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New Aliens vs. Predator trailer says it's about story, actually about gutting

This is one of those situations where we wish we could just call up Mr. Sega (that's who runs Sega, right?) and ask him what he was thinking. How could he have possibly claimed this latest Aliens vs. Predator trailer has something to do with "story?"

Here's the entire plot: There are humans, there are also Aliens, as well as a Predator. That's it! What else do you need, folks? Much like the snake and the mongoose (or 50 Cent and helicopters), these factions are natural enemies of each other. No story is required for them to make with the murdalizing -- they just do. Check out the trailer above for further confirmation of our position on the subject.

Australian Attorney General offers insight into Aliens vs. Predator classification refusal

We've heard from Australian Attorney General Michael Atkinson in the past on why he thinks certain games shouldn't be available to Australian consumers. And when he was asked recently by ABC why the upcoming Aliens vs. Predator was refused classification in his country (read: banned), he echoed previous sentiments on the interactivity of games having a stronger affect on people than other mediums. "I accept that 98 percent, 99 percent of gamers will tell the difference between fantasy and reality, but the 1 to 2 percent could go on to be motivated by these games to commit horrible acts of violence," Atkinson said.

When the subject of AvP comes up, though, Atkinson put on his game reviewer cap and offered, "You don't need to be playing a game in which you impale, decapitate and dismember people." So, what're you thinking, Mr. Atkinson -- 5.0/10 maybe? 4.7/10? We're all ears.

[Via GamesIndustry.biz]

Three different Aliens vs. Predator bundles dated in Europe

Sega, Rebellion, some Aliens, Predators, and even Space Marines are all teaming up in February to get your money. Sega announced that Aliens vs. Predator will be released in Europe on February 19 of next year.

The game will arrive in three versions, each for three different levels of enthusiasm about the FPS. The Standard Edition is for the average gamer looking for a new game. The Survivor Edition comes in the requisite steel case and includes codes for extra multiplayer maps, to be released after the launch date. The Hunter Edition is for the collector who may not even be opening the game, as it includes a facehugger model, a lenticular postcard, and a "Weyland-Yutani sleeve badge."

How do we sign up for the bundle Lance Henriksen's getting -- the one with your own likeness in the game? That one's probably really expensive.

Aliens vs. Predator multiplayer trailer watches your back, stabs it

Something's always struck us as kind of ... off about the title Aliens vs. Predator. For one, there are "colonial marines" up in there, mixing it up. More confusing, though, is the fact that both "Aliens" and "Predators" are, in fact, aliens. [And aren't all of them predators? - Ed.] At least Sega is keeping our minds diverted from these recondite questions with the latest multiplayer footage (found after the break).

Aside from trotting out a handful of European game writers who all tell the same "This game is SO awesome" story, we're treated to a smattering of gameplay snippets from all three sides of the equation. We're only left wondering one thing after watching them – if you can play as a predator against eight colonial marines, who would ever choose the marines side?

[Thanks, Ikarop]

Continued →

Latest Aliens vs. Predator trailer shows strengths of the former

Alright, look. We've tried to remain as impartial as possible in the undying debate of Aliens vs. Predator, but we think the winner of this struggle is clear. Sure, Predators have cloaking devices and wrist-mounted swords, and humans have ... well, inimitable pluck, we guess. However, Aliens possess fanged proboscises. Sorry, other guys, but acid-coated tongue-jaws are an impossible act to follow.

You can see the Aliens' strengths in action in the latest trailer for the Sega's AvP, posted above. For reasons which will become clear to you upon viewing, we've affectionately titled the video "Aliens vs. Predator: Sorry About Your Face."

[Thanks, Ikarop.]

Obsidian CEO almost talks about canceled Aliens RPG


We cornered Obsidian's CEO Feargus Urquadt with a motion tracker (notepad) and a an M41A1 Pulse Rifle (pen) at Austin GDC to ask him exactly what happened with the canceled Aliens RPG the company was working on for Sega. The game was announced back in 2006, and then canceled abruptly in February earlier this year. Of course, it took Sega four months to officially let us know about it. So what did happen?

