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GRAPHICS: B (8.5) I'll tell you this right off the bat, this is the best version of Alien Trilogy when compared to its Saturn and PC counterparts. The Saturn version was good in essence, but did not share the graphical splendor of its PlayStation cousin. The graphics in AT aren't spectacular when compared to other games of the 1st person shooter genre, but it boasts awesome lighting and pyrographical effects. Where this game really lacks is in its character animations; there are barely any. The worst case is the human enemies, they are ridiculously stiff and have only about 4 frames of animation, one for shooting, two for walking, and one for being hit (an exaggeration, of course). All of the levels are dark and atmospheric, the characters might not move very realistically, but they certainly look cool and the HUD is among the best ever in the genre, nicely replicating the CODEC radar of the second movie. Overall, you'll really like the way the graphics look and will most likely overlook the shortcomings in this department. SOUND/MUSIC: A (9.75) The sounds are very well done, not perfect, but almost there. None of the sounds in AT are recycled, unlike other games of the same kind. Probably the sound that stands out the most is the Pulse Rifle fire. It makes a low-pitched, echoing studder, that, once again, nicely replicates that of the second movie, Aliens. The music made for this game is what I really must emphasize. Rarely in video games do you find such musical masterpieces. These tunes are actually better than the movies'. The tracks in Alien Trilogy are among the most ambient I've heard. Somehow the composers for the Alien Trilogy soundtrack have captured the atmosphere of the game like rarely movie composers have.
GAMEPLAY: A (9.75) Once again, not perfect, but quite good to say the least. There aren't that many weapons, and that's one of the games shortcomings. Weapons include the pistol, shotgun, flamethrower, pulse rifle, smart gun, and two types of grenades (that do the same thing but look different). Once you get past the first level, the pistol becomes absolutely useless, it simply doesn't do much of anything to any enemies greater than the face-huggers. All the other weapons aren't anything to scream about either when you compare them to other 1st person shooters like Quake, Powerslave, Half-Life, or even Disruptor. They aren't terrible either, just nothing special. One important thing that I must point out is that ammo isn't everywhere, like in other such games. Instead, ammo in Alien Trilogy is quite scarce, leaving you to really plan-out strategies for survival in the Alien Trilogy worlds. In other words, contrary to Doom, your old ease-shooting antics will not work in this game, for you must preserve all ammo you acquire. Life power-ups are also just as hard-to-find. I've actually found myself down to 6% health with only two shotgun shells and five pistol bullets versus 3 large aliens; and survived!
There are many cool features in Alien Trilogy that are all-new to the genre. For example, if you are careless at shooting, you might burst a ventilation pipe which will spew scalding hot steam in your direction. Also, you come cross infected colonists which if you don't put haste in killing, burst open to chest-burster aliens. Where else outside of the movies will you see that? The gameplay in Alien Trilogy is something very awesome to experience in the dark. It is a game based on a horror movie series and it truly shows. The tension amounted due to the fact that supplies of ammo and health are in such short amounts, and the fearsome aliens that literally pop out of nowhere plus the dark environments add up to a frightful experience that will hook you from the very start of the first level. 1st person shooters are sometimes known for getting repetitive and monotonous fast; not so the case in Alien Trilogy. FUN AND REPLAY VALUE: A- (9.25) The reason for the "-" is due to the shortcomings in weapon and mission variation. Not that it's that terrible, but such great atmosphere in this game leaves you wanting more. There are three levels (hence the "Trilogy" part of the name, based on the first three Alien movies) separated into roughly 10 scenarios each, plus a few hidden ones, making about 30-34 stages (not quite certain). Each of the three levels tries to have an individual theme in an attempt to capture some of the movie's setting. It was done quite cleverly and it works. Alien Trilogy is an enjoyable experience that you'll most likely want to re-live... or re-die (heh heh, very clever, huh?).
WORTH BUYING: YES This is one of those games that has been so popular, it had to be released in the Greatest Hits collection, and in most places can be found for around $19.99 (19.95 at BRE, yey!). So why not give this disk a whirl? OVERALL: A- (9.25) Acclaim has kind of... picked off a bad reputation back in the days, what with all its movie-to-game rip-offs it used to release ceaselessly. Fortunately, it is growing ever-more-popular lately with top-notch games like Turok, this, and... I forgot already. Anyway, this game is very good and has even been accepted by someone I know that HATES 1st person shooters. If you find it, pick it up, trust me. To order Alien Trilogy, click
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