Melee combat and controls for the consoles explained (and have some class, set the video to 720p ). There isn't a PC version of this video (awaits epic rant back from howard... ), but just replace the left and right shoulder buttons for mouse buttons and the "x" round button for E or whatever you have it as. The Left trigger button would probably be shift or ctrl (or again whatever you have it set too.)



i didn't mean it howard as i love you dearly.

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-"You've really worked out your banter, haven't you?"
-"No, not really. This is a different thing, it's spontaneous and it's called wit."

I'm confused, what does the focus mechanic do? :o

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"There is a simple, logical explanation... and there is nothing under the bed.”

AFAIK (though Protect will have to correct me here as I still cannot make it work in the game) is that focus is essentially a form of targeting. Using the focus ability of the pred or alien allows you to target an enemy and then leap straight to their location to commence evisceration. This is what I was cracking wise about yesterday when I said that they added a game mechanic that removed the need for you to walk to their target.

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"Fire rained from the sky on the day I was born: 10,000 lives I ended before drawing first breath. Do not speak to me of guilt or regret, Jonathan.” - Brayan, The Keepers of the Fire

Evil Genius! The first and only game named after SaintK... besides Peggle Deluxe...

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SaintK: I'm completely lost

Heh, no rant - I have no more venom left for this "game", but i feel comment should be made that Rebellion have seen fit to replace the entire combat system with an unlabelled QTE. There's progress for you.


I look forward to the sequel to this game whose only interaction for PC gamers will be to install it, after which the game is entirely automated and plays itself...

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"Fire rained from the sky on the day I was born: 10,000 lives I ended before drawing first breath. Do not speak to me of guilt or regret, Jonathan.” - Brayan, The Keepers of the Fire

Okay thats stupid and cements a bit of Howards view. A human blocking an attack from an alien = not done. Seriously, your skin would rupture and your bones would probably be crushed.

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Da boyz need themselves a Nob they do

Not if that human would be Chuck Norris! :O
He'd block everything (or just don't cause he's invincible?)
and round-kick down the lot of em'! xD

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"There is a simple, logical explanation... and there is nothing under the bed.”

vasquez sticks an aliens face against an air vent wall using only her foot. just saying.

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-"You've really worked out your banter, haven't you?"
-"No, not really. This is a different thing, it's spontaneous and it's called wit."

Chad focus mode allows the alien to pounce to walls when using the jump key or button, instead of jumping on the spot. Focus mode for the predator highlights weapon pickups, finds environment hooks that they can jump to if they are in the right proximity. The mode also allows both species to leap at a player, which isn't a laziness mechanic, its what an animal would want to be able to do.. its like asking the hunter out of L4D to go politely tap on bills shoulder and ask if he can grind him into the pavement. In SP the focus mode will also bring up objective markers, which are for lazy people, but as its on a button, does not have to be used.

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-"You've really worked out your banter, haven't you?"
-"No, not really. This is a different thing, it's spontaneous and it's called wit."

True enough but this is an alien she has already shot several times and there is not enough room in the vent for it to attack her as it normally would. If an alien has the space to attack a human with tail and claws, the human is dead. Period. No exceptions. The first PC AVP (by Rebellion, no less) showed this perfectly. An alien does not even have to pause to dismember a human as it leaps past.

Aliens are strong (but not predator strong), tough (they can survive hard vacuum!) and blindingly fast. Add to this that their claws and tail are essentially very large, ceramic knives and you have a very efficient killing machine. This is not apparent in AVP at all.

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"Fire rained from the sky on the day I was born: 10,000 lives I ended before drawing first breath. Do not speak to me of guilt or regret, Jonathan.” - Brayan, The Keepers of the Fire

You're saying that a game mechanic that removes the need for me to be able to maneuver/sneak up on a target (especially given I am (as pred or alien) very camouflaged) and instead simply plops me gently next to my victim is not lazy? I cannot possibly imagine what explanation would justify this belief...

If the alien had been designed correctly (as in if wall-running was not tragically broken, the sprint not farcical and the general movement wasn't speed far too slow) and was able to move as it should, again, like it can in the first game, then this talent-removal-system would not be required.

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"Fire rained from the sky on the day I was born: 10,000 lives I ended before drawing first breath. Do not speak to me of guilt or regret, Jonathan.” - Brayan, The Keepers of the Fire

This I did not know, quite useful since I missed the leap function, they just hid it well :P
I'll have to try it out.

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"There is a simple, logical explanation... and there is nothing under the bed.”

Howard it throws you at them! not next to them, u can still sneak if you choose too. Jesus, im all for strong opinions but you just seem irrational at the moment.

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-"You've really worked out your banter, haven't you?"
-"No, not really. This is a different thing, it's spontaneous and it's called wit."

I have to defend the mechanic as well, you still have to aim where to throw yourself,
and the previous titles both had a leap mechanic for the aliens. Might be new for the predator
I suppose, but it makes sense, since they surely have the ability to leap, and they also benefit
of (from?) CQC.

