Game Informer Smear Job Of Aliens Vs. Predator

Nathan Schmidt writes...

"After reading the review, I was amazed that it was even published in the first place. Could Ben Reeves give any less information, or points that would validate such a low score? It honestly read like he had played the game for fifteen minutes, and then spent another five writing the review. For someone who references the great movies that inspired the game itself a few times in this very, very, short review, I'm forced to ask....dude, did you even watch the movies?"

[DeforMAKulizer]

I think Rebellion will be going bankrupt after this game or closing down... Their recent streak of games has been horrid... Still can't stop laughing from Rogue Warrior!!!
They put so much into this and kept on saying its the best they have worked on and that it will be fantastic...
Shame =(

[Elven6]

They have other business asides from gaming, they've also done a lot of outsourcing jobs for PSP, DS, PS2, etc. I think they are financially stable enough, they haven't had many game hits previously yet they are one of if not the largest independent game developer in Europe.

[SilentNegotiator]

Harsh maybe, but it's quite apparent the game won't be anything special.

I'm glad to hear some peps agree with you on Steam. Journalism at it's finest indeed.

[hakis86]

The graphics are good, the sounds are good, the mood in the demo is scary and the gameplay is good.
Thank god Rebellion have their own feel to the game, like Killzone 2 had. I would be so dissapointed if every game turns out as "floaty" as Call of Duty. I like COD but growing tired of it, nothing new.

AVP is unique, it's terrifying to be marine and awesome to be predator with all his gadgets and cloaking. And nothing beats being an stealth alien just slashing people!

I won't cancel my pre-order :)

[hakis86]

The reason I think it's BS, is because all the videos at Gametrailers are rated VERY high, as well as the guys at Invisible Walls talked about the game a few weeks ago - they were all excited, and all of them had played some of the game.
I mean, those guys often have different taste in games, but every1 was looking forward to this game.

[IaMs12]

I personally was very disappointed in the demo. I was looking forward to this game very much but after playing the demo i think im going to wait a while and see how it shapes up later. I really hope Aliens: Colonial Marines does a fantastic job because i sure am looking forward to some good Aliens game this gen.

[Komega]

While I would stop short of calling Aliens Vs. Predator fantastic, I wouldn't go as far as to say it was a 5.75 either.

[morganfell]

I have to agree with his article. I have the previous titles and the Alien movement is practically unchanged. It is laughable that he compares this game to the previous PC titles yet from all I have seen of the Campaign and the MP gameplay I have experienced it closely follows in the footsteps of the very predecessors he lauds.

[ASSASSYN 36o]

I totally disagree with you. I played AVP 1 and 2 on the pc religiously and I don't ever remember 1. the disc flying wildly off walls more than twice without sticking into the wall. 2. Auto-aim during melee combat (Or did you a veteran of the series not notice that?). 3. The predators' cloak being visible when he is standing still. 4. The Marine and predator starting a death match with minimal weapons. Wrist blades, and just bullets no grenades. 5. Unless I missed them in my 3 hour romp through the demo. Where is the flares for the marine. Because the flashlight IS crap even on my HDMI connected 1080p 120hz samsung 42 inch tv.

I admit I am guessing-> I doubt there is no Alien queen in multiplay, or even an option to start all aliens through the life cycle, face-hugger, chest burster, adult alien, and queen like the old PC versions.

I canceled my reservation. I am no longer shelling out 64 bucks for a let down version of a series with an amazing history. Rent is where this game belongs. If I get the final version in my hands through rental ofcourse and I see otherwise then good. And even if this is an old build missing the above features...they could have kept it.

[Komega]

@morganfell I know it's a little silly right.

[VileAndVicious]

Id say that I have to agree with pretty much every thing said in article. The review just seemed like its entire purpose was to smear out another first person so that BBC2 would seem more enticing to consumers. Lol journalism at it finest right? But then again I never really went to GameInformer for gems of wisdom or advice anyway.

But I gotta say Im glad that all this controversy is surrounding AVP and MAG. It shows people they really need to think for themselves and jump off the hype train.

[PoSTedUP]

oh without a doubt i am on course to getting this game when it comes out. screw reviews. they gave army of two a 6.50 and its one of my fav games. it's all gaming politics that i will not get involved in.

ps2 generation i played so many cool games beause i didnt look at reviews, most of this gen i missed out on a lot of great games because i followed reviews and the media. NO MORE!

after i beat army of two i am going to play the new AVP and most likely enjoy it.

