Rating: 
Summary: Review for Alaska Apple Users Group
Review: If you're as big a fan of the Aliens and Predator films as I am, then the recently released port of Aliens versus Predator 2 (AvP2) for Mac OS X is for you! AvP2 is a top-notch first-person shooter from Sierra Studios, published by MacPlay, and touted as the "sequel to one of the most frightening games ever made."
AvP2 is a big game and spans two discs. The installer CD contains a lot of extras - demos (including its predecessor) and documentation to augment the thorough printed manual. The installer will ask you to switch discs once and then you're done. You must have CD 1 inserted to play the game and input the CD key from the box in order to access multiplayer games for the first time.
Opening the AvP2 folder now on your hard drive will reveal a stand-alone server in addition to the game. While I didn't test the server, it's a rarity for Mac games to include one in the box, so it's a welcome extra and a great way to host your own dedicated game.
As soon as you launch the game your desktop will swirl away like a vortex and a title screen will flood in. That first title is the Omni Group's credits and the app launching animation helps you realize that this game was ported by the same talented folks that brought Oni, Freedom Force, and more to Mac OS X.
After the Twentieth Century Fox intro you'll find yourself at the main menu. It offers options for customizing the game and controls, starting a single player or multiplayer game, and exiting. Selecting single player you are presented with three campaign options, which are identified by the three classic AvP species.
Before I move on though, let me explain how cool these menus are. They are actually real-time 3D animations. So if you pause on the main menu, you'll see a dropship swoop by and head for a planet and in the options menu you get to watch an Alien egg twitch and open. There are even character animations for each species - there can be no doubt which species you've selected when there is a Predator making menacing noises right in your face!
Once you've made a selection, you'll find a very detailed environment in which to romp. As long as you're not trying to push the resolution or texture qualities beyond your capabilities, game play will be smooth. Even if you've got an older machine, this game looks great at just 800x600 pixel resolution thanks to its advanced LithTech engine. But the good looks and frame rates are only the beginning.
For those not familiar with the franchise, the big players are the Aliens, Predators, and human marines. Just like it's predecessor, AvP2 has a separate campaign for each species that, though complete on their own, combine to form a single spanning plot of twenty-one missions.
The AvP games are not the only ones to do this, but unlike Warcraft III, for example, the campaigns are not linearly chronological. Instead they feature different tempos and span different time frames. Each intertwines and even intersects in several places. Though they can be played in any order, the stories are meant to build on each other in a certain order, so you'll get the most out of them if you start at the top and work your way down.
It's potentially a very involving form of story telling; and the story isn't bad. It's not on par with Marathon or Myst, but there is a solid plot with a lot of cut scenes and in-game dialog to flesh it out (that's part of why the game takes up a whopping 1.28GB on your hard drive). It also has some very colorful characters to play opposite each species as arch-nemeses. Strangely, while the Aliens and Predators are the antagonists in their respective films, they are the heroes in this game. Despite this apparent contradiction, neither is pulled too far out of character so playing them still feels right.
And boy is it fun to play out those characters! Clinging to the ceiling and dropping on shocked victims as the Alien, collecting trophy skulls as the Predator, and wielding the smart gun as the Marine are all equally fun in their own right. The different species have different tools and abilities at their disposal as well as different ways of seeing and navigating. You will unavoidably find a favorite species since the game play is so different for each.
The first game did a great job of putting the Aliens universe into a game, but just sort of tacked on the Predator. In this game, outdoor environments and trees that you can (and sometimes must) move in, bring a lot more of the Predator aesthetic to the game. The Aliens campaign has a little bit more to offer this time as well - participation in the Aliens full life cycle. That means you start the game as a face hugger seeking a host and even get to recreate one of the most shocking film moments ever by being reborn as a chest burster, ready to feed and grow. According to MacPlay's Mark Cottam, "you'll want to leave the lights on."
Indeed the game is chillingly enjoyable. It's complex enough to provide a lot of replay value too. You can change the difficulty, replay individual levels, or load saved games. You also get really great cross-platform multiplayer support via LAN or the internet. The relationship between the species also makes the multiplayer game types a little bit more interesting than your typical shooter. They include survivor, deathmatch, species team deathmatch, and hunt. This is just as much fun as it was in the first game, but this time the Predators and Aliens have different sub-classes just like the humans. So you can select a Predator with a particular weapons set that matches your style or an Alien that just looks cooler than the others.
All things said, this game has a lot to offer. As a sequel it shares the same structure, sounds, visuals, and general game play of the well-received original while enhancing many features. Though the graphics engine is improved, the biggest difference between the two is stylistic. The first one looked and felt just like the movie Aliens while the sequel acts a lot more like the recent Dark Horse comic books, which have exaggerated character stereotypes and deformed some of the more plausible and realistic intricacies of the series'.
While the story isn't cathartic, it is entertaining and strong enough to carry the games torrent of violence. It's akin to an action film that's worth seeing in the theatre for the effects as long as you don't expect too much from the acting.
If you have no interest in the Aliens or Predator films, you probably won't enjoy this any more than the other popular shooters out there. But if you're even a modest fan, this game is probably worth the expense. At the very least, it should hold you over until the movie is finally released.
Rating: 
Summary: Windows Version is Great! Mac Version is terrible.
Review: Ok... Both the Windows and the Mac version are the same game, one catch though. The Mac version was ported (converted) from the Windows version. The conversion is terrible. The Mac game is CHOPPY, SLOW, UNPLAYABLE on even the fastest computers. The Omni Group did slip-shoddy, piss poor job at porting this game to the Mac platform. Go get the Windows version of this game on Amazon or www.aliensvspredator2.com and play it on your friends PC.
Rating:
Summary: Umm.. Problem with the review below....
Review: The reviewer below was talking about the PC version of the AVP2. The other reviewers who gave one star for the game are talking about the Mac version. The minimum video card requirement is 32MB for mac. You really need 512MB video card to make this game run smoothly. This is the worst ported game I've ever played. I'm running a dual G5 and it glitches, chops and crashes all the time. Its been over 8 months since Macplay and The Omni Group have known about the multiplayer problem with Mac OS 10.3 and they have done nothing about it. The people at The Omni Group and Macplay should be arrested for taking people's money for an incomplete, unplayable game. Seriously...
Rating:
Summary: GREAT!!!
Review: There is a problem with the last reviews about this game. First of all, the only way this game could play that slow is if they had a slow graphics card. I have 16mb video ram card and a 400mhz processor and it plays lightening fast, almost no loading time at all. And with the right card, you can have the details set on high, and have a fast game with no lag. I highly reccomend this game only if you have at least a 16mb video card and an average processor. The game features a wide variety of weapons, species options, levels, plus multiplayer support. No sci-fi fan who like this kind of action game shouid pass it up.
Rating:
Summary: Awesome mac game
Review: wicked cool game with good graphicxs and good multiplayer! BUY BUY BUY!
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