Look, I’m one to admit when I have an obsession. But it’s a perfectly healthy one, and anyone who knows me would describe me as an “Alien” superfan. I spend most of my time browsing for merch online (you can never have enough), rewatching the films, or playing a game set in this incredible universe. That obsession has obviously led me to play the newest game in the franchise, Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2, a co-op shooter that sees you teaming up with other players to battle hordes of Xenomorphs. As a huge fan, this is my idea of a good time.
The first Aliens: Fireteam Elite arrived in 2021 as a co-op third-person shooter focused on three-player squads battling Xenomorphs across a series of intense missions. The sequel expands that formula with four-player co-op, new classes, weapons and smarter enemies. The 15-mission solo campaign takes the Marines to LV-558 to investigate a deadly outbreak. The developers said they wanted to make sure the new enemies still felt authentically “Alien,” with art director Nicholas Stohlman explaining that the team worked closely with 20th Century to hone in on “what makes an alien feel like an alien.”
Since launching just over a week ago, Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 has been met with some pretty middling reviews, particularly around its performance and gameplay. After spending a few hours back in this world, I can see where some of the criticism comes from, but there’s plenty I’m not ready to agree with.
The biggest threat isn’t the Xenomorphs, it’s repetition
When I first heard that Aliens: Fireteam Elite was getting a sequel, I was a little unsure. The first game was a blast, and it’s something my dad and I completed together, battling Xenomorphs across several missions to finish the story. For me, it was great being able to step into this world without fearing for my life or sweating buckets like Alien: Isolation (incredible game) would have me doing, and instead appreciate the game’s homage to the film “Aliens,” from its creature design to its environments. But the first game only offered so much in terms of gameplay, and Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 is essentially the same experience, just revamped.
Compared with the first game, Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 sticks closely to the same co-op shooter formula but expands it in a few key ways. You can now squad up with four players, while new and improved classes, the customizable Specialist class, smarter Xenomorphs, deeper weapon customization and an updated Horde mode add some variety. The story’s also different, taking players to LV-558 to investigate a mysterious distress signal from a mining facility. Across 15 campaign missions, you’ll battle Xenomorphs and other threats while uncovering what happened to the colony.
While there are some newer features, like class abilities with different playstyles and weapons, as well as Xenomorph types like the Exploder and Siren, this still very much feels like the same game. In fact, I’m surprised they didn’t just update the previous game by adding more missions and content, because Fireteam Elite 2 sadly doesn’t do enough to justify being a full sequel. That’s one of the early criticisms I agree with, as the missions ultimately follow the same loop: move through corridors, shoot enemies, reach an arena, survive waves, interact with an objective, then repeat.
Fireteam Elite 2 sadly doesn’t do enough to justify being a full sequel.
That’s what makes the $49.99 price point a little painful. Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 recycles much of the original formula while throwing in some extras and, to give it credit, making the visuals look much prettier and cleaner.
The campaign itself doesn’t offer quite as much excitement as I was hoping for, with the repetitive mission structure making some sections feel like they’re simply there to get you from one Xenomorph encounter to the next. Most of the excitement comes from the hordes themselves, especially when you’re suddenly surrounded and scrambling to keep them at bay.
But in the midst of all this, I still ended up having a great time. Yes, the game is essentially the same as the first in terms of its gameplay and mechanics, but as an “Alien” superfan, I couldn’t help but be immersed anyway. The reworked classes and Specialist system allow you to build your character around different abilities, while the perk system gives you plenty of room to fine tune your loadout.
The progression is another strong selling point, particularly if you’re someone who enjoys the grind. Upgrading weapons, improving your classes and unlocking cosmetics gives you plenty to work toward, making the game much more appealing to completionists who want to squeeze every last bit of content out of it.
One criticism I disagree with, based on my PC experience, is the technical bugs and constant crashes. Thankfully, during my playthrough, I didn’t really encounter any major issues, other than dead Xenomorphs sometimes getting stuck or morphing into the floor, but nothing that actually affected my gameplay. I know bugs are dependent on your platform and can vary from player to player, so I can only speak from my own experience, but Fireteam Elite 2 ran surprisingly well for me. That was made even better by the fact that the game looks stunning, the shooting feels smooth, and everything came together like a perfectly timed Xenomorph ambush.
Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 still hits that sweet spot for ‘Alien’ fans
I know I’ve mostly focused on how Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 is repetitive and too similar to its predecessor. But, because it’s still a well-crafted game with plenty of Xenomorph mayhem (and cleaner visuals that make its beautiful environments stand out), I can easily forgive its unoriginal formula. One thing I should mention is that I played some of the campaign with bots, meaning all three of my squadmates were AI controlled, and honestly, they surprised me. They were so effective that I barely needed reviving, and the experience was almost as efficient as playing alongside real people, which is pretty ironic given they’re Androids.
Perhaps that’s ultimately what Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 does best. It isn’t the campaign that kept me playing, it’s the simple joy of gearing up, choosing my class and diving into another Xenomorph infested mission with a squad. The story may not be particularly memorable, but the moment to moment combat is chaotic, satisfying and undeniably fun, especially when I managed to survive a massive swarm.
For me, though, one of the biggest draws is simply how much it feels like “Aliens.” The industrial environments, Colonial Marine gear, weapons and hordes of Xenomorphs all capture that familiar aesthetic I love about the franchise. It might not be doing anything revolutionary, but there’s something incredibly satisfying about stepping into that world and feeling like a Colonial Marine for a few hours. Put a pulse rifle in my hands and a Xenomorph horde in front of me, and apparently I’m very easy to please.
Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 is available on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.
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