Summary
There are a number of fantastical entities that are frequently leveraged by game designers as the enemies of their games.Threatening zombies, vampires, ghosts, and spirits are all commonly encountered as opponents in games, and of course, aliens are an ever-rich pool of inspiration for game developers. There have probably been more alien enemies in games than any other fictional creature.
When we talk about aliens, we generally meanevil aliens, which, more often than not, have some bad intentions towards humankind. Generally in the form of some minor incursions or even a full-blown alien invasion, which the player has to successfully defend humanity from.
As a genetically enhanced human soldier, Master Chief is likely one of the best-knownvideo game protagonistsof all time. He makes his first appearance inHalo: Combat Evolved. His job is to defend humanity from an invading species of aliens named the Covenant.
With its great combat system, fun multiplayer mode, and varied game maps, Halo: Combat Evolved is considered a classic. Any fans of sci-fi shooter games can appreciate this game, even if it does look a little dated by modern standards.
7Starship Troopers: Terran Ascendancy
Fast And Frantic RTS
Based on theStarship Troopersmovie franchise,Starship Troopers: Terran Ascendancyis areal-time strategy gamethat is renowned for being quite challenging. Battles are often chaotic, as the player fights off swarms of Arachnids using both ground and air units.
On top of the RTS style combat, is a surprisingly deep strategy layer, requiring the player to manage their troops, and make decisions about where to deploy their forces next. Overall, the game does a great job of capturing the feeling of the movies, as the player strives to fight back never-ending hordes of insect-like aliens.
Set in a post-apocalyptical landscape, players of this live-service first-person shooter are tasked with defending humanity from several different alien races. These include the Vex, the Hive, and the Fallen. Playing solo or cooperatively, players take part in fast-paced events, fighting back against alien incursions.
Destinyhas been in operation for a decade, and is still widely popular with a loyal fan base. It is notable for its combination of RPG-inspired character development, and great FPS combat mechanics. With its expansive and immersive game world, it is fun to play, and has some real longevity.
5The War Of The Worlds
1920s Inspired Artistic Style
In 1898, H.G. Wells’ seminal sci-fi novel,War of the Worldswas first published. Since this time, it has been the basis of several movies, and was also the seed of one of the greatest radion pranks ever pulled.The War Of The Worldsvideo game follows the story closely, and attempts to deliver this story using a 1920s aesthetic.
With a combination of puzzle-solving and platform-style gameplay, with a large helping of stealth mechanics thrown in, it is fairly unique. The game focuses on exploration and survival, rather than head-to-head combat.
Xenonauts
There can be no doubt thatXenonautsis heavily inspired by the games in theXCOMfranchise. It follows a very similar recipe, combining a top-level strategic layer with turn-based combat in the mission scenarios, as players attempt to beat back an alien invasion that is taking place during theCold Warera.
Players have to set up their base infrastructure, research new weapons and defensive technologies, and use these resources to deploy teams of operatives to combat the alien threat. Overall, fans of theXCOMfranchise would find this game to be extremely familiar.
Starcraftis a game that took the real-time strategy genre, and demonstrated just how such a game should be done. Pitting the defending Terrans against two invading species, the Zerg and the Protoss,Starcraftset the standards for making an RTS challenging and fun at the same time. Each of the three sides in the conflict has unique units and strategies, and plays entirely differently.
The game also helped set the scene for modern esports, with its great competitive multiplayer mode, and has become firmly entrenched in gamer culture, with almost every gamer knowing what the word Zerg means when applied to RTS tactics.
Resistance: Fall of Manfollows the exploits of Nathan Hale, a soldier in the 1950s. Nathan is fighting tooth and nail against an alien incursion by a race named the Chimera. The game is notable for the fact that the excellent narrative is used to justify the often fast-paced first-person shooter action.
The game features a fully destructible environment, which Nathan can use to his advantage at times, although often this can also result in higher risk. The aliens are truly frightening, with the game verging on being a horror title at times.
Valve’sHalf-Life 2is another title that is considered a milestone in gaming history. Picking up on the story of Gordon Freeman,Half-Life 2was the first game that featured theSource engineat heart. At the time, it set the standard for FPS graphics, and still looks great today.
Gordon is off to fight the Combine once more inHalf-Life 2, although this time around the plot is a little more dark and sinister. With its fantastic story, quality world-building, and iconicHalf-Lifethemes, it is an old game that is still worth playing today.
