Very few film and comic franchises have yielded positive results when translated into the video game medium. Pick any random five video games based on either a film or comic and the odds of just one of those games being remotely decent are pretty slim. As gamers we‘ve gotten use to seeing some of our favorite films and comics get turned into completely unfaithful steaming piles of hot moist garbage that we tend to either shrug it off, or simply avoid. The Aliens Versus Predator (AvP) video game franchise happens to both fit and break the mold. With numerous games spanning across various platforms, The AvP video game franchise has been on quite a roller coaster ride. So hop in an open cart, lower the safety bar, and get ready to experience the dizzying highs and gut wrenching lows as we explore both the origins and the various installments in the AvP game franchise.
We start off on a drop fresh out of the gate with the first AvP game. Released on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) on September of 1993 in North america and simply titled Alien Vs. Predator, the game was developed by Information Global Service (IGS) and published by Activision. The game takes place in the year 2493 in the city of New Shanghai on the planet Vega 4. The story for the game is that workers were digging for a new subway tunnel when they stumbled upon some dormant Xenomorph eggs. The Xenomorph eggs hatched, grew, and basically over ran the place, leaving the colonists helpless. The colonists sent out a distress call and low and behold, a Predator just happened to be cruising around and picked up the distress call. Thinking the Xenomorphs might replace the ―most dangerous game,‖ the Predator traveled down to Vega 4 and got ready for the hunt. AvP for the SNES is a completely generic beat ‘em up, simply punch and kick your way to the right of the screen. The game is loaded with all the typical beat ‘em up cliches; cheesy enemies, over powered bosses, lack of effective ground attacks, and the notorious enemies jumping in from off the screen. The few things that IGS got right with the SNES AvP game were the abundance and variety of weapons for the Predator as well as the art style and graphics. The Predator is given everything from Yautja Camoflouge (invisibility) to the Plasmacaster (shoots lasers). The Predator also has his Combi-Stick and Smart Discs. The down side to these weapons are that they are limited. While the Plasmacaster is a charge up weapon, the others are all pick ups in the game. The Combi-Stick unfortunately can only be thrown rather then used as a melee weapon. The graphics and art style are truly the shining points of this mediocre game. Everything from the cut scenes, Xenomrph designs, Predator designs, and even the backgrounds look great for a fairly early SNES game. If your looking for a mediocre beat ‘em up similar to Final Fight, but no where near as fun, then give AvP for the SNES a try.
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