[bjornbear]

this bothers me

I usually like GI but that review was horrible =/ AvP isn't 5.75

fine its not a 9.5 like BC2 but 5.75? i guess even the mighty fall =(

then again, it could be just this one reviewer (there are many)

lets hope this is only one bad stain in GI's review conduct =/

[Komega]

Hell's yeah! Down with game reviewers everywhere, burn them at the stakes for their narrow minded and opinionated rantings.

Well all of them except for the guys at Allegedly Speaking of course, you can trust them lol!

[bigjclassic]

and they say only the Wii has them.

[mastiffchild]

No. No, they don't. Noone ever thought tha, did they? EVERY console gets it's share of crappy, cheaply made cash in games and mini collections but thias isn't one of them.

Even if it's as bad as the GI review suggests(which I dooubt somehow after playing a few games they quite liked(7 and 8 out of tens)which were truly awful)it was still made with great intentions, a big budget and the notion of giving some great value through three SP campaigns and shedloads of multiplayer options to boot. Failware? Possibly. Shovelware? Not really.

But every console I ever owned had more than it's share of cheap, badly made crap to fill release day bargain buckets-christ , how much shovelware did PS2 have?

[happy_gilmore]

having played the ps3 demo and the pc beta, that game was nowhere near a 9. yes, it's fun but wasn't the first one the same thing and it only came out less than a year and a half ago. if mw2 was mw1.5 this on is more like bad company 1.1.

the graphics are fugly. pop up and jaggies everywhere and it's only sporting 32 players max on the pc. AvP looks better than bc2. even mag looks 10x better.

i think that's EA's new MO. pay off reviewers not just to score their games well but also give unreasonable score to the competition. avp, mag and wkc come to mind..

[Dance]

GameInformer nit-picked AVP to bits...not cool

[McPerson]

The reviewer lost me when he was whining about the Predator campaign being too stealth based.

Hello? It's the f--king Predator - stealthiest dude in the galaxy (after Solid Snake).

GI gave this a score that would put it in line with what they gave Tony Hawk RIDE.

From what I've played of AVP so far, that's looking pretty unfair and retarded.

[Bathyj]

Yeah, didnt the Predator INVENT Predator camoflauge?

Well it was the first time I ever saw it.

Pretty sure they didnt come up with that to go all Rambo on their arses.

Has the popularity of other shooters (you know who I mean)wrecked people from thinking of any other approach to shooting games other than Gung ho?

[FreestyleBarnacle]

"Hello? It's the f--king Predator - stealthiest dude in the galaxy (after Solid Snake)."

You're forgetting Chuck Norris. Though I guess he's not stealthy, people are just afraid to hear him.

[Greywulf]

"You're forgetting Chuck Norris. Though I guess he's not stealthy, people are just afraid to hear him. "

Holy #$%@%, did u make that up? lol.

[FreestyleBarnacle]

Why thank you kind sir, yes I did.

[mikemadden]

good show hiphop

[pixelsword]

...?

[morganfell]

??

[BlackAvenger7]

-

[Bathyj]

Um, sadly, no.

I knew this review was dodgy.

Further proof, as if I needed it, the only review worth a damn anymore is my own. Theres just to many agenda's on the internet now days.

Still going to pick up my preorder.

[nogolis]

I think the PS3's version is broken or something... I have the demo and still can't find a game... Oh, wait... That's normal on the PSN. How is it on xbox 360, though?

& I'm sick of every review being held to the "paid" "biased" "uninformed" standard... Maybe he just didn't like it. Maybe it does suck. I wouldn't know I can't play it because PSN is as dry as a 70 year old grandma.

[asdf12]

They get a review copy from the Dev's, you retard.

Do you know anything?

[nogolis]

What the hell are you talking about? how does a review copy have anything to do with what I said?

ME: I can't play the demo

YOU: They get a review copy from the dev's, retard!

What the F*ck does that mean??

[DELTABOY04]

dude i waited for 35 min trying to find a game on that demo....no luck
tried again several hours later... no luck..its either the demo itself or psn....i finally ended up downloading it for the 360

[Odion]

I love how the writer makes the assumption that because the game got a bad review they must have been paid off.

The review is valid, the game is bland, its nowhere near as good as the earlier games, the point of the Aliens movie is not the sense of wondering around in the dark in small rooms, its been trapped in a place with a monster that could kill you at any moment. Not to mention except for the second film it was all about one alien hunting you down.

Both franchises are pretty much dead at this point, both AvP movies have been downright terrible, Aliens 4 was god awful, and comic books are not a landmark of the strength of a franchise.

Not mentioning that the graphics maxed out on the computer look bad, and the multiplayer is choppy, unbalanced and a headache to play

[hudsoniscool]

the demo is a year old and the final game wont have bad graphics. just look at this.
http://www.avpgalaxy.net/20...