The good news? There's an answer. The bad news? You're going to have to wait until February 2011 to get it. We hope we remember the question that far in the future. If that makes anyone think about The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, you get bonus points. Read on after the break for what he said, which did not include the proper pronunciation of his name.

Continued →

Sega sticks with 'early 2010' AvP release, despite own website announcing February launch


Like a magnifying glass over a Xenomorphic ant (scariest image today!), Sega has quietly focused its release ray on February for Aliens vs. Predator's spawning at retailer. As noticed by Destructoid, the company's game page now gives the title a sub-orbital drop window of February, where the game previously had a vague early 2010 release.

We followed up with Sega and a company spokesperson stated, "Early 2010 is all we can confirm at the moment." Better talk to the website guys, huh?

Aliens vs. Predator 'Marines' trailer highlights the plight of puny humans

Sega's Aliens vs. Predator recently received a new trailer, titled "Marines" -- seriously, are they trying to make us confuse this game with Aliens: Colonial Marines? It's bad enough that there's like, seven Aliens games being developed right now. You don't need to make this any harder on us, guy-in-charge-of-naming-trailers.

However, the moniker does fit -- the video above tells the terrifying story of the unsung third party in the AvP conflict: Humans. Traditionally, most shooters let their human protagonists mow down waves of extraterrestrials with little trouble -- however, said extraterrestrials usually don't have acid spit. Nor can they turn invisible. Nor do they have giant arm swords. Nor do they make alien babies in our chests. Hey, we had a good run, humanity. Looks like it's time to pack it in.

Obsidian confirms the cancellation of Aliens RPG [Update: Sega agrees]


[Update: And, not with a bang but a whimper, Sega has confirmed the cancellation of Aliens RPG, telling Giant Bomb, "At this point, SEGA has no plans to move forward with the Aliens RPG. The Aliens franchise offers us so much content to choose from that we feel it important to take a step back and carefully consider the type of game we want to release. We plan to continue working with the Aliens franchise and ask fans to be patient and stay tuned for more information about what SEGA has coming out for the Aliens series of games, starting with the upcoming Alien vs. Predator game. We are very excited about and focused on Alien vs. Predator, which promises gamers a fantastic single player game and an equally compelling multiplayer experience. We are confident that it provides all the excitement and fun that the Aliens and Predator fans are looking for!"]

[Original: Finally, Aliens RPG's will it, won't it dance has come to an official, if disappointing, end. We were hoping the many, many rumors of its cancellation would be for naught, but a moderator at the Obsidian forums has confirmed that the project is dead; "unfortunately, it is true that we are no longer working on the game, and we wanted to finally announce that officially to everyone who has been following its development."

Hopefully the same isn't true for Aliens: Colonial Marines, or that would leave Sega with only Aliens vs Predator in development. The Japanese publisher further confirmed the project's termination to GameSpot, saying, "At this point, Sega has no plans to move forward with the Aliens RPG."]

Sega: game not over for Aliens: Colonial Marines, Aliens RPG

The big, green gooey eggs containing Sega's long in development Aliens: Colonial Marines and Aliens RPG are going to hatch -- just not soon. When we asked why the games were absent from this year's E3, Sega replied, "Aliens vs. Predator will be the first to ship out of our triplet of Aliens titles; hence it was shown at this year's E3. We'll have more news to share about the other two games in the near future so stay tuned." Rumors of both titles being jettisoned out an airlock have been swirling since earlier this year.

In addition, Gearbox Software prez Randy Pitchford has confirmed to Kotaku that Colonial Marines lives on in now-gen console and handheld form on DS. Pitchford told the site that Gearbox is not developing the portable title, lending more credence to purported footage of a WayForward-developed Colonial Marines that leapt out of the darkness last month. We've put word into Obsidian, developers of Aliens RPG, for confirmation of that title's status.

