Alien vs Predator Un-Banned! - Now for discussion!

[Azazel]

edit - changed heading since the game won it's appeal and I want to talk about it. The game, not the appeal.


From Kotaku (apparently) via NZGamer.

Kotaku.com are reporting that Rebellion’s latest Alien vs Predator is the latest game to receive the honor of being banned in Australia. “What will Rebellion do to water it down and will it be in our version?” you might ask.




The answer is nothing.

Rebellion issued the following statement in response to the banning.

"Rebellion is disappointed that its upcoming title Aliens vs. Predator has been banned in Australia. However, as we understand the law in that country the authorities had no choice as we agree strongly that our game is not suitable for game players who are not adults."

"The content of AvP is based on some of the most innovative and iconic horror movies, and as such we wanted to create a title that was true to the source material,”

In other words, movies did it first.

”It is for adults, and it is bloody and frightening, that was our intent. We will not be releasing a sanitised or cut down version for territories where adults are not considered by their governments to be able to make their own entertainment choices."

So unless Aussie gamers stage nationwide protests to change the OLFC’s mind/get the legislation for game ratings updated, or Rebellion changes their mind – the Australians will have to go without.

While getting hold of the game via my usual sources will be easy enough, it'll suck in terms of getting hold of DLC (since they don't release fucking proper expansion packs anymore these days) and also for locally-hosted MP games.





http://nzgamer.com/all/news/3604/aliens-vs-predator-is-banned-in-australia.html

[Ironwood]

I love that statement.  Fucking Gold right there.

[Hoax]

Yeah big thumbs up to the devs for releasing that statement.

[Azazel]

Yep, I have to give them credit for sticking to their guns.

[Samprimary]

Yeah, hats off to Rebellion. Not only are they staying true to their namesake ..

[Azazel]

We'll just have to see if the game itself is any good, or a total abortion like Rogue Warrior. 

[UnSub]

I don't see this as Rebellion sticking to their guns so much as being able to drum up some extra publicity for themselves.

[Ironwood]

We'll just have to see if the game itself is any good, or a total abortion like Rogue Warrior. 

No idea what Rogue Warrior was, but having browsed all the videos, they've done the same trick as they did with AvP2 :  Taken AvP1 and redone it with a smarter engine.

AvP3 will be the SAME game, but with nicer graphics.   Apparently, they still refuse to fix the 'Alien Speed' issue, but it's claimed that you will be able to unlock the fast mode somehow.

AvP2 totally lost me with the Alien campaign because it was too fucking slow.  Pussies who got motion sickness with the first game should be told to Suck It Up.

[Azazel]

Rogue Warrior is a Rebellion-developed FPS that came out only a few days ago which is one of the biggest turds shat out by any developer recently. Shit gameplay, 2-hour SP campaign, shit online gameplay. It's based on Richard Marcinko, who founded SEAL Team Six, wrote a series of entertaining but ever-more exaggerated anecdotes about his life.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rogue_Warrior_(video_game)#Reception
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Marcinko

While we can hope that their B-Team were working on RW and their A-Team were working on AVP, unfortunately, AvP3 has as much a chance of being a licenced, pretty-looking turd, or a licenced, pretty-looking consolised disappointment as any other game. MW2 anyone? Borderlands? I hope it's not, but there ya go.

[NowhereMan]

Hopefully they will just remake AvP2 with some minor fixes. It might not be Game of the Year but at least it won't be bad. It seems wrong to hope that they don't try to change and innovate since in FPS recently change seems to equal changing it for the console.

[Kageru]

Good on them.

Also means they've got no reason to block grey imports working in Australia (as MW2 did). The entire Australian market for the game ordering from play-asia should get some retailers whining here.

[Lantyssa]

AvP2 totally lost me with the Alien campaign because it was too fucking slow.  Pussies who got motion sickness with the first game should be told to Suck It Up.

I got it because of the funky vision, not the speed.

[KallDrexx]

AvP multiplayer was pure win, I hope they can make this work well.  I have many memories of LAN-ning up the first one with a bunch of friends and stalking each other around.

[Ashamanchill]

AvP multiplayer was pure win, I hope they can make this work well.  I have many memories of LAN-ning up the first one with a bunch of friends and stalking each other around.

Fuck did playing as the alien in that ever rock. The predator was overpowered I seem to recall, that damn disc took everything out. Picking the marine was like taking a handicap.

[KallDrexx]

Yeah but marine was fun just for the getting scared shit-less factor. 

[Fraeg]

That was the game that made me realize a twitch player I am not.  I loved playing the alien but when playing pvp vs a buddy who was a marine there was non stop laughter coming from him.   On his screen he would see me suddenly appear and then go flying by him at mach 3 and then run into a wall.  I loved playing the alien, but I was too sucky as a player to handle how fast it moved.

Kudos to the studio for saying "too bad so sad, but we won't censor our game"

[Velorath]

Sega wins appeal.

[UnSub]

... with the same Classification Board. 

[Azazel]

We're nothing if not consistent! 

This is good news though. I'll still buy it from HK or the UK to save on local retail gouging, but it'll mean I can find a local game, and the expansion packs DLC will be accessable.