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"There is a simple, logical explanation... and there is nothing under the bed.”

Ok, I'm not trying to be supercilious here so maybe I am simply not being clear. Let me elucidate:

In AVP there is a focus-then-leap mechanic, right? What it does it allow the predator or alien characters to cover very large distances very quickly and land with a high degree of accuracy. That sound fair? So by "focussing" (Read: "pressing a button") then leaping (Read: pressing a second button") an alien or predator character can clear entire rooms (more in fact) from a standing start, with no penalty, no fall damage and land very near (if the target is stationary, then immediately next to) their target. While performing this move they cannot be damaged as they are moving far too fast (what? 10 X normal movement speed), the move cannot be interrupted nor interfered with. Does all that sound like a fair description?

I'll assume it does for the sake of narrative.

Your argument that it is not a "dumbing-down" of the controls or an over simplification to accommodate those who lack talent is that all the tactics that the preceding games used such as hiding, stealth and sneaking up on your prey, are still viable within the new game, right?

Well, that is the problem. If there is a mechanic in a game that, at worst, moves me almost instantaneously towards my target, has no drawbacks and puts me in a position to deliver a very swift and high damage attack (if not a killing one) they why would I ever consider employing any other tactic? Why would I scurry about manually hunting and attacking something when I can simply stand where I spawn, wait for an enemy and press 2 buttons followed by 2 more. Wash, rinse, repeat.

Adding a game mechanic that replaces skill with automation is always inexcusable. Imagine if next week Valve announce that they feel sorry for under-talented players who wish to play sniper and are therefore releasing an Aim-Bot that, with the press of 2 buttons, targets and fires with, say, 85% accuracy. It wont guarantee a headshot, but it will make it very likely you will hit them. Their defence for doing this, of course, would be that you don't have to use it and that the manual aiming option is still viable.

How about an example that actually happened? The Codemasters game GRiD. Their plan from the outset was to remove skill from the game. Their entire mission statement was that anyone who plays GRiD should instantly feel like a racing driver, regardless of skill. Now this was great for the unwashed masses, those without inclination or time to learn the controls to a racing game or those who simply lacked the ability play them well could suddenly play this game and feel like a champion. Now sure there is an argument for this: people should be able to enjoy the games they buy, right? True enough, but games, as I will have written on my tombstone, should require skill.
I am very bad at racing sims. Very bad indeed. And yet I own a G25 steering wheel and a copy of every SimBin title for the last 10 years. I play them most weeks, offline, in practice mode, and slowly but surely I am getting better at them. I am learning the tracks, the feel of the cars and how the physics work. I am gaining skill.
As stated though people may not have time for this level of practice. Fair point. Okay then, I am also deeply useless at bullet-hell Schmups, but I love the idea of them. Can I have a BH-Schmup made that requires no skill? How about a platformer where I never miss a jump?

Games should be made more accessible, no doubt. I love this entertainment medium and I wish to see it grow and thrive so we need to attract any and all we can to the party. We should not however reduce games down to the level of the least skilled person at this party. While GRiD no doubt made many, many people feel good when they beat it, those people are no better at other racers than when they started. What exactly was wrong with the systems we had before? In Gran Tourismo you can, if you are less experienced, turn on a huge array of assists that will help you learn the basics of the game. As you get better you can then slowly remove these assists, therefore breaking down the complex task of learning the skills of a racing driver into manageable chunks. But the industry doesn't like that route any more. Game devs now think they are Hollywood producers and are now in fact making films in which the player is just along for the ride, staring slack-jawed at the special effects. I personally don't like where this is heading...

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"Fire rained from the sky on the day I was born: 10,000 lives I ended before drawing first breath. Do not speak to me of guilt or regret, Jonathan.” - Brayan, The Keepers of the Fire

No, they didn't. The alien had an extremely powerful but deeply uncontrollable jump function. That is all. There was no "leap", at least not in the sense we are currently discussing.

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"Fire rained from the sky on the day I was born: 10,000 lives I ended before drawing first breath. Do not speak to me of guilt or regret, Jonathan.” - Brayan, The Keepers of the Fire

Gah, after writing all that I now wish I hadn't. I don't think I am wrong but the leap mechanic in this game is absolutely its smallest problem. It is however symptomatic of the cynical design that clearly brought us the game.

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"Fire rained from the sky on the day I was born: 10,000 lives I ended before drawing first breath. Do not speak to me of guilt or regret, Jonathan.” - Brayan, The Keepers of the Fire

Aye, that was what I meant with leap, or was it called pounce perhaps?
Yes, pounce it was! My memory isn't something to count on.
As I see it this leap thingy is just a pounce, but then again, I haven't tried it yet.
As long it's not a homing attack I reckon it's pretty much the same thing.

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"There is a simple, logical explanation... and there is nothing under the bed.”

