The Alien franchise has seen a resurgence in popularity over the past few years across media. People loved the latest film, Alien: Romulus, and the TV show, Alien: Earth, also found success. Now, two games are on the horizon for the franchise, and they’re tackling the franchise did the first two movies. Today, we’re talking about the second film and Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 which makes you feel like a colonial marine taking on a hive full of Xenomorphs. At Summer Game Fest, we got to go hands on with the game, and had a blast mowing the hordes down.
Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2, like its predecessor, is a co-op third person shooter that puts players in the shoes of the colonial marines that have to contend with hordes of Xenomorphs and rogue Androids as they fight their way through overrun facilities. The game is a direct followup to the first game and is set five years later on the planet LV-558. Story progress is done though the game’s hub area this time around. The developers couldn’t confirm exactly if only the Host’s story will see progression or if all player gain the same progression for their individual games.
As for combat, Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 feels great to play. There are five normal classes to choose from at the start of a mission as well as a sixth special class. While the game can be played with up to three other players, you can still join as a smaller group or even by yourself with AI players filling the rest of the team. The games difficulty also adjusts depending on how many real players you have in the game. The game is far more fun with real players, and the sheer amount of different Xenomorphs you encounter, there are 30+ different variants, you will want a team you are comfortable and can strategize with.
Overall, Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 looks to build on what the first game did in a great way. Plus, being part of a franchise where you can be far more experimental and actiony, especially with a horror game coming from elsewhere, gives the game and franchise overall a great way to spread its wings.