Meanwhile I'm going to have to write up a submission paper for the R18+ public consultation. 

[MahrinSkel]

The industry response to local classification boards is trending more and more towards "Who cares?"  If the locals have some fetish about blood, or skeletons, or boobies, rather than re-build the game to satisfy them, just release it everywhere else and let the gray market take care of the rest.  If I can order industrial laser diodes from China, or relabeled Cuban cigars from Honduras, and have them in my hands within 48 hours, how is some pissant little ratings board going to keep video games out?

Rating bans are good for free publicity, and not much else.

--Dave

[Azazel]

I've happily grey-marketed many RC/unrated games (which is not illegal to do here at all, despite the potential of the great firewall to try and prevent that), but it does fuck with the ability to get the DLC etc in some cases.

[Azazel]

AvP Co-op will be glorious. You will die* for implying otherwise.
*In-game.

The Co-Op Experience:
AvP features a survival mode with Marines vs. waves of Aliens.

 Background:
Developed by Rebellion, Aliens vs Predator features three separate campaigns for players to experience - all from different perspectives.
 
 Co-Op Information   
Local Co-Op:  No
Number of Players Offline:  0 Players
Online Co-Op: Yes
Number of Players Online:  4 Players
LAN or System Link:  Yes
Number of Players via LAN or System link:  4 Players
Splitscreen:  No
Playable Online with Splitscreen: No
Number of Players Online with Splitscreen: 0 Players
Drop-In / Drop-Out:  No
Co-Op Specific Content:  Yes
Single player content available in Co-Op:  No

So this is pretty effing disappointing. I'd hoped for a goodly chunk of proper co-op for this game rather than just PVP and Horde Mode. I'll almost definately be buying it on the PC, but if it had a proper co-op campaign mode (like Halo3, Gears/Gears 2, Borderlands, Saints Row 2, CoD:WaW) I'd have also bought 2 console copies, as I've done with ...well, all the games I just named.  well, except CoD:WaW

I've got the "Hunter Edition" on PC pre-ordered here at EB (yes, we get that over here for some reason). I'll just wait a couple of days after release, then check the internets to see if the facehugger is made of awesome, or if it's garbage like the AA Batarang. If it's crappy, I'll cancel the preorder and pick it up on steam. If it's awesome.. well, it's effectively a $50-60 facehugger for my collection of (awesome/useless) crap.

...I wonder if Bad Company 2 has co-op campaign?

[NiX]

I should have specified that Co-op to me is playing with a friend on the same team, not just a campaign you can both do.

[Phire]

Pew pew pew can't wait to shoot some aliens later this month! Campaign coop or not it is still going to be awesome to play this with others.

The original game scared the piss out of me, I had a friend who would taunt my marine as an alien by destroying all the lights and would run around the maps setting my motion sensor off. I remember throwing a flare once and he was right there in my face starring at me...

[Ironwood]

 

[Azazel]

I should have specified that Co-op to me is playing with a friend on the same team, not just a campaign you can both do.

yeaaaaaaahh that's called Multiplayer. I'm looking forward to this, but I'm terribly disappointed by the exclusion. Normal MP with most of the people being PUGS doesn't compare as a 2P experience.

[Megrim]

So, um, the demo that's on Steam... yea.

In terms of aesthetics, they've captured the feel of the Aliens films very well. The gameplay on the other hand - well that i'm not so sure about. The controls are unintuitive (at least for someone who played a lot of avp2) and have a sluggish feel to them. That is never a good thing, but in an fps, especially so. Hit detection is questionable, although they did say that there will be dedicated servers in the full release (which i will believe when i see it). Furthermore, coupled with other miscellaneous annoyances (like not being able to see who is trying to swallow their mic, or being able to mute them) or the very finnicky block/counter/finishing-move system, i am in doubt about just how much fun this game will be.

[LK]

I tried to shoot an alien that was right in front of me. Every muzzle flash made it so that it was impossible to see where I was shooting. Meanwhile Mr. Alien is moving around pretty fast and, well, sometimes I'd catch him and sometimes he'd catch me.

I decided to stop after one match. One my way out someone in a lobby said "You keep that up and it'll be time out mister." I hoped it was the Mom playing. So hoped.

I won't be back. Also, the shotgun in that game is dick.

[schild]

Every muzzle flash made it so that it was impossible to see where I was shooting.

Sounds like Aliens and/or Predator to me.

[ghost]

It won't really be like Aliens unless you also have Bill Paxton whining like a little bitch all the time.

[Merusk]

Wait.. you played a human space marine in an ALIENS vs PREDATOR game and are bitching about the experience?  Have you even seen those movies?  Humans are fodder.


tldr: What Schild said.

[Rendakor]

IIRC one of the ads for the original AvP game was something like "You can be the Alien, You can be the Predator, or You can be lunch"

[schild]

You could've just gone with "Whoever wins, we lose."

[Azazel]

Demo now up on Steam.

Lack of keyboard options etc makes me fear it's been heavily consolised.

Demo itself is underwhelming.

[Ironwood]

Elena and I had fun.

Predator is shit tho.  Which is strange.