In space, no one can hear you mutter, "Six years for this?!"
But Aliens: Colonial Marines, unfortunately, descends into traditional FPS territory all too soon. Even though the game clearly says ALIENS on the box (and you've got authentic weapons like a pulse rifle and, in some cases a flamethrower – oh, and a pistol that never runs out of ammo, oddly enough), you'll spend a good deal of time fighting against Weyland-Yutani soldiers, who aren't nearly as wily and unpredictable as the inorganic foes. Plus, goals are pretty cut and dry, as you make your way from point A to point B, simply turning on your motion tracker in case you lose sight of an objective. Some more exploration of dark areas would've been welcome, as the Aliens series has always benefitted from the "what's lurking in the dark" factor.
I do like the idea of being able to play in a power loader for a boss fight, but the controls don't really pan out as expected, and as a result, you can't wait to get back on foot. There should've been more thought given to this part of the game. The stealth segments suck too, especially considering you're a gung ho Marine that's trying to avoid blowing up aliens. That's just not in the credo. ESPECIALLY when you bring friends in co-op -- if you have those brave enough to deal with the campaign's problems.
Another problem with Colonial Marines is the AI behavior. Sometimes it's rather basic, with soldiers behaving like cookie-cutter enemies, popping out and hiding again until you figure out the pattern and pop them off. The aliens are only a tad better, using the ceiling and other surfaces to get around. But they're a little too unpredictable, too easy to shoot one minute (just standing there) and then miraculously darting past your gunfire the next, only to swat you from behind. There's also a lame melee button-tapping game to break free of one's grip, which feels tacked on just to add gameplay. Honestly, the way the Aliens behaved in the movies, there's no way they'd show hesitation to finish you off. You'd already be dead – or at least wishing you were.
Also, it should be noted that the single player campaign is loaded with bugs – and I don't mean the aliens. Enemies morph through the floor and doors; soldiers have an odd way of morphing into one another; and sometimes your gunfire just doesn't connect with targets. (This is especially true of those charging aliens that seem to leap right into you, even when you're hitting them at point blank range.)
