Summary

Aliens often get the short straw in video games, ending up as the target that players must take down. They are either the sole,deadly adversaryor general enemies that the player encounters while playing the game; however, some games promote peaceful relationships with alien races, and these races often act as allies.

Certain projects feature a single, powerful alien race that, for some reason, is intent on assisting the player. Others feature multiple alien races that the player can befriend and cooperate with toward common goals. Often, these games stresstrade and diplomacyas the optimal way to deal with alien races, instead of down the barrel of a blaster.

8Journey To The Savage Planet

Humorous Exploration Game

InJourney To The Savage Planet, the player works with a friendly corporate AI and a number of allied alien species, to explore a colorful alien world. The goal of this exploration is to discover and catalog the flora and fauna.

Journey To The Savage Planetis a very light-hearted and oftenhumorous game. The way the player interacts with the friendly alien species is a great example of how interspecies interactions could potentially have positive outcomes. Overall, this is a quirky little game that is fun to play.

InKerbal Space Program, the player is allied with a species of small green aliens, the Kerbals. The player works alongside the Kerbals, who act as the game’s main protagonist in the journey of humankind’s quest for the stars.

Based on an incrediblycomplex physics simulation, this charming and often funny game revolves around overcoming engineering challenges to safely launch the Kerbals into space. Furthermore, with realistic orbital physics, the game requires the player to calculate fuel loads, thrusts, and vectors to help the Kerbals come back down safely.

6XCOM 2: War Of The Chosen

DLC For The Original XCOM 2 Game

XCOM 2: War Of The Chosenis the transformative DLC for the originalXCOM 2game. Much more than just a continuation of the story, it adds some huge new gameplay features. Considered one of the best turn-based combat games, despite the often harsh RNG outcomes,WoTCbrings friendly aliens to the game.

Two playable races, allied with theXCOMteam, are added in theWoTC DLC. These are hybrid races that have evolved traits from the Eldars. These are the Skirmishes, the rebel Advent troopers, and the Templars, a semi-mystic warrior monk race.

Destiny 2is a live service game where players can either play solo or team up to meet challenges in a shared world. Playing as Guardians, players are tasked with protecting humanity from alien aggression.

The game features alien species that are friendly to humans, and often operate as allies in the battle to keep humans safe. These include the Eliksni and the Awoken. Both species have common enemies with humankind and assist in pushing the alien threat back. The rich lore and story, and clever optional co-op modes makeDestinty 2a natural choice for this list.

The gameplay inStarboundtakes place in a procedurally generated sandbox universe. Taking on the role of an intrepid space explorer, the player will meet a whole host of friendly alien species and cultures.

Indeed, the game requires the player to befriend the alien species that they encounter, to help them to build a new life out in the black. Collaboration and cooperation between species is a pivotal aspect of the gameplay inStarbound. Few games promote peace and coexistence over combat, andStarboundtakes an entirely different view of relationships with alien races than most games.

As sci-fi games go, especially those that fall under the action role-playing genre,The Outer Wildsapproaches relationships with alien species in a fairly unique way. The player is set adrift in a galaxy that is aggressively controlled by large corporations. To do well in the game, the player needs to form friendships and alliances with the alien races they meet.

The game is often funny, especially in the way the player communicates with the alien races they meet. The fact the game promotes meaningful cooperative relationships between species over direct conflict makes it something a little different.

Star Trekis the longest-running sci-fi franchise, and arguably the one that has had the longest-lasting impact on the human psyche. In the Western hemisphere, at least. In Star Trek Online, the player joins a dedicated fan base in exploring the final frontier.

Forming alliances and relationships with alien species is a core part of the gameplay inStar Trek Online. Diplomacy underscores the gameplay in many ways. Yes, there are also alien conflicts, but it is cooperation and codependency that form the backdrop of the galaxy in thisMMORPG.

Since its rocky launch,No Man’s Skyhas matured into what many people consider the seminalspace survival and explorationgame of recent years. There are several friendly alien species that the player must interact with inNo Man’s Sky, this includes the Gek, Korvax, Vy’keen, and the enigmatic, mysterious Travellers.

These alien races provide the player with clues about their languages, and they also act as traders and mission-givers in the game. Each start system is claimed by one of the three main races, and the player can raise their standing with each race, to improve relations.