Aliens Infestation
Aliens: Infestation is a 2011 2D sidescroller game for the Nintendo DS handheld console. It was developed by WayForward Technologies and Gearbox Software. It is a tie-in to the "Alien" franchise. The cover art as well as the character designs and avatars were drawn by renowned comic-book artist Chris Bachalo. The game received generally positive reviews, with many calling it a successful callback to the original Alien series and an improvement over the previous games, with particular praise towards the atmosphere, graphics and art design. Gameplay. Gameplay of "Aliens: Infestation" is comparable to the "Metroid" and  Castlevania video games, where players are encouraged to search and backtrack for weapons, upgrades, and keys. The player controls one of a party of four marines and explores the U.S.S. Sulaco as well as LV-426 and Phobos in order to investigate the Union of Progressive Peoples (UPP) and Weyland-Yutani's involvement in Xenomorph development. The game incorporates a permadeath mechanic. If a marine falls in battle, another in the party will take their place. The player loses if the entire party is wiped out. Fallen characters can be replaced with any of fifteen displaced marines found throughout the game , each with their own unique dialog. Plot. The USS "Sephora" has discovered the USS "Sulaco" adrift in space after the events of "Aliens" and "Alien 3". The Colonial Marines are sent aboard the "Sulaco "to investigate and recover the life form detected aboard the ship. Development. "Aliens: Infestation" was developed by WayForward Technologies and Gearbox Software and was originally intended to be a tie-in to the PC and console game. When doing their research, Game Director, Adam Tierney, focused heavily on Ridley Scott's Alien and James Cameron's Aliens as inspiration. To capture the films' "slasher" appeal, while  still keeping you emotionally invested, the development team created 20 unique characters, with the game's dialogue carefully re-written 20 times, to make sure it offered the biggest 'gut-punch' when one dies. In conjunction with the game's 'party of four' mechanic, the developers wanted players to grow attached to their favorites, which in-turn, increased the likelihood of getting one killed. Reception. "Aliens: Infestation" received "generally favorable reviews" according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. "The A.V. Club" gave it a B+, saying, "It's a shame that "Aliens: Infestation" peters out by the end. In the  push toward the conclusion, the upgraded weapons you've collected lessen the threat, and the thin plot culminates in a boring fight against a big alien queen." "Digital Spy" gave it four stars out of five, saying, "In many ways, it feels like the "Aliens" game we should have been given back in the 16-bit era when the movie series was still relatively new. Whether it has been worth the wait is debatable, but this is certainly a worthy addition to the DS library." However, "The Digital Fix" gave it seven out of ten, saying that "It can be  uneven at times in terms of quality but it is highly enjoyable, especially if you are fan of either the franchise or even if you are just a fan of 'MetroidVania' games."