The original Alien Versus Predator was, as many came to find out, one of the few reasons to justify ownership of a Jaguar. Atari’s ill fated console was, to most of the industry, was an expensive practical joke, but AvP, with its unique take on corridor first person shooters, almost made the thing worth owning. Multiple perspectives, an incredible use of darkness as atmospheric support, and the ability (finally) to competently play as a Predator were all hooks to good to be denied; it may be forgotten in this day and age, but, at the time, AvP was on the forefront of first person shooters.

A sequel was made, and then the franchise was promptly ruined by games based on the horrific (read: terrible) films. I was a little worried the latest AvP was going to take a similar path, but, thankfully, one of the developers running through our demo, Tim Jones, was part of the original AvP team. Quality wasn’t guaranteed, but it was certainly one hell of a large step in the right direction.

Anyway, the show floor contained a live demo of the Predator portion of the game, but the closed-door sequence were shown was from the Space Marine point of view.

James Cameron’s Aliens influence was widely apparent, as the look and feel of the Marine portion feels like it was pulled right out of that entry in the franchise. The game had the liberty of taking place a few decades after Alien3, which was used as reasoning for upgrading a few of the Marines amenities. Still, with pulse detection, sentry guns, perimeter testing, acid spills all over the place, and purveying darkness, the only thing missing was Hudson’s cry of, “game over man, game over!” The game looked gorgeous and combat seemed competent, but the look and feel of Aliens, technically the commanding influence of the space marine archetype, was magnificently intact.

We were able to ask a few questions toward the end. Questions about the cast, specifically if anyone would be returning, were denied with a smile, and the multiplayer, with all three factions competing, seemed to offer a flavor not unlike that of Left 4 Dead. A release date wasn’t given, but look for this one to turn a few heads when it finally drops for 360 and PS3.