Publisher: Sierra Entertainment, www.sierra.com
Ages: eight on up.
Parental
Advisory:
This first-person shooter
features graphic violence.
With more of its trademark terror, tension, and action, Aliens vs. Predator 2: Primal Hunt Expansion Pack adds another chapter to the amazing Aliens vs. Predator 2 game. This expansion pack, which requires the original Aliens vs Predator game to run, adds new single-player and multi-player levels, weapons, and player characters.
In the expansion, it seems that on a routine hunt on Planet LV1201 a Predator discovers a mysterious artifact that can keep the Aliens at bay and even control their minds. The Predator triggers a stasis field, which traps him for 500 years until a human mercenary unwittingly frees him. From here, the hunt is on as each species tries to retrieve the artifact before the human can escape back to the safety of the lab.
The setting is actually a prequel to the story found in the Aliens vs. Predator 2, and like the original, forces you think in order to get through the game. As in the original, I was impressed with the game's interlocking storyline that let you play human, predator, and alien-three different perspectives in the same story. The expansion pack adds nine new single-player and four new multi-player levels.
The game features a new character, the alien Predator hybrid known as a Predalien, which has some new tricks and maneuvers up its sleeve. While I do miss fighting as an Alien and against the Aliens in the single-play mode, the Predalien adds some variety to the expansion pack's single-player mode. The mercenary has some nice additions, including a 360-degree motion tracker and sentry guns.
The graphics are first rate, and as you would expect, mostly reminiscent of those found in the original Aliens vs. Predator 2. Once again, the game's environments are dark and scary, and the multi-player action that was great in the original game is still a blast in the expansion pack.
Those who enjoyed the original game and want more should find the Aliens vs. Predator 2: Primal Hunt Expansion Pack satisfying. On the other hand, those who didn't particularly care for the brand of first-person shooting offered in Aliens vs. Predator 2 will probably not become converts with the expansion pack. Fans of the original game, it's more of what you love.