[Odion]

I am not talking about the demo I am talking about a review copy.

[Virtual-on]

1. Graphics maxed out on the computer look bad
It's good. Not the best, but still good. Don't forget the demo only using DX9 mode..
2. The multiplayer is choppy
Private server will fix it..
3. Unbalanced
They are pretty much balanced. They have their own strength and weakness, just learn more..
4. A headache to play
It may be frustating at first due to the learning curve, because it's not your typical COD games. But once you have the grip to the control, it will be fun (Aliens FTW)..

[ASSASSYN 36o]

That video is from single player gameplay. Multiplay takes a hit in the graphics department it is not going to look that good.

[lucifon]

I have to agree with this too. The review speaks about the multiplayer for example for literally 1 paragraph and barely touches on any of it. It seemed like the reviewer clearly just didn't enjoy the game from the offset (fair enough) but then barely even gave it a chance.

I've been loving the MP demo after putting some time into it, initially I had very poor impressions but it completely grew on me, and fast! PC version preordered :)

[Fallbackone]

I still can't believe what I am seeing with this review. I am not mad when a game gets a bad score but when reviewers give a reason. All of these reasons are unprofessional. I hope more people get on board with this so Game Informer can realize they can't do this anymore. We can hope...

[Tyetan]

I'd like to point out that the demo sucked. So why is anyone surprised by the score? Also Rebellion's games have lick as for the most part.

[VileAndVicious]

Your thinking this guy is right because you played a "demo" of multiplayer only (which by the way, most people cant paly because of the connection issues).
A multiplayer "demo" by the way that has only one game type; deathmatch/free for all.
So because of that your saying "forget all the other things I havent played"; 3 different single player campaigns and about 8 different multiplayer modes, and going with the limited time you had with the very limited "demo" and assuming the entire game sucks?

Your about as credible as the guy who reviewed the game.

[hudsoniscool]

the demo has 4 and 2/3 stars on live. which is the same as BF BC2. also the demo is almost a year old.

[Ripyealip]

it runs great on PSN but when i tryed it on Xbox Live it was laggy as hell half the time i couldnt even get a game but that always happens with xbox live its like an old guy slow and out of style. but thats what i payed for. i should throw away my Xboxlive gold member ship its nothing compared to PSN.

[DELTABOY04]

i couldn't even find a game on psn...had no problems with the 360 demo..your a bad liar.

[orange-skittle]

The flashlight was pointless. It barely did anything and the predator in MP starts with no weapons. The Aliens are clearly the better species in this game. The person that wrote the article is clearly a fanboy of the series. He even mentioned DOOM 3's flashlight. Not only was that last gen, but when they released the special edition, they fixed the flashlight complaints. The levels looked bland and had the "I'VE SEEN THIS BEFORE A MILLION TIMES" feel to it. I was not impressed. Bargain buy for me. Preferred BFBC2 demo. The free for all demo was a dumb idea. The fact that Marines are killing one another along w/ Aliens and Predators is so dumb. They should[ve released a team based MP demo instead. The demo killed the strength of this release. Bad idea.

[tehk1w1]

I can't believe what I'm reading.

Rebellion hasn't made a good game in YEARS. What in the world made anyone think that this one would be any different?

[mrbillybadass]

been arguing with people...but it just dont care anymore...look the game is great, and VERY DEEP, and VERY ORIGINAL...no iron sights or crouching cause it'd be worthless in this game...a game that comes out and tries and do something new and be refreshing gets this kind of treatment? whereas the COD franchise gets constant praise...for what? what has it done?...same can be said about KZ2, and the halo franchise...while they're solid games they havent done anything for the genre...just promoting the same gameplay...whereas this game has 3 completely different play style and probably the best melee system i've seen implemented in a first person game and it gets treated harshly with unjustified critisism...i have lost faith in reviewers and N4G users...i am sry but you all have lost my respect as gamers, and ur opinion on VG's for me is rendered as non-existent...so very dissappointed

[Leonesaurus]

Dude.... You summed up everything I've ever wanted to say but couldn't find the words for... Why can't there be more people like you on here man!? I couldn't agree more with what you said!

[VanHalen]

Thats what ive been sayin!!!!!

[dkgshiz]

The end.

[Tron_Rocks]

Based on you have played the game and can tell us why exactly it is lame?

So by the same token I can honestly say

dkgshiz is lame

[Legionaire2005]

This review is obviously bias and to all who thought the demo suck need to realize that is not the final code. The game looks geat in the finish build!! Thanks for that link hudsoniscool it really show what the final game look like. I already preorder the game and I thought the demo was great so I'm not going to let some bias reviewer stop me from buying the game.

