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Aliens vs. Predator's first DLC revealed as 4-map pack
This morning, Sega announced that the first DLC add-on for Aliens vs. Predator will be a four-pack of multiplayer maps -- the same four maps that came included in the European Collector's Edition of the game. Specifically, Europeans will be able to pick up "Docks" and "Machine" (the regular multiplayer maps) and "Outpost" and "Hive" (the Survival Mode maps) as a set for 560 ($7), according to the Sega of Europe website. (Sega of America told us that there will be more info on the North American release this week.) Unfortunately, no firm release date has been given, though the map pack is said to arrive "shortly" for all three platforms. And yeah, we're also hoping this isn't the only AvP DLC that Sega's putting out "soon after release." %Gallery-63762%
Battlefield: Bad Company 2 is new king of UK sales charts
It's debatable whether or not the server crashing this past week was a symptom of Battlefield: Bad Company 2's success. What isn't debatable is the game's explosive debut on the UK's Chart-Track all-formats chart. The multiplayer-centric shooter, which we've been thoroughly enjoying, outsold the original Bad Company's launch week numbers almost 3 to 1. According to Chart-Track, BC2 is the "best ever launch for any game released this early in the year." Interestingly, 53 percent of BC2 sales went to the Xbox 360 version, followed by 31 percent and 16 percent of sales for the PS3 and PC, respectively. (The game also topped the three, individual platform charts.) Of course, lurking in the corner was Just Dance. The game will not go away and continues to stay in the top three week after week after week. Last week's top game, Heavy Rain, slipped down to fourth and the battle of Aliens vs. Predator held onto third. Check out the complete top ten after the break. Source – Battlefield: Bad Company 2 is a born leader [GFK Chart-Track] Source – Latest UK Software Charts [GFK Chart-Track]
Heavy Rain buoyed to top of UK sales charts
Consumers in the UK poured out the pounds for PS3's Heavy Rain last week, according to Chart-Track's all-formats chart. The adventure game took the hill from Aliens vs. Predator, which slipped down one spot. Meanwhile, Just Dance kept doing its cha-cha of endurance and took third. Nintendo's Wii Fit Plus got a second wind (or a big shipment to the region) and overtook Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 after moving up five spots and into fourth. Finally, Napoleon: Total War marched in at #12 while White Knight Chronicles began its quest at #35. Source – Heavy Rain storms the charts [GFK Chart-Track] Source – Latest UK Software Charts [GFK Chart-Track]
Rebellion's Derby studio on the verge of shutting down
Echoing grim sentiments made earlier this year, Rebellion Studios' CEO Jason Kingsley recently told Develop that the Derby branch of Rebellion that birthed Lara Croft (previously at Core Design) may not be around for too much longer. "It's quite likely that [the Derby studio] won't be kept intact in the way it did, but that individual consultancy period is not over yet," he said. He's concerned, however, with that fact that "no one has stepped up" to purchase the ailing third branch of Rebellion Studios. "We would obviously like someone to, but no one has done so as yet." When we reached out to our contacts at the studio, we were unfortunately met with no response as of publishing. Kingsley revealed that Rebellion otherwise is in the "mid-stages" of "two big projects," and reiterates that "nothing's been decided yet" for the Derby offices. As always, if you are a member or representative of the studio in question, don't hesitate to contact us if you'd like to clarify.
Rebellion boss: AvP is a critical success, sequel in discussion
Speaking to Develop, Rebellion CEO Jason Kingsley made it clear that his company is delighted with the success of Aliens vs Predator. The game recently landed in the number one sales position in the UK -- reason enough to be pleased, no doubt -- but Kingsley is also pleased with AvP's critical reception. "We wanted Aliens Versus Predator to be a critical success as well as a commercial success," said Kingsley, "which we think we have achieved." Kingsley's words might seem a little puzzling to anyone that's glanced at AvP's Metacritic average. Even the PC version, which has the highest average score, only manages a "mixed or average reviews" rating of 73. However, Kingsley noted that the game has received "three totally shit reviews by some Americans, which is a bit odd," adding that some of the reviews were "inexcusably bad." Said Kingsley, "If you discount those poor reviews AvP is averaging high for us." Whatever the overall scores, it seems Rebellion is bullish to keep pushing the franchise, with Kingsley noting that the company is already in discussions with Sega about a possible sequel. "We would love to work with Sega again," said Kingsley, "there were a lot of things we couldn't fit into the original." We're guessing these were things Rebellion couldn't fit into its 1994, 1999, or 2007 iterations either.
