Alien vs. Predator (arcade game)
Encyclopedia
Alien vs. Predator is a beat 'em up
arcade game
released in 1994 by Capcom
on the CPS-2
, in which the players take control of human
and Predator
characters in a battle against Aliens. The default cabinet for the game allows as many as three players to play simultaneously, although some smaller cabinets only accommodate two players.
This game has never been officially ported to any home consoles or any other systems by Capcom or Fox Interactive
, remaining exclusively an arcade game. A port for the Sega 32X
was announced for a 1995 release, but was never published.
, has been overrun by Aliens, and the cybernetically-enhanced Major Dutch Schaefer and Lieutenant Linn Kurosawa have been abandoned by their superiors and are cornered by a swarm of Alien drones. Before they can be killed, two Predators appear and destroy the Aliens. The Predators offer an alliance with the humans in order to stop the Alien infestation.
The players take control of up to three of four characters: Dutch, Linn, a Predator hunter, and a Predator warrior, and battle the Aliens through several environments. In the process, the characters discover that the Alien presence on Earth is the result of an experiment headed by a United Systems Colonial Marines General Bush in conjunction with the Weyland-Yutani corporation. They destroy the Alien hive by crashing a military ship into San Drad, causing a huge explosion. The Predator warrior then gives his wrist blades to Dutch and Linn in recognition of their skills as warriors, before the Predators depart into space.
and three buttons: one to attack, one to jump, and one to shoot.
Each character is automatically equipped with a standard hand-held weapon. Linn uses a sword while Dutch hits enemies using his cybernetic arm. The Predator hunter uses a bladed staff, while the warrior uses an extendable combi-stick with a retractable spear. Other weapons such as pipes can be found in containers or taken from fallen enemies. Linn and the Predators will throw most of these at enemies, but Dutch will hold onto them and swing them repeatedly.
Each character is also equipped with gun for ranged attacks. Linn uses a rapid-firing handgun, Dutch has a mounted smart gun, and the Predators both use shoulder-mounted energy weapons. Ammunition is represented by a meter near the bottom of the screen; when the meter is depleted, the character is unable to fire until it refills. Linn's ammunition refills fastest, but she is completely defenseless while she reloads. Dutch and the Predators can fight while waiting for their ammunition to refill. A flamethrower and several other guns can also be picked up, though these have a finite amount of ammunition.
was not released until 2004 and was based on a very different story, and so the arcade game was released in 1994 as a stand-alone storyline to the series.
, the game had "gorgeous graphics and special effects" and "was quite an adventure and one hell of a coin cruncher." In 2009, Destructoid
called it "arcade classic still fondly remembered by many today". In 2011, ScrewAttack
included the game's version of Dutch in the list Top 10: Space Marines.
Beat 'em up
Beat 'em up is a video game genre featuring melee combat between the protagonist and a large number of underpowered antagonists. These games typically take place in urban settings and feature crime-fighting and revenge-based plots, though some games may employ historical or fantasy themes...
arcade game
Arcade game
An arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
released in 1994 by Capcom
Capcom
is a Japanese developer and publisher of video games, known for creating multi-million-selling franchises such as Devil May Cry, Chaos Legion, Street Fighter, Mega Man and Resident Evil. Capcom developed and published Bionic Commando, Lost Planet and Dark Void too, but they are less known. Its...
on the CPS-2
CPS-2
The or CPS-2 is an arcade system board that Capcom first used in 1993 for Super Street Fighter II. It was successor to their previous CP System and Capcom Power System Changer arcade hardware and was succeeded by the CP System III hardware in .-History:...
, in which the players take control of human
Human
Humans are the only living species in the Homo genus...
and Predator
Predator (alien)
The Predator is a fictional extraterrestrial species featured in the Predator science-fiction franchise, characterised by its trophy hunting of other dangerous species for sport, including humans and its fictional counterparts, Aliens....
characters in a battle against Aliens. The default cabinet for the game allows as many as three players to play simultaneously, although some smaller cabinets only accommodate two players.
This game has never been officially ported to any home consoles or any other systems by Capcom or Fox Interactive
Fox Interactive
20th Century Fox Games is a video game publisher and developer mainly concerned with titles based on 20th Century Fox properties, such as The Simpsons, Family Guy, Futurama, the Alien and Predator film franchises, Independence Day, Charmed, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The X-Files, Avatar, 24, the...
, remaining exclusively an arcade game. A port for the Sega 32X
Sega 32X
The Sega 32X, codenamed Project Mars, is an add-on for the Mega Drive/Genesis video game console by Sega. Its aim was to increase the lifespan of the aging Mega Drive/Genesis system, which was facing stiff competition from the SNES...
was announced for a 1995 release, but was never published.
Story
San Drad, CaliforniaCalifornia
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, has been overrun by Aliens, and the cybernetically-enhanced Major Dutch Schaefer and Lieutenant Linn Kurosawa have been abandoned by their superiors and are cornered by a swarm of Alien drones. Before they can be killed, two Predators appear and destroy the Aliens. The Predators offer an alliance with the humans in order to stop the Alien infestation.
The players take control of up to three of four characters: Dutch, Linn, a Predator hunter, and a Predator warrior, and battle the Aliens through several environments. In the process, the characters discover that the Alien presence on Earth is the result of an experiment headed by a United Systems Colonial Marines General Bush in conjunction with the Weyland-Yutani corporation. They destroy the Alien hive by crashing a military ship into San Drad, causing a huge explosion. The Predator warrior then gives his wrist blades to Dutch and Linn in recognition of their skills as warriors, before the Predators depart into space.
