Area 51 review:
One cannot hear the name Area 51 without immediately thinking back to the 1990s, when arcades were still relevant. I can remember waiting in line for hours sometimes just to play a fighting game, or, in my case, wasting rolls of quarters playing light gun games. For me, aside from Time Crisis, only Atari Games' release of Area 51 in 1995 resonates more soundly.
Area 51 review:
DETAILED GAME INFORMATIONArea 51 Version Reviewed: PCPlatform: PCPrice: £34.99Age: 15+Area 51 Game Trailer - DOWNLOADArea 51 Alternative Trailer - DOWNLOADArea 51 Screenshots (.zip) - DOWNLOADUK Release date - OUT NOWUSA Release date - OUT NOW
Area 51 review:
For shooter fans in serious need of something new to play, Area 51 fits the bill adequately. But for anyone looking for something more than an average shooter, it probably isn't worth it.
Area 51 review:
Midway's remake of Area 51 resembles little of the old light gun shooter that you could find in arcades. Instead this new version features an actual storyline, some squad-based combat, and some Hollywood voice talent. Although the last feature kind of the depends on whether or not you think the voice actors are Hollywood stars.
Area 51 review:
If however, you are looking for a well-made single-player shooter that sticks to genre conventions and doesn't offer much innovation, you might consider picking up Area 51. It's not that revolutionary, but it's a fun shooter that you can get several evenings of fun out of.
Area 51 review:
How many times in your life did you experience the phenomenon of déjà vu? And then, have you ever managed to explain this phenomenon to yourself? Did you ascribe it to a momentary lapse of reason, or perhaps to some inexplicable, supernatural force toying with you? I may not have found all the possible reasons that are the cause of this phenomenon, but I've certainly found one.
Area 51 review:
The fascination that the human culture has with extraterrestrial life and its existence is something that transcends decades of theories and experiences continuing to make us wonder. Are we alone? Is there really something else out there? Do people really getting abducted and probed to the point of hemorrhaging and bleeding anuses? These questions probably won’t be answered before the end of our lives, but at least we can live in the fantasy of blowing them all up. The most famous of all these alien conspiracies is probably Area 51, the uber-secret government facility outside of Groom Lake. Many people believe it to be a place of alien technology, cover-ups, and unimaginable mysteries. This is where Midway’s Area 51 draws its inspiration, by including everything to do with everything about the facility, from the theories of a fake Moon landing to the truth of the Roswell crash decades ago. In turn, Midway has also crafted one of the best story-based first person shooters ever thought of.
Area 51 review:
Ever heard of Area 51? There are a lot of rumors and speculation surrounding the secret base. Area 51 the game lets you into the secrets of the US Government and ties them into one story and may find answers to a few of the conspiracy theories.GamePlayYou start the game playing Specialist Ethan Cole a member of a Hazmat team sent in to clean up a spill at the secret military base, Area 51. After arriving at the base, the rest of the story unfolds as you soon realize that this is not just a routine mission. Along the way you will open up new secret diaries of Dr. Cray and Mr. White, the Illuminati main character that provide a back story of several conspiracies. Between levels FMV and in-game cinematics drive the story forward. In the first missions, you will have a squad fighting along side you to help clear out the hordes of mutated humans. The missions change quite a bit as you venture deeper into the Area 51 base. There are 18 missions which are linear but you can decide how to accomplish certain objectives either using your weapons or human mutation. There are the standard weapons found in any FPS game, Sub-machine guns, sniper rifles, .45 caliber handguns, grenades, you can dual wield and alt-fire with most weapons. My favorite weapon you have is the shotgun, which should make you smile. Alternatively you can pick up alien weapons such as the BBG which fires bouncing projectiles which stick to their target, then explode after a couple of seconds which is very entertaining. You can fire the BBG hitting an unsuspecting enemy around a corner without putting yourself in danger. There are a few more weapons as well, but I’ll let you discover them!!Mostly you will be fighting humans who have been infected by the virus, later on you come across the alien creatures who are spreading the virus themselves. Area 51 plays out like any FPS game with all the action however also expect a certain level of atmospheric horror as beasts rush out at you from dark corners.The changes in game play from fast paced action to horror keep the game fresh and one of the most unique features of the game play is the ability to mutate into a creature yourself!The game is very linear