Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 is likely one of the most irritating fumbles of 2026.
I’m an enormous Alien and Aliens fan, and I’ve beloved the regular movement of online game variations over time – every part from the daft Aliens Vs. Predator on the PS3, by way of to the long-lasting Alien Isolation on PS4. I am even a fairly large fan of the primary Aliens: Fireteam Elite as a schlocky however enjoyable co-op shooter.
Aliens Fireteam Elite 2, nonetheless, is an enormous downgrade of a sequel. It’s overlong, horrendously repetitive, and worst of all, it’s simply bland.
The very first thing that basically hit me was the dramatic downgrade in visuals. Fireteam Elite 2 might have a sharper look than its predecessor, however it’s misplaced a number of the attraction that I loved within the first recreation. The forged shadows in lengthy, steely, misty corridors now really feel fairly empty and fairly boring.
There’s an absence of route or artistry within the environments of this sequel, which implies the primary half of its marketing campaign would possibly as properly have taken place in the very same location; in some situations it truly does. It’s so samey, which is an appalling disgrace contemplating the sequence’ iconography is a part of the attraction. There are little flashes of that sci-fi world all of us love, however they’re so fleeting.
Then there’s the story. Let’s be actual: no person is booting up the Fireteam Elite sequence for its narrative, however even nonetheless, that is tough. Weyland-Yutani experiments are naturally current, however the revelations are so drawn out as a result of they’re painfully apparent hours earlier than they’re revealed.
Even when the story dabbles in parts just like the Prometheus lore, it appears like such a lacklustre model of what we noticed within the first recreation, and its remedy of such corners of this universe feels uncharacteristically lighthearted.
As you finally enterprise aboard an Engineer’s ship, which ought to be this daunting activity, a personality is yapping over comms about how jealous they’re and the way a lot enjoyable you’re going to have.
Even the low decision pre-rendered cutscenes that break up some missions jogged my memory extra of arcade machine cutscenes than something you need to be seeing in a 2026 PS5 launch.
Clearly it’s all simply an excuse to go from one place to a different and shoot Xenos, however the finish of this marketing campaign is such a moist fart of a climax that I simply shrugged my shoulders and turned off my PS5 for the night time afterwards.
All through the marketing campaign, there are NPCs within the Endeavour hub space. Within the final recreation, I loved that NPCs had loads of lore to let you know in case you wished to ask about it. In Fireteam Elite 2, it’s important to take heed to them waffle for thus lengthy, with brutal voice appearing, even worse writing, and peculiar dialogue choices that simply don’t match with any of it. At the least you possibly can skip it in order to finish your struggling early.
Then there’s the motion, which comes brutally near being thought of a slideshow. Efficiency on each base PS5 and PS5 Professional is uneven. This factor runs buttery clean whenever you’re strolling down its corridors or briefly moments of motion, however as quickly because the Xenos begin piling up and the bullets begin flying (, the entire level of the sport), the efficiency tanks. It’s borderline headache-inducing.
Admittedly although, when it does work, there may be some type of enjoyable available. Squad sizes have been bumped from three to 4 on this sequel, so there may be nonetheless that turn-your-brain-off attraction – a childlike a part of my gray matter nonetheless loves blasting Xenos, much more so with pals. It is only a disgrace we do not see DualSense haptics utilised right here.
Talking of co-op, if you do not have a devoted squad to play with, you will be counting on public matchmaking or AI companions. Since this is not actually a tactical co-op shooter, getting by with randoms is not so unhealthy, though matchmaking may be fairly prolonged. AI companions, alternatively, are brutal to play with, with no actual tactical consciousness.
Whichever means you play, Fireteam Elite 2 does have a plethora of Xeno varieties, starting from long-range acid-spitters to charging bull-like monsters. There are another additions in there, which can be acquainted to those that performed the Pathogen DLC of the primary recreation. The entire enemies are nonetheless fairly enjoyable to go up in opposition to, particularly within the latter a part of the marketing campaign when it begins throwing them at you by the dozen.
Nevertheless, the sport does not actually do something new in comparison with the primary relating to enemies. Actually, irritatingly, I felt that the AI of the Xenos wasn’t fairly as spectacular right here. Certain, they’ll swarm you, albeit to not the impact of the Zekes in World Battle Z, or Tyranids in Warhammer 40K: House Marine 2, however they don’t utilise the ceilings or partitions the identical means they did within the first recreation.
This can be a nitpick, however I additionally missed the well being bars of larger Xenos and the massive satisfying crimson cross that might pop up when an enemy was killed within the first recreation. For these greater enemies within the sequel, you will blast away with no indication of how shut they’re to loss of life.
Well being bar or no, there may be nonetheless some first rate problem to Fireteam Elite 2. Even the common problem will knock you round, and I skilled a number of ranges that my crew wanted to retry. There are additionally problem choices in case you fancy going up for extra of a problem, however these tie into the sport’s fight rating system, which for a lot of might properly be the sport’s saving grace.
In Fireteam Elite 2, there’s fairly in-depth customisation, which lets you fine-tune your characters’ talents, weapons, and tools, with every addition including to your fight rating. Booting up the sport, you’ll be capable to select between six archetypes, every with their very own ability.
Nevertheless, as you stage them up, you are capable of combine and match to make the right construct for you. There’s an abundance of choices throughout perks, talents, and weapon attachments, and if in case you have some coordinated crew synergy, it may be enjoyable to bounce one another’s perks and weapons off of one another.
You unlock extra weapons, perks, and attachments as you stage up throughout the marketing campaign, and repeatedly utilizing particular archetypes and weapons unlocks further perks. I modified my construct a number of instances throughout my playthrough, utilising shotguns and sensible rifles with missile barrage perks in some runs, and power weapons and pulse rifles with turrets in different runs.
There are additionally problem playing cards to spice issues up a little bit additional. A few of these can truly be used that can assist you out, like boosts to ammo capability, however others are all about amping up the problem, like locking melee or spawning an elite enemy for each 40 foes you kill. Since each participant can equip one among these, every stage can have its personal little flavour.
You’ll be able to put all of these to the take a look at, too, within the recreation’s horde mode, which unlocks after finishing the principle recreation. However truthfully, in case you’re something like me, you’ll really feel such as you’ve had your fill of the expertise by the point credit roll.
