Alien Front Online

Written by Arthur Hughes  on July 26, 2001

First Impressions: KILL СEM ALL

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Alien Front Online will be Sega's latest foray into the online gaming world. The game gives you the choice of either being an alien attacker or an army defender. Each side is equipped with three vehicles to choose from (this is not the final amount, there are expected to be a few more). The army side has three selectable tanks, the M1A1 Abrams, the Merkava, and the M-109. Each tank is noticeably different, no not just the graphics like half the games out there, but in speed and default weapons as well. On the other side, the aliens have a hovercraft, a two-legged walker, and a four-legged spider. The hovercraft and the two-legged walker are very fast vehicles, while the best looking four-legged spider is the slowest (figures that the coolest one is the slowest).

The developer, WOW, seems to be converting the controls over to the Dreamcast very well. The controls themselves are going to be fairly simple, there are buttons for moving forwards, backwards, firing your gun, and one for your secondary weapon. It is also easy to navigate back and forth throughout the large landscapes; you won't find yourself getting stuck in any corners, like you do in a lot of these types of games.

Graphically, the game will be on the same level with most of Sega's other titles. Meaning that the action is quick, movements are fluent, and there are some awesome effects. The explosions and gunfire all look good and the vehicles also look impressive. All of the levels look incredible as well, with places like Tokyo and Washington DC, which have been turned into half demolished war zones. This is one area that the game that will not disappoint gamers.

The levels actually seem to be one of the game's best points. They're large, offering plenty of freedom. What would make it better you ask? It seems that you can blast away at nearly everything in each of the stages with some sort of reaction. Hit a building and it will slowly gain damage points, in some cases it will even collapse. This whole demolition thing also gives way to some secrets in the game. In addition, plenty of humans and cars in every stage just waiting to be destroyed or ran over.

Online play, two words every Dreamcast fan loves to hear. This game seems perfect for online death matches. The game also includes a microphone so you can trash talk your opponents over the Internet while you beat them into submission. I think that this will be one of the best online games ever created, simply because of the massive levels and the trash talking. Only problem is the filtering, how will Sega keep people from cussing out the younger audience.