Aliens vs. Predator facehugs UK charts, Just Dance not going anywhere
Like seasoned hunters, Aliens vs. Predators quickly and efficiently concluded BioShock 2's brief dominance atop Chart-Track's UK all-formats sales chart. The prior week, BioShock 2 unseated Mass Effect 2. Meanwhile, Just Dance refused to give up that #2 spot. Ubisoft's dance-a-thon title saw a 55 percent sales increase as BioShock 2 took a 77 percent dive into third place. Thanks to the Winter Olympics going on in the great semi-white north of Canada, Sega saw a ski-jump boost in sales for Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Winter Games, which made its way back into the Top 10 in the eighth spot. Anthropomorphic and mushroom-tripping Olympians weren't the only ones to benefit from the hype, as Vancouver 2010 received a 274 percent increase and broke into the Top 40 at 11th place -- which is, like, a tin medal? Perhaps one of those chocolates wrapped in gold foil? Source – Aliens vs. Predator invasion [GFK Chart-Track] Source – Latest UK Software Charts [GFK Chart-Track]
Sega replacing busted Facehuggers in AvP Hunter Edition
Is the "Facehugger" figurine that came bundled with your Hunter Edition of Aliens vs. Predator missing its tail appendage? That's an important component for the Facehugger's chest-impregnating ritual, you know. How else is the little guy supposed to keep his balance whilst tenderly inserting its glistening ovipositor into your larynx and filling your chest cavity with its ripe brood-seed? Fortunately, Sega's replacing the broken 'huggers -- just fill out this form using the map pack download code that came with the Hunter Edition, and wait for your new, skittering friend to arrive. We highly suggest picking up extra flamethrower fuel during the interim.
Patched Aliens vs. Predator demo hits the PlayStation Store
It was bound to happen one day: A pre-release demo has been patched. PS3 owners experienced some matchmaking issues with the initial release of the Aliens vs. Predator trial. Now developer Rebellion has not only fixed the bugs, but has added a few new features to the multiplayer demo, including the ability to create and search for specific matches. Players that have the old demo installed on their hard drives will find it no longer works. An "Incompatible Version" error will appear for those attempting to play it. Instead, players are advised to go back into the PlayStation Store to re-download an updated demo. Yes, it's another 800MB-ish download, but if you want an early taste of Aliens vs. Predator, this will have to suffice.
Aliens vs Predator DLC 'soon after release'
Speaking to VG247, Rebellion's Tim Jones has revealed that day-one special edition DLC for Aliens vs Predator will eventually be available for everyone else. The DLC will be made available on release day for those that purchase the special edition (which is pretty hard to miss) and, as is becoming tradition, vanilla edition purchasers will have to wait. As for the DLC itself, Jones says that it will include four separate multiplayer maps (two for the survival mode, two for other modes). Concerning future DLC, Jones simply says, "Watch this space." Alas, it looks like our dreams of a day-one Alf skin for the Xenomorphs have been dashed. Here's hoping someone at Rebellion jumps on this potential DLC goldmine.
Latest Aliens vs. Predator trailer has disco fever
There are plenty of things worth highlighting in this Aliens vs. Predator trailer. The foreboding "blip ... blip ... blip" of the motion tracker and the lone marine with only a pistol to protect himself from the onslaught of scurrying Xenomorphs are just a few, but what irks us most is the digital lady dancing on the pole of the disco. Is that, like, really the future of t3h pr0nz? We were hoping for some kind of Star Trek Holodeck-type action.
PSN Thursday: Battlefield:BC2, AvP demos; D3 PSP sale
This week's PSN update is all about PS3 demos. The Battlefield: Bad Company 2 and Aliens vs. Predator demos bring online multiplayer slaughter by the buckets of blood, acid and ... whatever blood-esque fluorescent compound Predators have coursing through their veins. PSP owners don't get very much this week in terms of games, but there are plenty of comics to download. Check out the full PSN update after the break. Choose your platform to view the corresponding release list: (Note: Continue past the break to view both release lists.)
Aliens vs. Predator demo confirmed for Thursday
As hinted at by an Xbox Live Spotlight ad which briefly appeared yesterday, a demo for Aliens vs. Predator will be released on Xbox Live, PSN and Steam tomorrow. A Sega Europe blog post which announced the demo's imminence revealed that the trial gives players access to all three of the game's species, who can battle it out Deathmatch-style on one of AvP's multiplayer maps. You can bet we'll hop on this one as soon as it's available -- who knows, maybe the fanged proboscis which will soon bore into your skull will belong to one of us!
