[REVIEW] Aliens: Colonial Marines

Myles Milligan
(Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC [REVIEWED])

I can remember waiting in line at the Aliens: Colonial Marines booth at PAX Prime, last year. I got a chance to play some of the multiplayer, and checked out some of the demos. I was pretty excited by what I saw. The game looked fantastic, with it’s lighting effects, textures, shaders, cinematic look, and the promise of a decent sci-fi, horror/survival shooter. Randy Pitchford of Gearbox Software talked in an interview about how thrilled he was about all the little details that they were putting into the game. Surely, this must be a defining title to own this year, right?

Well, I’m here to tell you that none of those things are in Aliens: Colonial Marines. Where was the dynamic lighting effects? Where was the cinematic look and feel? How about those cool textures and shaders? What the hell happened to the awe-inspiring landscape that was suppose to be Hadley’s Hope?! It’s just not there! In fact, the majority of the levels are bleached with a smoggy haze that gives them a really saturated look. It’s ugly, and it’s not what we, the eager consumers, were expecting. It makes me wonder, “What could’ve possibly been the reason as to why Gearbox decided to make these detrimental changes to the final product?”

Just like the USS Sulaco, this game goes down in flames.

The level design is mediocre at best. There are very few parts during the game that actually stand out in my mind, as it all just seems like a great mish-mash of repetition. It’s your typical point A to point B shooter, where droves of enemies attack you head-on at regular intervals. If there was one level that stood out, it was the only one that didn’t involve firing a weapon. It was a quasi-stealth mission that involved sneaking around zombie-esqe Xenomorphs — yes, it seems as though zombies are making their way into every, and any, game these days.

Much like the design of the levels, not much is offered in terms of a story either. Colonial Marines of the USS Sephora are sent to respond to a distress call from the USS Sulaco, but upon their arrival, calamity strikes (as expected), and suddenly the Marines are now the ones who are in distress. Aside from Michael Biehn, who reprises his role as Corporal Hicks, characters are flat and unrelateable. I seriously could not have cared any less about them. At one point, there is a scene where one character has to say a heartfelt goodbye, as she’s waiting to die from a chest-burster about torip through her sternum, and all I could think about was how hilariously uninvested I was — I actually laughed when it did happen. Maybe I’m just cold, I don’t know! The ending of the game felt forced, and half-heartedly put together, in addition to feeling like a cheap deus ex machina.

Hey, wouldn’t it be great if there were a boss fight like this? Well, there is… just not how you would expect it.

Combat feels as though it’s like any other first-person shooter, so in other words, nothing revolutionary. Colonial Marines implements a loadout system, so that you can unlock and upgrade different weapons. You can also find legendary weapons that were used by characters in the movie Aliens. A.I. is laughable to say the least. Xenomorphs charge directly at you in a clumsy, and predictable manner; which greatly takes away from the “scare factor” that should be present when fighting them. Human enemies are way too common, and are exhausting to fight. I hope you enjoy your Call of Duty games, kids, because that’s what this game starts to feel like when you realize that the majority of the time you spend fighting is against Weyland-Yutani soldiers as opposed to Xenomorphs. Well, a poorly thought out Call of Duty, that is.

If there is at least one redeeming quality about Colonial Marines, it’s the online multiplayer. Thankfully, it’s half-decent and does lead to some intense battles between multiple players. Among the different modes are Escape, Extermination, Survivor, and the classic Team Deathmatch. Playing as a Xenomorph feels powerful, and fantastic, when you’re stalking your prey. As a Marine, you rely on strength in numbers, and your trusty motion-tracker to survive. The more experience you gain, the more you can unlock different weapons, skins, and abilities for Xenos. While it’s not the greatest stab at multiplayer, it does help make up for a campaign that isn’t worth a second play-through.


All in all, this just isn’t the Aliens game that we were promised. I walk away from Aliens: Colonial Marines with a cluster of questions swirling about in my mind. Why were we shown one thing, and then given another? Why did Gearbox outsource so many components of the game? How could this have possibly made it through quality control?? Likely, I may never know why. So much of this game feels neglected and outdated, as if it should’ve been released eight years ago. Maybe then it would’ve been held in a higher regard, but this is 2013, people. The finished product is a downright slap in the face to any fan of the franchise.

Well, this act has gone to shit… Quick, play me off, Jonny!