Howard, my time on this planet grows short each and every day, can you make that massive block of text into something more concise

I'm saying that it is an attack move, you do damage to the enemy when you hit them with a leap attack (you are hitting them, not landing next to them - you can choose to jump near them, or you can choose to walk up to them), this can be countered thou by a block if you see something flying towards you. (i posted a melee video explaining how it may seem like a lazy mechanic but by no means does it make it successful).

I'm not here to defend a mechanic i had no design input on, and I'm NOT having a go at you, but if you are this upset about it, then write a letter to the developer and publisher - and if you don't want to do that then don't buy the damn thing! Ranting here wont change the current industry trend of favouring the console kids (as much as it pains me).

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-"You've really worked out your banter, haven't you?"
-"No, not really. This is a different thing, it's spontaneous and it's called wit."

Fair comment
And to continue from when we were just chatting on steam while I played the game: It is still awful
But seriously. The leap is far less as retarded than it sounded. As predator it is really stupid as it is a replacement for jumping and mantling and is just plain lazy. As alien it is basically useless. Because they have decided to make the alien staggeringly ineffective and a mocking shadow of its former self, adding the leap function does sod all to help. The alien takes forever to kill anything no matter if you leap or not.
The only good thing to come of the leap is the way the alien can leap to high or distant surfaces. But then, you could do this in the first AVP, but it required skill. Here, its just a button press and "TA-DAH!" you're nailed to the ceiling.

If it gets patched again I will try it again and, if I am completely honest, I will also pirate its ass so I can check out the single player but right now this game is and will remain a definite no buy. Between massive oversimplification, terrible mechanics and ugly graphics, there is simply no reason to own it at all. And that is one of the most disappointing things I have written in a long time. AVP is an IP that cries out for gaming and this could so easily have been superb. Simply take a more modern, capable engine and put the first game into it. Adding better graphics, realism and modern design is all AVP needed, instead Rebellion have tried to pander to the masses and killed this game before it had a chance to live.

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"Fire rained from the sky on the day I was born: 10,000 lives I ended before drawing first breath. Do not speak to me of guilt or regret, Jonathan.” - Brayan, The Keepers of the Fire

so, u did or didnt like it?

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-"You've really worked out your banter, haven't you?"
-"No, not really. This is a different thing, it's spontaneous and it's called wit."

I love that if somebody doesn't take the time to tackle the difficulty curve on a game, they suddenly have personal hygiene issues.

Trust me, I know plenty of people who have absolutely zero interest in video games, and I have to tell you Howard. Some of them smelt great.

GRiD was a really fun game, most people play games for fun rather than to test whether they have skillz.

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a bird in a bird in a bird in a bird in a bird in a pig

if it didnt have the jump mechanic, the characters normal jump control would spring them 100 feet in the air which would cause the ultimate bunnyhopping multiplayer fagfest!

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-"You've really worked out your banter, haven't you?"
-"No, not really. This is a different thing, it's spontaneous and it's called wit."

I love how someone's lack of education and understanding of common phrase can be used as a tool to poke fun at the oposition...
http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/unwashed_masses

And you are the perfect example that proves my point...


More than that I love -simply adore in fact- the way that your disagreement with my position becomes an excuse to mock me. You have no better arguments beyond the facile to defend yourselves so you resort to name calling and mud slinging.

Nice to comprehend the level to which I pitch my ideas...


Anyway, back to "happy fun friendly" times with the community... unless you guys aren't through mocking me of course. Heaven forfend an idea you disagree with should be postulated.

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"Fire rained from the sky on the day I was born: 10,000 lives I ended before drawing first breath. Do not speak to me of guilt or regret, Jonathan.” - Brayan, The Keepers of the Fire

At least the unwashed masses have the manners to express their discontent in a polite way.
You are the first person I witness on this forum who expresses himself in such ( propably justified yet ) rude ways, kinda destroys all the love wherever you post.

Really? And explain to me exactly where I have been rude. Show me a post. Go on.

Oh that's right; you can't. 'Cos then you would have to actually read what I post, not what you imagine I post.

Never mind: better luck next time.

Anyway, looks like I'm done here. I don't have the patience for this. Have fun gentlemen...

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"Fire rained from the sky on the day I was born: 10,000 lives I ended before drawing first breath. Do not speak to me of guilt or regret, Jonathan.” - Brayan, The Keepers of the Fire

You know what Howard, this was amusing at first, but is there any chance you could wind your neck in now?

Take it down a couple of notches eh?

I'm all for howards opinions, and im all for anyone's opinions, whether they be genius, brilliant, stupid, lame or weird.

But for all his ranting, and opinions, at least he is being honest; unlike some of few incidences of pettiness i've seen in the past, and the gossiping about other peoples lives, and relationships on mumble that has nothing to do with anyone else.

I think perhaps howard should save his very fine writing talents for more creative pursuits than just forum posts.

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-"You've really worked out your banter, haven't you?"
-"No, not really. This is a different thing, it's spontaneous and it's called wit."