[mastiffchild]

I don't read GI, ever, as I'm from the UK and we don't get the mag over here(and we've enough printed cack already!)but I fail to see why someone would be biased against a game that's multiplat, was always multiplat and, apparently, is based a pair pf movie franchises he kind of enjoys?

Isn't it more likely that game just failed to impress the fella, or he's just giving it a barely above average score because unlike their other writers he uses the full one to ten available to him to grade his games for review? Or he just REALLY thought itwas pretty weak but, whatever, unless you think the developers have done other offensive things to him and his family I do struggle to see any reason he would be biased against it, can you?

[PLAYSTATIONGENRATION]

The demo..and the game looks good

[Handhelds_FTW]

Had the reviewer given justifiable reason for the low score, there wouldn't be such an up roar over this issue, but when your reason are such as

"OmgZ!!!Da AlieNZ Walkzors upzideS douWns, mE no uNderStanzd =( tHiz gAmE Suxsors"

You really can't really expect the gaming community to keep silent, especially since there's been a genuine fan base who's been long awaiting another title from this franchise.

[PLAYSTATIONGENRATION]

A lot of you lie and have never played a lot of these games...You are just Bandwagon jumpers....

[A LIVING LEGEND]

With ASSASSYN36o on this one.
Rental,at most.

[VanHalen]

I preferred the AVP demo to Heavy Rain demo and did not even expect that to happen! Goes to show you cant always go by some of these reviewers. Alot of the time i think us gamers have a little more sense and experience when it comes to whats good and whats bad about a game. To me, AVP seems like fun while a game with such great hype as Heavy Rain seemed not even like a video game and that gets a much higher rating.

[Big_Mex]

totally different genres. Whereas there are so many fps out nowadays you gotta do somehting to stand out. At least Heavy Rain is trying to be innovative

[RockmanII7]

Everyone's entitled to their own opinions, but things like this prove how F'd up the review precess is. Hopefully everywhere else gives it the score it deserves so it's meta doesn't fall to hard.

[Ariellog]

That an awesome opinion HE has , but when it comes to me buying my games there only one Opinion i listen too, My's >:D.

[Big_Mex]

the demo was not very impressive to me especially when there are plenty of other games to take my cold hard cash. i have gamefly and had this in my que but after playing the demo i immediately took it off. Seems like it could've definitely used more time to polish everything out. i mean seriously 2 melee buttons for aliens? pretty weak

[Corrwin]

Look like the same game it was 10 years ago, with a few additions. 6/10 isn't so bad in that respect.

People need to stop expecting other folk being as easy on the scores as they are.

[Slick348]

no psn doesn't find servers right now, but u could still join a friends game and it works perfectly. and for the 360 it takes awhile for u to find games, so don't act like it's perfect. i probably played 2 games by the time a 360 could find one.
As for the game it's fine, but there's too much aim assist and they have to do something with that assassination crap. Make it button inputs or keep ur hand on square for atleast two seconds, because it gets pretty annoying when ppl just mash square

[Slick348]

And the assassinations should be able to be interrputed in a species deathmatch or any team based mode.

[Tron_Rocks]

We will all just have to wait until there are more reviews. The reviewer will be remembered as a tough but fair minded individual or someone who did a very unprofessional job and could be out of work for doing so. I want to really like this game but I am going to wait now until at least I have read more reviews before I purchase.

[xg-ei8ht]

The alien games should have been done with the DOOM3 engine.

God i loved the look of that.

[foxxy]

don't get offended buy it you might give a 9 or a 3 famistu gave XIII a 39/40 and other review gave it a 70 its not only about the game in reviews its the person writing it if you didn't agree with him its ok that happens with peoples views GAWD

[VanHalen]

well, if you are not a fan of the alien and predator movies you might not quite understand the gameplay. People complain that the alien only has 2 melee attacks. Well why dont you stick with your modern warfare bs then! One button for shoot and one melee if your lucky, fighting the same damn lookin soldier, over and over again. that to me is weak! i rather play as a predator and do some insane cool lookin kills with MULTIPLE attacks! keep in mind this is only a demo too. you have the choice of doing 3 different campaigns with 3 different species. how can you go wrong with that? to me that is just far more superior than any call of duty medal of honour repetitive garbage out today! some people just get used to the same old game and expect every other game to stick to the same formula all the time! get with it kids, this is a game with aliens and predator in it! i know alot of people that wouldve given their left arm for a game to come out like this back in the day! stop being so judgemental.