Characters
The game featurs four characters: two Colonial Marines that ally with a pair of Predators. Each character has varying levels of speed, strength, jumping ability and direction, and different attacks.- Major Dutch Schaefer — Dutch is named after and roughly based on Arnold SchwarzeneggerArnold SchwarzeneggerArnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
's character in the original Predator film. He has a cybernetic arm with a smart gunSmart GunThe Smart Gun or "Personalized Gun" is a concept gun that aims to reduce the misuse of guns by children/felons through the use of RFID chips or other proximity devices, fingerprint recognition, or magnetic rings...
mounted on it. His attacks are powerful but slow and he dashes forward instead of jumping. - Lieutenant Linn Kurosawa — Linn uses a pistol and katanaKatanaA Japanese sword, or , is one of the traditional bladed weapons of Japan. There are several types of Japanese swords, according to size, field of application and method of manufacture.-Description:...
as weapons and can execute several martial arts attacks. She is faster and more agile than Dutch, but has lower stamina and must stop moving to reload her gun. Linn appears in cameosCameo appearanceA cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
in the later Capcom games Street Fighter Alpha 2Street Fighter Alpha 2Street Fighter Alpha 2, known as in Japan, Asia and South America, is a fighting game originally released for the CPS II arcade hardware by Capcom. The game is both a sequel and a remake to the previous years Street Fighter Alpha: Warriors' Dreams, which is itself a prequel to the Street Fighter...
, Street Fighter III: New GenerationStreet Fighter IIIis a fighting game in Capcom's Street Fighter series, originally released as coin-operated arcade game in . Street Fighter III was produced for the CD-ROM-based CP System III hardware, which allowed for more elaborate 2D graphics than the CPS II-based Street Fighter Alpha games , while revamping...
, and Namco x CapcomNamco x Capcomis an action RPG/tactical RPG hybrid game for the PlayStation 2 console, developed by Monolith Soft and featuring characters from games produced by companies Namco and Capcom.- Storyline :...
. - Predator hunter — The hunter is the younger of the two Predators. His attacks are shorter in range than those of the warrior but deal more damage and can execute more combination attacks. His staff weapon cannot be used while jumping or in the air.
- Predator warrior — The older of the two Predators, his attacks have a longer range than those of the hunter, but deal less damage. He can use his combi-stick weapon while jumping or in the air, diving and ramming it into multiple targets simultaneously.
Gameplay
Alien vs. Predator uses a control setup with an 8-directional joystickJoystick
A joystick is an input device consisting of a stick that pivots on a base and reports its angle or direction to the device it is controlling. Joysticks, also known as 'control columns', are the principal control in the cockpit of many civilian and military aircraft, either as a center stick or...
and three buttons: one to attack, one to jump, and one to shoot.
Each character is automatically equipped with a standard hand-held weapon. Linn uses a sword while Dutch hits enemies using his cybernetic arm. The Predator hunter uses a bladed staff, while the warrior uses an extendable combi-stick with a retractable spear. Other weapons such as pipes can be found in containers or taken from fallen enemies. Linn and the Predators will throw most of these at enemies, but Dutch will hold onto them and swing them repeatedly.
Each character is also equipped with gun for ranged attacks. Linn uses a rapid-firing handgun, Dutch has a mounted smart gun, and the Predators both use shoulder-mounted energy weapons. Ammunition is represented by a meter near the bottom of the screen; when the meter is depleted, the character is unable to fire until it refills. Linn's ammunition refills fastest, but she is completely defenseless while she reloads. Dutch and the Predators can fight while waiting for their ammunition to refill. A flamethrower and several other guns can also be picked up, though these have a finite amount of ammunition.
Development
The game was based on an early draft of a script for a film adaptation of the Alien vs. Predator comic book series and was intended to have been a tie-in to the movie. Although the draft was later rejected in favor of a different script, Capcom had already completed the game intending for the film to be released around the time of the game's completion. The Alien vs. Predator filmAlien vs. Predator (film)
Alien vs. Predator is a 2004 American science fiction film directed by Paul W. S. Anderson for 20th Century Fox and starring Sanaa Lathan and Lance Henriksen. The film adapts the Alien vs. Predator crossover imprint bringing together the eponymous creatures of the Alien and Predator series, a...
was not released until 2004 and was based on a very different story, and so the arcade game was released in 1994 as a stand-alone storyline to the series.
Reception
According to GameSpotGameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
, the game had "gorgeous graphics and special effects" and "was quite an adventure and one hell of a coin cruncher." In 2009, Destructoid
Destructoid
Destructoid is an independent video game-focused blog based in San Francisco, California that was founded in March 2006. It has since grown into one of the most widely read video game sites on the Internet, reaching more than 3 million unique visitors per month...
called it "arcade classic still fondly remembered by many today". In 2011, ScrewAttack
ScrewAttack
ScrewAttack . is a video game-related website that showcases original entertainment for an audience of video game enthusiasts. Its content is also shown on GameTrailers and IGN...
included the game's version of Dutch in the list Top 10: Space Marines.
External links
- Alien vs. Predator at GameFAQsGameFAQsGameFAQs is a website that hosts FAQs and walkthroughs for video games. It was created in November 1995 by Jeff "CJayC" Veasey and was bought by CNET Networks in May 2003. It is currently owned by CBS Interactive. The site has a database of video game information, cheat codes, reviews, game saves,...
- Alien vs. Predator at Arcade-History