Rumor: AvP demo arriving this Thursday
According to tipster Mike, an ad for an Aliens vs Predator demo recently popped up in the Spotlight section of the Xbox 360 dashboard. The ad reportedly announced that the demo will be released February 4, this Thursday. Unfortunately, the ad has since been pulled, though AvPGalaxy reports finding the ad as well. The site also notes that the demo will arrive on the same day for PSN and Steam as well, adding that an official announcement from Sega is forthcoming. Given that the game will be hitting retail shelves in just two weeks, the timing for the demo would certainly make sense. We'll be sure to update this post if and when Sega makes things official. Update: it's official! [Via Destructoid]
Aliens vs. Predator multiplayer modes explained, caught on tape
You probably already guessed that a game that pits three different death-dealing species against one another wouldn't feature your garden variety multiplayer modes. A recent Sega Europe Blog post has confirmed your suspicions -- Aliens vs. Predator will feature seven unique competitive game types, ranging from various "deathmatch" modes, to the propagatory "Infestation" mode, to the "Survivor" mode, which is featured in the trailer posted above. There's also "Domination," which Modern Warfare veterans should be familiar with, and "Predator Hunt," which Dateline correspondent Chris Hansen should be extremely familiar with. Check out Sega Europe's blog to learn more about the online carnage that will unfold when the game hits store shelves February 16.
Multiplayer patched into original Aliens vs. Predator on Steam
What fun is Aliens vs. Predator without the knowledge that the Predator whose face you just ruined with your secondary baby-jaws isn't being controlled by a real person? Thankfully, that's a question we no longer have to ponder -- as promised, the original Aliens vs. Predator Classic 2000 has received multiplayer support on Steam, complete with Steam overlay integration. There's no support for dedicated servers, unfortunately, but we're hoping the game's age will dissuade PC gamers from boycotting it for this reason alone.
Newest Aliens vs. Predator trailer explores the title's heritage
Rather than getting on Steam and playing gobs of classic Aliens vs. Predator leading up to the game's almost assured (though still "unconfirmed") February launch, wouldn't you rather spend the next three-ish minutes watching the folks at Rebellion speak about the history behind both games' development? We knew you'd see it our way! Regardless, the trailer you see above does plenty in the way of explaining the near-direct connection between the original game and the upcoming release. Hey, did you know that both games feature some aliens, maybe a predator or two, and lots of humans? It's true! Peep the trailer for more mind-blowing revelations like that one -- if you can handle them, that is. %Gallery-63762%
Aliens vs. Predator system requirements de-cloaked
Are you curious whether your computer's robot brain is beefy enough To Catch an Aliens vs. Predator? You don't have to stress about it any longer: Sega recently revealed the system requirements for the PC version of the game. There's nothing too prohibitive in there (unless you're still vehemently sticking to your Windows 95 OS), and as Big Download reminds us, AvP will be one of the first games to natively support DirectX 11. Check out the full list of requirements after the jump!
Aliens vs. Predator Classic 2000 now on Steam
Are you itching to get your hands on Rebellion's upcoming shooter Aliens vs. Predator? Have you been dreaming of mouths within mouths, mouths that open sideways and regular human mouths screaming in terror? If so, you might want to see a therapist. You might also consider picking up Aliens vs. Predator Classic 2000, the PC AvP title created by Rebellion aeons ago. The game is now available on Steam for the rock-bottom price of $4.99. It includes both the Gold edition and the Millennium expansion pack, and it supports the Xbox 360 controller for PC, so even the young'uns can appreciate it. The one thing it does not currently support is multiplayer, though Big Download notes that support will be added in a future patch.
A video explanation of why Aliens vs. Predator was temporarily banned in Australia
Be forewarned: Unless you want to see a ton of humans, aliens and predators get murdered (our count was 24 kills in 21 seconds!), you should probably shy away from watching the Aliens vs. Predator trailer we've posted above. There's no developers talking about how excited they are to release the game, or any details about the plot -- it's basically just a demo reel of the title's horrific carnage. Wait a minute: No direction, no story and tons of violence? Are we sure this isn't a trailer for the next Saw movie? %Gallery-63762%
Rebellion refuses to 'water down' Aliens vs. Predator, readying demo
In a recent interview with AvPGalaxy, Rebellion Studios' Martin Kennedy and Alex Moore openly spoke their minds regarding last month's Australian ratings fiasco with Aliens vs. Predator before revealing news of an upcoming demo for the game. "People who want the game will get [it] imported, it's not going to hurt us ... if anything it's been a bit of decent publicity," Kennedy said. "We're not going to water down the game for countries that can't treat adults like adults," continued Moore. Moore even went as far as to compare Australia's ban-happy government (as of late, at least) to past situations with Germany. "Germany's always one of those places that we've known it was going to be difficult because the first one [game] got banned in Germany as well." When pressed on the subject of a demo, however, the duo were more careful in their wording. "There will be a demo ...that's all we can say," Moore confirmed. Considering the game is still on schedule for an "early 2010" release (maybe February?), we're hoping that the demo will be arriving sooner rather than later. %Gallery-63762%
