Aliens vs Predator (AvP) Multiplayer Preview: Marine
This is the final part of our Aliens vs Predator Multiplayer preview, and it will look at the role of the Marine in this conflict. Originally appearing in the Aliens film, and generally being portrayed as cannon fodder, the Marines are also the target for Predator trophy hunts. This essentially means that it's no fun to be a Marine, but they can still hold their own.
We were able to check out what makes the Marines tick in a recent multiplayer session, as we squared off against an assortment of Aliens, Predators and of course, other Marines.
Part One: Alien
Part Two: Predator
The Marine class tends to take more of the usual approach to first person shooter experiences, simply giving plays a big gun and a simple premise of target and rain metal against the opponent. Marines do have the unfortunate feeling of being more of a preyed upon class which is apparent in multiplayer. Everything they do makes them stand out and just about everything seems to be stalking them.
However, Marines aren't without any protection as their weapons do considerable damage. As they say, sometimes offense is the best defence. On the defensive side, an image intensifier helps light up darker areas, crucial for seeing if Aliens are hiding. They also have a motion detector which makes life a lot easier, however most times once you see that blip appear it's probably too late. Especially in the case of Predators who sometimes will tend to sit back and wait for a target to come to them.
Out of the three classes tested and previewed, the marine became the one we experienced the least. However, it was immediately apparent that its strengths lay in ranged combat; up close they became extremely fragile. However, at range they will totally decimate Aliens with their ability to detect movement, Predators on the other hand will more than likely be the marines demise.
This format of strengths and weaknesses across all the classes adds a unique balance to the game, whereby players learn to prey specifically on one type and try and avoid the other. While the Marine class is quite generic it does feel like the player has the most control with, being able to target enemies and range and with instant suppression it makes dealing with the other two stealth based classes a lot less scary. However, moments when everything is too quiet do seem to cause that initial fear of when the attack will come to set in. The game, being developed by Rebellion Developments, is set for launch in Q1 2010 on PS3, PC and Xbox 360.
