the movies. Your first foray onto the abandoned USS Sulaco is a tense affair with few aliens to be seen and only the ominous pinging from your handheld motion detector for company.

 

Quote: Like this month's exceptional Left 4 Dead, Colonial Marines is a four-player co-op game centred around survival: you're constantly under attack and the environments you move through are frequently hiding your enemy. However, whereas Left 4 Dead pitches you into the middle of a nameless American city awash in zombies, Colonial Marines goes for fan-pleasing recreations of the movie quadrilogy's best locations: LV-426, the planet where the Nostromo first discovers the derelict alien ship in the original film; the Sulaco, where Ripley joins up with the marines in Aliens; and Fiorina 'Fury' 161, the prison facility from Alien 3.

Quote: "No word on the final roster of the different Alien species we can expect. From footage we have seen facehuggers, the standard black acid-blooded creeps, as well as a giant queen, are represented in a frightening level of detail."

 

Quote: “Our game is set after the events of [the film] Alien 3, which takes place very shortly after the end of Aliens,” explains Stephen Palmer, the game’s producer at Gearbox. “Our goal is to make a game that answers some of the questions from those two movies, and picks up the story basically right after the squad of marines was wiped out on LV-426 [the moon where humans first encountered the Aliens].”

 

Playing as a squad of four colonial marines, each with a unique personality and class, you’ve been ordered to investigate the USS Sulaco, the spaceship that Ripley used to escape at the end of Aliens, and that became derelict in Alien 3. “Since Aliens is our closest influence, we’ve strived for a level of authenticity to the films,” says Palmer. “The look of the game is directly inspired by the movies, down to the film grain and lighting. We’ve hired Syd Mead [designer of the Sulaco] to go back and create new concepts based on artwork that he made over 20 years ago — just so we can see what his vision was for the other areas of the Sulaco.”

Quote: "You play as a squad of six new Colonial Marines ordered to clear and sweep the USS Sulaco after its previous crew goes missing."

 

"Plot details beyond that are really thin on the ground, but Gearbox says that the six Colonial Marines will all have a unique perspective on the conflict, and that the game will be divided up into ‘TV-style’ episodes. This should mean that you can pick up the game for an hour at a time and feel like you’ve experienced a satisfying self-contained storyline."

Quote: "In fact, the whole place looks more like a movie studio than a games house, no doubt a result of Gearbox’s success in aligning with Fox Studios to acquire original scripts, artwork, design elements, and even sound effects from the Aliens film."

 

"A second major gameplay approach is through the use of what Gearbox are calling 'Make a Stand' situations. These are particular moments in the game where you will need to fortify your position against incoming aliens. Your preparation time will be short, but there are a lot of interesting decisions to be made that add a tactical layer to each encounter. Creative Director, Brian Martel, is enthusiastic about this mechanic. "It's the tools that we have; the ability to move things around, to put turrets there, to have the motion tracker so that you can know when they're coming and from where."

"That’s right, the motion tracker will be part of your arsenal and let us assure you that the patented 'Ping...ping...PING' sound is almost guaranteed to create enough tension that your arse will swallow your chair. “We had to ask, what fits really well in Aliens, but is something the player hasn’t experienced before?” Keith Schuler elaborates. 'What feels true yet different? And that was one of the ideas we jumped on, this preparing for a battle.'"

 

“Immediately impressive in this situation is the way that the aliens move. They’re fast and agile and do not conform to predictable A.I paths. In fact, you’re almost hypnotised by the way that they hop around the level, grabbing onto pillars before leaping to the ground and attacking your beleaguered squad by whipping their tails and slashing their claws. Being so fast, it’s hard to get an accurate bead with your weapon. You’re literally crapping your pants hoping that you can hold off against the hordes, hoping that the turret can kill a few or that your explosive charge can take out as many as possible.“

 

"There’s also some concern that throwing too many alien enemies at the player, and making them too easy to kill, may devalue the film presentation of aliens as virtually indestructible beings (where just one alien can tear apart a whole crew)."

 

 

Quote: “However, Aliens: CM doesn't just include the atmospheric settings of spaceships such as the alien derelict (where John Hurt was facehugged for the first time), but expands into bigger locations including cargo ships (so that means power-loaders) and even futuristic cities - so maybe we'll get to see xenomorphs on Earth after all…”

 

Quote: “Remaining as true to the Aliens film environments, weapons, equipment and vehicles as possible, Colonial Marines follows a squad of four as they fight for survival within the deserted Sulaco’s hull and beyond, encountering first Scout and soon Warrior Aliens as the full horror of their situation dawns. To some extent each of the squad will be a specialist, carrying a unique secondary weapon, still faithful to the film, so on top of primary pulse rifles and smart guns, we’ll see flamethrowers and shotguns for example. When playing solo (more on co-op later), the game will assign you to control specific squad members for certain missions, encouraging you to use the full range of men and equipment. You wont be dropping guns in this game, bringing it even closer to authentic marine behaviour.”

 

“As well as primary and secondary weapons, each character also carries grenades and a pistol, plus an interactive item such as a hacking kit for opening sealed doors, a welding torch to seal passages, or a medical kit that can revive team mates, or neutralise Alien acid burns. But if you’re not in control of the character you need for specific actions or equipment, there’s a simple context-sensitive team command system similar to that in Rainbow Six Vegas, which will tell buddies to hack doors, weld vents shut, or set up automatic gun turrets, And tactical command will be essential - this game demands Hickses not Hudson’s. Aliens will make intelligent use of every air duct, ceiling pipe, grating and vent available to come at you stealthily, or in deadly waves, so you’ll have to co-ordinate your squad’s skills, firepower and positioning if you have any hope of making it out alive.”

Quote: "There'll be a range of both claustrophobic indoor combat and less-restrictive outdoor conflict. Art on show in Gearbox HQ shows city areas, too. Though we'll probably be happy about being cooped up in a dingy colony base, with plenty of room to hide, when it's time for the Make A Stand scenarios."