Cancelled Aliens RPG Footage Discovered

[Fanghawk]

Cancelled Aliens RPG Footage Discovered

Early animation from Obsidian's Aliens: Crucible has emerged in the wake of Gearbox's less-than-stellar Colonial Marines launch.

It's not a great time to be an Aliens fan. After almost seven years of heightened expectations, Aliens: Colonial Marines launched <a href=www.escapistmagazine.com/articles/view/editorials/reviews/10187-Aliens-Colonial-Marines-Review-Game-Over-Man>to a reception colder than one for a chest-burster on the Sulaco. When the dust settled, <a href=http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/aliens-colonial-marines>revealing Metacritic rankings below 50%, it quickly became clear that Aliens: Colonial Marines wasn't the game players wanted. The question is, what would be? One possibility was <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/92745-Its-Game-Over-for-Aliens-RPG>a cancelled Aliens RPG from the same period developed by Obsidian Entertainment. In the wake of Gearbox's panned effort, rough footage from Obsidian is making the rounds online, giving us an idea of what other developers had in mind.

The game, titled Aliens: Crucible in-video, was a turn-based RPG first announced in 2006. If released, Crucible would still have featured the iconic Colonial Marines, although Obsidian's version allowed players <a href=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/obsidian-aliens-rpg-was-ready-to-ship>to choose a specific player class to be upgraded over the course of play. Obsidian cancelled the project in 2009, citing the need to <a href=http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/92745-Its-Game-Over-for-Aliens-RPG>"consider the type of game we want to release", although CEO Feargus Urquhart believed Aliens: Crucible looked ready to ship.

Whether the game was ready or not, the first video provides some interesting animation work, despite the lack of textures. While we'll never know how the models would fit into a completed game, the Xenomorphs appear incredibly lithe and graceful, an impression that isn't given <a href=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b02G2AzhQ7M>in Aliens: Colonial Marines' multiplayer modes. A little digging on YouTube uncovers a second video from a reported 2007 prototype, although if they are connected it seems the animation received a major overhaul during development.


Obsidian went on to launch the popular Fallout: New Vegas following Crucible's cancellation, so perhaps it's for the best that focus wasn't split between projects. Either way, perhaps one day we'll see a modern take on the franchise, RPG or otherwise, that earns more respect from Aliens fans and gamers.

Source: <a href=http://forums.guru3d.com/showthread.php?t=375045Guru3DGuru3D, via <a href=http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2013-02-18-a-video-of-obsidians-aliens-rpg-appears>Eurogamer

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[Vault101]

the alien movements look a bit cartoony...but cool

 

[Terminate421]

Screw turn based, but an RPG would have been nice especially if it was third person. That might have subtracted from the atmosphere, but I don't want my character to be just another floating gun.

In some games you can look down and NOT be a floating gun.

 

[mistwolf]

I would love a proper, long-arc rpg in that universe. Maybe start as a squaddie in a group sent to secure 'samples' for the company, see the slaughter, evolve into eventually opposing it and leading the defence when they inevitably escape, or something. I don't think Aliens stuff has to be horror, necessarily, but it should be GOOD.

 

[Mikoi]

Screw turn based, but an RPG would have been nice especially if it was third person. That might have subtracted from the atmosphere, but I don't want my character to be just another floating gun.

In some games you can look down and NOT be a floating gun.

ARMA II for example

OT: That would of been interesting considering what they have done with the Fallout IP.

 

[cerebus23]

I would love a proper, long-arc rpg in that universe. Maybe start as a squaddie in a group sent to secure 'samples' for the company, see the slaughter, evolve into eventually opposing it and leading the defence when they inevitably escape, or something. I don't think Aliens stuff has to be horror, necessarily, but it should be GOOD.

i support this, aliens was action anyway, alien 3 was depressing, and resurrection was garbage, only alien was horror, and the onlyu reason that works is the crew of the nostromo were average people with no weapons trapped in a spaceship with a shadowy killer.

once the alien is out of the shadows, and you start arming everyone we have left the area of horror and are going more shoot em up period.

be nice of any western property being to be handled decently and not degenerate into lets shovel anything out cause they will buy it mentality that these things seem to turn into. glaring angrily at you gearbox.

 

[InsanityRequiem]

I kinda chuckle, Gearbox not putting female characters into the game as marines until after fan outcry. Obsidian's take? Female marine from the get go if the second video is really from their cancelled version.

 

[Terminate421]

Screw turn based, but an RPG would have been nice especially if it was third person. That might have subtracted from the atmosphere, but I don't want my character to be just another floating gun.

In some games you can look down and NOT be a floating gun.

ARMA II for example

OT: That would of been interesting considering what they have done with the Fallout IP.

Halo (Since Halo 2), Crysis, Battlefield 3.


There was SUPPOSED to be it in Bioshock 2, didn't happen for some reason.

Shooters need this little perk, it's small but it adds so much to the game IMO. It really shows effort I guess I should say.

 

[oldtaku]

In retrospect this would have been way better than we got with Aliens: Colonial Marines.

But way back then if you were Sega looking at this RPG and A:CM (which still looks great in the demo, right?) and as rumor has it were deciding to go forward with only one, I might have gone with A:CM too. Squad shooter is way more sellable, and anything from Obsidian would have taken at least six months to patch into decent shape after release, and there's no way you could have known just how bad A:CM would turn out.

 

[felbot]

well its an rpg game from obsidian so id certainly buy it, although if they started working on this they might not be able to work on that kick starter of theirs, or new Vegas might have been in even worse shape than what it came out in.

 

[Terramax]

The atmosphere in the footage looks a lot more akin to the Alien Universe. Can't believe they didn't release this, especially if it was indeed ready to ship.

 

[Sir Shockwave]

So...remind me why we got Colonial Marines instead of this again? X3

 

[Calibanbutcher]

Did anyone make a bug joke yet?
No?
Shame.
On topic:
What is stopping them from releasing this game on steam? Maybe for 10 bucks? Because if the game is truly ready so ship, making it available via download shouldn't really be a problem and I would be willing to bet that many gamers would buy this game, simply so they can enjoy a satisfying Alien experience.
Maybe also release the engine so that some of the more talented members of the community can bring about an HD mod or something...

 

[Jumwa]

Leave it to Obsidian to consider a game without textures to be ready to ship.

 

[chikusho]

Aliens RPG? Horrible idea.

 

[Sir Shockwave]

So...remind me why we got Colonial Marines instead of this again? X3

sega.

and how can you blame them? gearbox had a relatively good rep before duke nukem.

also obsidian screwed alpha protocol. it may have affected this.

Also Universe at War: Earth Assault, for those who remember.

Hey, the game still suffers from a clunky interface and poor faction design, but the lack of marketing didn't help it none X3

 

[Shoggoth2588]

...

You just know there's an alternate universe that got Aliens: Crucible and, you just know in that universe, it got consistent scores in the mid-range. In that universe people are just finding footage of Colonial Marines and those people don't know how lucky they are at the bullet they dodged. Then again, this alternate universe could have watched a tiny asteroid skim the atmosphere only to be flattened by a much larger one days after Crucible was released...

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Short version - I would have much rather grabbed Aliens: Knights of the Old Republic. I didn't get Colonial Marines but I would have grabbed Crucible without a doubt.