Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem (video game)
A PSP tie-in to the 2007 film.
Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem is a 2007 action game for the PlayStation Portable, developed by Rebellion Developments and published by Vivendi Games. It serves as a tie-in to the film of the same name and is part of the Alien vs. Predator franchise. The game received negative reviews, with critics describing it as another poorly developed movie tie-in.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Rebellion Developments
- Designer
- Tim Jones
- Series
- Alien vs. Predator
- Platforms
- PlayStation Portable
- Released
- 13 November 2007 (NA)
- 30 November 2007 (EU)
- 6 December 2007 (AUS)
- Genre
- Action
- Modes
- Single-player, multiplayer
Facts from the source article.
Gameplay
Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem is a third-person action-adventure game. The single-player campaign consists of 15 missions and features the Predator from the film. The player uses Predator weapons such as claws and a shoulder-mounted energy cannon, along with new weapons from the film including an energy pistol and dual shoulder cannons. The character has stealth camouflage and vision modes like infrared. Health is shown as a segmented life bar that regenerates after a kill, and an energy bar powers weapons. The player must destroy Aliens and remove traces of their presence, such as facehugger husks. Icons on a heads-up display represent targets. The camera is controlled with the PSP's triggers, and the Predator can lock on to opponents using a first-person view for ranged weapons. A system of honor points awards points for honorable actions, such as tagging an enemy before killing it, while killing humans reduces points. Honor points upgrade weapons and equipment at the end of each mission. A Skirmish mode lets players dispose of Aliens within five minutes, and it supports cooperative play via local wireless.
Plot
The protagonist Wolf Predator arrives on Earth in response to a distress signal from a comrade's ship. He finds the Colorado town of Gunnison overrun by Aliens and is tasked with destroying them and erasing all traces of their activity. After clearing his comrades' ship, Wolf fights through rural and urban areas, encountering Aliens, humans, and soldiers. He discovers the main Alien hive in a hospital, sets mines to collapse it, and fights a helicopter. The Alien Queen emerges from the rubble but is destroyed along with the town by a nuclear warhead, while Wolf escapes Earth.
Development
The Alien vs. Predator franchise began in February 1990 with a Dark Horse Comics publication, and both franchises are owned by Twentieth Century Fox. Rebellion Developments first worked on the franchise in 1994 with Alien vs Predator for the Atari Jaguar, later creating a PC remake that won a BAFTA award. In August 2007, Sierra Entertainment announced a partnership with Fox to produce a game for the film Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem, with Rebellion as developer. The game was developed exclusively for the PSP. Rebellion lead designer Tim Jones cited logistics and the studio's PSP heritage, including titles like Star Wars Battlefront: Renegade Squadron, as reasons for exclusivity. The team chose a third-person perspective rather than the first-person format of earlier games, and players control only Wolf, the Yautja protagonist. Rebellion used its own game engine. Associate producer Hal Zabie stated that the challenge was delivering high-quality graphics without sacrificing performance, which he felt Rebellion achieved.
Reception
Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem received generally unfavorable reviews on Metacritic. Critics considered it a poor movie tie-in, with IGN stating it does not suck but is not good, and GameSpot calling it really mediocre. Eurogamer compared it to a previous Rebellion PSP title, Miami Vice: The Game, describing it as not bad but never that good. The game was listed at #5 on GameFly's most-rented PSP titles the week before the film's release. The difficulty was criticized as too easy, with Gameplanet calling it shockingly easy and noting that upgrades made the protagonist invincible. Eurogamer observed that button mashing sufficed to kill most enemies. The Aliens' artificial intelligence was regarded as lacking, and one reviewer noted their blood was not acidic. Some reviewers praised the representation of the Predator, especially in early levels. Graphics and audio were poorly received; IGN described textures as muted and everything as forgettable. Eurogamer mocked the franchise by suggesting it become a sitcom. IGN's Greg Miller found the multiplayer boring, and 1UP.com's Patrick Klepek said the game failed to capitalize on its gaming heritage.
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