and the combat revolves around your mission objectives. Some missions require you to defend an area against an onslaught of aliens, in another mission you have allies controlling huge moving turrets against the aliens later in the mission you man the turret yourself. Once you are infected, the missions revolve around the search for a cure and once you have met Edgar the game changed as yousearch for the truth.Once you've been infected with the mutagen you're able to mutate yourself at willand become a creature with all new abilities. You can run faster, have better vision and you have new attacks like a melee attack that sends enemies flying. You also get a homing parasite projectile attack that siphons health from your enemies. And a Contagion that will cause an enemy to switch sides and attack his own kind first!As I mentioned you will play alongside allied characters that will provide covering fire, take cover to reload and throw grenades and even provide covering fire while another teammates throws one. The enemy AI is quite challenging they will try to attack an enemy that is actively shooting at and hitting a teammate over an enemy that is simply maneuvering. Alien AI is significantly different they will fight innumbers, then retreat and attack again from a different angle. The action can be quite exciting when you are swarmed by mutant enemies. Dual wielding weapons is satisfying but the action can become repetitive when enemies attack you from the most obvious of places and the game play mostly involves you finding keycards and other items you try to open locked doors so you can get to the next section.The single player campaign will take around 12 hours to complete and with the multiplayer modes it expands the replayability of the game.MultiplayerThere are five different multiplayer modes including all your old favorites Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, Capture the Flag, and Capture and Hold. And going with the Alien theme, a new mode called Infection. Each mode supports up to sixteen players and all of the single player weapons are present.Something I thought was innovative is Per Player Zoning (PPZ). What PPZ is depending on how many players are currently on the server it will enlarge or shrink the map accordingly. For example if you only have 8 players in the server the map would be small, if another 3-4 players joined the game more of the map would become available. This keeps the action intense regardless of how many people there are in the server. There are 18 multiplayer maps in total including some maps which are straight from he single player campaign with a few tweaks to readjust them for MP. Other maps have been solely designed for MP games. GraphicsThe game looks great no matter what platform you play it on. All of the graphics have a sharp and nicely textured look. Other touches include excellent lighting and article effects.The levels are nicely detailed, Area 51 looks like real military facility the hangars look real and all of the military equipment looks authentic. Areas 51 is huge and as you descend further into the base the level design changes and shows off more high-tech and bizarre technology. Environmentally Area 51 features an interactive and destructible environment. You can shoot and move various objects throughout each level. Area 51 makes excellent use of subliminal imagery and dark dynamic environments to immerse you within the game. Area 51 takes advantage of rag doll physics like when a enemy is running towards you firing a BBG bouncing projectile which will stick to the enemy they will continue running at you, a few seconds later the bullets explodes sending the enemy flying across your screen. Shoot an alien in the head and watch their head fling backwards and flop lifelessly to the ground. Throw a grenade in a crowd of aliens and watch as the explosion flings them into the air.Although there is no significant difference between the PC, PS2 or Xbox version the PC version does have higher quality graphics.The PC the minimum specs are 1.4GHz Intel (or a 1.2 GHz AMD), a mid level ATI or Nvidia video card and 256 MB RAM, with less than 5 GB on the hard drive.SoundThe sound is exceptional and sets the atmosphere and pace of the game. The music tempo rises and falls as the action increases and decreases. There is full voice accompanying the game your character Cole is voiced by David Duchovny, your superior officer, Major Bridges, is portrayed by Powers Booth, and Marilyn Manson takes on the role of Edgar. OverallIf you’re looking for a new FPS with a few twists or keen on conspiracy theories then you may want to take a look at Area 51. Unfortunately experienced FPS players may find they aren’t being offered anything new in the game. I am not sure the multiplayer is enough to hold a players interest for any length of time but you should still rent Area 51 and check it out yourself!Thumbs Up Intriguing storyline Graphics are solid The action is fast paced Thumbs Down Repetitive Game play Doesn’t offer a lot more than other FPS games full size >>
Area 51 review: