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Review: Aliens vs. Predator Gold EditionReviewed By: Bill Stiteler Review Date: September 21, 2001
Ah, remember back when summer movies were good? The days of yore when the knowledge that a film had a big special effects budget actually made you anticipate it? When we wanted George Lucas to direct again? Were we ever that young? The mid-to-late 80s blew in terms of politics, economy and music, but for high-end sci-fi films, times were good. Two of the great movie monsters, the Alien and the Predator, were riding high--so high, in fact, that someone came up with a great idea: pit them against each other. But like every other good idea that comes to Hollywood, it never went anywhere; they were too busy making Girls Just Want to Have Fun.
In addition to the title extraterrestrial characters, you can also play a Colonial Marine (i.e. "lunch"), and the designers have captured the feel of each fantastically. The Predator has all of the weapons from the film (with the exception of the collapsible spear), different vision modes (normal, infrared, UV, night vision), and of course, the cloaking device. The Alien can crawl on ceilings and walls (inducing some stomach-churning moments as your perspective spins around), and can attack with both claw and tail. Using the Marine over/under rifle, you'll find that it behaves exactly the way Hicks described it to Ripley in Aliens.
The game expands on the source as well. The Predator starts out looking for a missing compatriot at a Marine science base. Not only must you go toe-to-toe with the wretched "Predalien," but you'll also run into the humans' experiments with Aliens and cybernetics. Take cover.
Because the game is a few years old, it plays great on older systems. The fact that the minimum video card needed is a Rage 128 should tell you that the G3 requirement is a bit, well, "soft." It ran fine on my 9600/350, even with my standard set of extensions on. It also features three levels of play, from the easy "Training" level to the difficult "Director's Cut." Certain levels of play can only be unlocked after finishing the regular missions in Director's Cut. Internet multiplayer is included, and though a PC/Mac multiplayer patch has been announced, right now Mac players can only go head-to-head with each other. Aliens vs. Predator Gold Edition has been worth the wait. Any time you get a game that's an adaptation of another source, it's usually a rush job, a pastiche of the most popular elements with little of the original's flavor. AvP Gold, however, successfully captures the feel of not one, but two film franchises, and blends them together without sacrificing from either one. I'd like to believe this might motivate the green-light guys to approve the film. I have it on good authority, though, that everything's going into a Ben Affleck/Sandra Bullock remake of Date With an Angel.
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Fortunately, others carried out the idea. Dark Horse produced a series of comics, and Fox Interactive produced the PC game, Aliens vs. Predator, which has finally been ported to Mac in its Gold Edition. Despite the fact the original came out, what, years ago? Aliens vs. Predator manages fantastic play, due primarily to its attention to detail.
But beyond that, there are little touches that let you know the programmers were paying attention. The health and energy meters for the Predator appear in that strange LED alphabet we glimpsed briefly on its self-destruct device. Predators heal themselves with their medicomp, and can take skulls as trophies with a carefully aimed shot of the wristblade. If an Alien player can line up a human head dead center, they can launch their inner mouth, restoring their health (what, it's not in a crate?) Humans show up in an Alien's vision with a glowing aura, but androids don't...remember Bishop crawling through the pipe? Going through as a Marine, you get that wonderful feeling that you are far away from any help, and the Company has screwed you over bad. You get the evac order, and your path leads right through the Alien artifact, where you'll find a 3D representation of 
In addition to the great player interface, the graphics capture the feel of the Aliens film as well, which is to say, "dark." Fortunately, all the characters have low-light vision options, but you may find yourself switching them off so you can see the wonderful textures that have gone into the surroundings. The AI is good, too, or at least as good as they were in the movies. Humans will stand around obliviously until they get warning that something hostile is near. Then the Predator's cloak and the Alien's stealth become less effective. While playing the Marine, a wounded Predator will go down on one knee--peg it fast, because it's activating the self-destruct.