Aliens: Colonial Marines offers respect, no praying mantis Xenos

“This is for your eyes only,” Gearbox CEO Randy Pitchford told the crowd in the Colonial Marines booth. We were about to see live gameplay footage of what he calls the true sequel to James Cameron’s Aliens. He pointed to a serious-looking man in the corner wearing night-vision goggles. “He’s not going to be watching the demo; he’s going to be watching you,” we were told. If we so much as brought up our phones to tweet, we would be escorted out.

Pitchford joked that he’s been ripping Aliens in one way or another his entire career, so he’s excited about finally being able to tackle the real thing. The team met with Ridley Scott during the game’s production, and the legendary director took down his original storyboards from the movie and shared the secrets of the world he created. Pitchford said he now knows the space jockey’s back story, and if you don’t know what I’m talking about… well, you might have found this particular presentation annoying.

The game is running on a new engine, with an emphasis on shadows and lighting effects. During one action scene the lights go out inside a room, which caused Pitchford to yell, “What do you mean they cut the power? They’re animals!” This was not the first time he interjected famous quotes during the demo of his game, and it was far from the last. During that section, red emergency lights turn on, and the black, streaking forms of the alien warriors can be seen moving quickly, planning their attack. It’s a tense, fast-paced game, and the odds always seem stacked against the human characters.

Everything is here. The motion tracker makes the familiar and unsettling high-pitched whine when it picks up the xenomorphs—which made Pitchford yell, “They’re in the room!”—and the pulse rifles sound exactly like they do in the movie.

The developers worked with famous futurist Syd Mead on the designs for the game, which added a huge amount of legitimacy to the world. Mead designed the world of Blade Runner, as well as the light cycles from the original Tron film. He also created the Sulaco from Aliens. “As far as I’m concerned, Mead invented the future,” Pitchford told us.

The demo takes place in the wreckage of Hadley’s Hope after the explosion of the atmospheric processor at the end of the film. A new squad of marines has landed to rescue the crew seen in James Cameron’s film, and they find wreckage, along with many, many aliens. Thus begins their fight. We were promised many locations in the game, most of which will be kept secret, but the fans will be happy. “You’re in Hadley’s Hope!” Pitchford yelled at one point, amazed at the environment. “Hadley’s Hope!”

The demo was steeped in references to the Aliens world, and Pitchford provided more than enough enthusiasm about the license for everyone there. The truth is, the game looks good. The new engine handles the dark sections of the game very well. During the demo my inner fan began to bust through my hard, journalistic exterior. This is the Aliens game we’ve all been waiting for.

I caught up with Gearbox’s Minister of Art—his actual job title—after the event, and asked about the danger of dealing with a property so many people love, one that has been somewhat abused in the past few years. “There were a few figures that were made when the movie came out, like a xenomorph that’s a praying mantis, and we have them tacked on our wall at the office to remind us what mistakes to avoid,” he told Ars. He said that everyone on the team is a fan of the franchise, and they have a strong sense of how to respect it without crossing any lines.

“You won’t be groaning and telling us to get out of your Aliens franchise,” he said.

That’s all I ask.

Aliens: Colonial Marines is coming to the PS3, 360, and PC in 2012. A version of the game has been announced for the Wii U as well.