Rumored video of Aliens: Colonial Marines for DS surfaces

What's the real deal with the Aliens franchise, recently? Ask Sega -- except don't, because you're pretty unlikely to get a straight answer from the company regarding the whereabouts of Aliens: Colonial Marines or the Obsidian-developed Aliens RPG. This new video, which can be seen after the break, is even more mysterious. It appears to be a 2D side-scrolling Aliens game developed by WayForward -- the people making A Boy and His Blob -- and Gearbox, developer of the console and PC version of Colonial Marines (if it still exists, that is).

Could this be a DS version of that same title, or is this something completely separate? Is it in development, or scrapped? The video description says it's a canceled project that was completed and shelved due to financial trouble at Sega. We've reached out to Sega for comment, but we're not counting on finding out much.

[Via Destructoid]

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Aliens Vs Predator details and teaser trailer unleashed

As promised, Sega has revealed a couple more Aliens Vs Predator screenshots, as well as the first details of the game and a teaser trailer, which you can view above. The three screenies that our gallery now consists of show off what appear to be some impressive volumetric lighting effects from the perspective of an alien, a predator and a marine.

Each of the playable species has its own "distinct story-driven single-player campaign mode that interweaves with the campaigns of the other two species." In addition, the game will feature three-way online multiplayer, though the maximum number of online players is unspecified. Check out the Sega UK blog post for more details on the story and be sure to cast your eyes over the very brief teaser trailer above.

Famous movie scenes recreated using game development tools


The Game Artist forums recently held a competition to determine who could best recreate a scene from a movie in a real-time game environment. The winners were a trio of forum users, going by the names of shadows, in3d, and Alina, who appropriately called themselves "The Replicants." They recreated the the classic Blade Runner scene you see above, and we're sure we don't have to tell you why it's the best of the bunch.

Rounding out the rest of the winners were scenes from Hook (Ruffio! Ruffio! Ruf-ee-oh!), X2: X-Men United, I am Legend, and Aliens. You can blast your eyeballs with those entries by clicking here.

[Via Fidgit]

Gearbox Software is hiring, Aliens: Colonial Marines still in development


Aliens: Colonial Marines, one of the three Alien titles allegedly in production, has had a lot of ups and downs over the past six months. First we were unclear whether layoffs at developer Gearbox Software would affect the title, then we were assured it was to be released in Q1 2009, then we were tipped it was supposedly canceled -- so what's actually going on with the game? Well, we're still not really sure.

Shacknews noticed that over on Gearbox's website, the company is recruiting for "all projects," and furthermore, the Alien project was listed at time of press as "in-development" (currently it lists development as "TBA," having updated that specific page on the website as of today). We contacted Steve Gibson, marketing director for Gearbox, to ask about the recent news and if Aliens: Colonial Marines is still being developed by the studio. "Neither Sega nor Gearbox have ever announced any status changes. We're not making any announcements at this time beyond that we are recruiting for all projects," he told us this morning.

While not directly confirming the continued development of the game, Mr. Gibson's answer leads us to believe that, as the game has never been officially canceled, the studio is still working on it. As you're likely used to hearing around this time of year, we're just going to have to wait 'til E3 to find out for sure what's going on.

Ex-Obsidian staffer's CV confirms Aliens RPG canceled


This is never how you want to get confirmation for a story, but we do what we must. Ex-Obsidian designer David Kondor's LinkedIn profile lists his involvement in a "canceled third-person action Aliens RPG (Xbox 360, PS3, & PC)." The listing lends credence to rumors of the game's cancellation, which circulated earlier this month. We still haven't heard back from Sega for official word, but we've put in another request for comment this morning.

If you're curious about what might have been (but what almost certainly won't be), you can see more details from Kondor's listing right here.

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