When a game gets a sequel, there’s really only one thing the sequel needs to do: be better than the original in some way. When they aren’t better than the original, that’s when things start getting a bit fuzzy. Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 is, unfortunately, very fuzzy at the best of times.
The game is surprisingly short, sitting at around about 10 hours to finish the main campaign, but it does offer up some additional ways to play. Originally, I was very excited to dive in and see what exactly was different with the sequel, but my excitement began to fade pretty quickly.
Related
10 Best Games Like Helldivers 2
Sometimes we might need a break from fighting in the Galactic War. These horde shooters might scratch that itch.
It’s no secret the game isn’t performing very well, and there are a smattering of reasons for that. Underneath everything, there’s a good game here, but getting to that game felt like an immense challenge. Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 may not be one of the greatest co-op shooters, but it does improve some aspects of the game, even if overall it never manages to get there.
What is Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2?
If you’ve ever played a co-op shooter before, especially in third-person, you’ll have a good understanding of what exactly Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 is and what you’ll be in for. If not, it’s basically a horde shooter set in the Aliens universe where you’ll choose a class and work your way through missions as you attempt to neutralize Xenos and other threats.
With six total classes to choose from, you can face different threats in a number of different ways depending on how you like to play. Each class also comes equipped with a spatial skill distribution tree that allows you to refine your build to suit your needs perfectly. Missions require up to four players to venture onto a map and complete objectives while staying alive in the face of immense danger.
Each of the 15 missions will push players to survive by working together and using their kits effectively to find success in a few different maps. Once the main story is concluded, players will unlock a horde mode to play and use as a battleground to test their kits.
There are a few different kinds of enemies to fight, and each one has distinct advantages and disadvantages, including different elite monsters that may require more of the team’s focus to take down. Even with what the game has on offer, though, it still struggles a bit to feel like it reaches the same heights as the previous incarnation.
Putting Gameplay First
Before we get into a lot of the meat and potatoes about why the game doesn’t exactly stack up, I want to make sure I highlight how enjoyable the game is to actually play. From those first few missions right up to the end of the game, wiping out hordes of monsters always feels like a good time.
This is in part thanks to some really great weapons and sound design. Weapons feel like they should for the most part, with the ones that fire heavy bullets getting that sensation as the bullets pierce through enemies. Some of the more rapid-fire guns really capture that feeling of blasting down a hallway into a horde of enemies.
The enemy design also helps force you to adapt, as some enemy elites will run you down and stay in your formation while others have more hit-and-run tactics. It really got me thinking about what the best way to deal with all of them would be. For instance, the Xenomorphs have an enemy with a shielded head who just runs you down, so getting them surrounded is the best strategy to deal with them.
It really got me thinking about what the best ways to deal with all of them would be. For instance, the Xenomorphs have an enemy with a shielded head who just runs you down, so getting them surrounded is the best strategy to deal with them.
What really shows that gameplay came first with this game is the map and set piece design that seems to clearly want to elicit those awe-inspiring moments of fear. Some more long, narrow hallways with plenty of places for Xenos to appear from and create some very creepy atmosphere that really pulls it all together.
Related
10 Co-Op Games That Are Longer Than 100 Hours
These are Co-Op games that you can play with your friends for well-above one hundred hours.
Non-Cohesive Writing and World
There are a few things I want to touch on specifically when it comes to the script, because I think it’s pretty obvious if you’re interested in this game, you’re not coming here for a narrative-fueled experience. You’re probably here to shoot a lot of bugs and make things go splat as you attempt to make a species extinct.
That doesn’t stop the story from being incredibly distracting, thanks to some truly tone-deaf writing. It wouldn’t even be that big of a deal if the game didn’t force-feed you the story in arguably the most boring way possible. You’re just walking around and talking to the different NPCs as they spout exposition.
The biggest issue is how ridiculous some of the characters sound compared to what’s happening in the game. The penultimate example of this is that your call sign is Hotshot, which everyone uses to joke around or sound jovial even when the situation is incredibly dire. It feels like no one is taking the situation seriously, and that’s only exacerbated by the insane number of mutilated corpses you find on levels.
That doesn’t stop the story from being incredibly distracting, thanks to some truly tone-deaf writing. It wouldn’t even be that big of a deal if the game didn’t force-feed you the story in arguably the most boring way possible.
As for the story, it’s surprisingly not that bad. A scientist is attempting to come up with a way to control Xenos using a new invention called Acidium that she created. It’s a little silly for sure, but it has some pull for something that could be a bit more meaningful with the right setups and payoffs.
The constant quips and jokes just never manage to land because the game refuses to take itself seriously. It’s almost as if the team writing the story and the team writing dialogue had two completely different ideas about what was happening. Normally, this wouldn’t affect much, but because of how the game presents it, you’re forced to deal with it.
The Trouble With Replayability
The game does offer some ways to replay the game at various difficulties and really put your skills to the test, but that also has some troubles to it. There is only limited replayability, and nothing much changes even if you decide to play as a new class, which effectively starts you back over from square one.
It felt deeply counterintuitive to make class levels an individual thing when power levels exist. These don’t exactly determine if you can handle the mission you’re on, but it will be a greater struggle if you’re not up to snuff. That sort of leaves you at the mercy of the teammates you get if they’ll be able to carry you to the finish line.
It’s not a bad way to do replayability, but it does start to wear thin when you feel like leveling is a bit slow. You don’t necessarily have to play back through the entire campaign, as you have the horde mode you can use, but even that starts out with a higher power level than you start with.
Even so, the big draw for replaying the game seems to be Challenge Cards, which act as modifiers for missions. These make things more difficult for increased rewards, but still there isn’t going to be much variety aside from these. Replayability suffers because there just isn’t all that much to see outside of what you probably already have.
The Technical Problems
I’ve played a lot of online co-op games, and most of them usually run pretty well. There are always going to be problems with connections and such, but this game takes it a step further. They really went all out in terms of what’s broken, with things like gliding across surfaces, enemies caught in walls, and some more than frustrating latency issues.
At first, I figured it must be an issue I was having, but that isn’t the case. The game just has these problems if you aren’t the host, which makes it very difficult to fight on the hardest difficulties when you’re suddenly surrounded by enemies you’ve just shot dead. It became so bad that, at a certain point, I just started running the missions solo.
There isn’t even that much to say in terms of technical performance, but when the game does end up working, it can be a really great time. This seems to be a rarer occurrence than it normally should be for a game like this. Hopefully, at some point these issues get addressed, and the game can start on the right path to greatness.
On the surface, being a better version of Aliens: Fireteam Elite feels like a no-brainer, but the game just constantly does things wrong. From the poor story to the less-than-poor optimization and beyond, the game just never manages to be more than its predecessor. The things the game does right, like combat and set pieces, just can’t seem to make up the difference with so many other problems stacked on top of them. With the game being so relatively short, there isn’t much to enjoy, and anything beyond the core experience will come from other players. In the end, Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 fails in too many places to be a worthy successor at this point in time.
Released
August 25, 2026
ESRB
Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Strong Language, Violence
Publisher(s)
Daybreak Game Company
Pros & Cons
- Great gunplay and abilities
- Good map and set piece design
- Poor writing that detracts from the atmosphere
- Major online performance issues
- Counterintuitive design for replayability
Next
10 Best Space-Based RPGs
The final frontier is the perfect setting for video games to take flight.