The fate of the four player co-op game, Aliens: Colonial Marines, hinges on the success of another game that just so happens to have a co-op mode; Aliens versus Predator.  So while the Gearbox developed Colonial Marines, a title with a promised four player cooperative campaign was announced first, it's the latter game with the add-on survival mode that will decide when, and possibly if, Colonial Marines ships.

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It's been some time since we've heard anything about Aliens: Colonial Marines from developer Gearbox Software.  Perhaps its because they've been so busy working on Borderlands, or perhaps there just wasn't much to tell.

Make no mistake, the four player co-op game is still in the works with more info arriving soon.

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Right now we all should have been knee deep in xenomorph carcasses.  Aliens Colonial Marines was originally planned for an early June release, but has since all but disappeared from release schedules.  Instead we saw publisher Sega choosing to hype up a brand new, and non co-op, Alien vs. Predator title.  We feared the worst, thinking the four player co-op shooter from Gearbox was canceled.  Thankfully that's not the case.

Gearbox president Randy Pitchford has told Kotaku the game is now a 2010 release, and then when the game does release we'll also see a Nintendo DS version.  No word on if that version will have co-op or not.

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This week Sega decided to announce a new game in the Aliens franchise, in fact, it was a new game in the Aliens vs. Predator franchise.  There was a bit of turmoil when the game was announced, because it appeared as though Aliens: Colonial Marines got delayed when an official spokesperson stated that "..by adjusting the release of our other Aliens titles to accommodate [Aliens vs. Predator], SEGA will ensure that every title lives up to the high expectations of Aliens and AvP fans."

Shortly after a rumor began that Sega, the publishers of the game, had pulled funding from the Obsidian created RPG Aliens as well as Gearbox's upcoming 4 player co-op shooter.  According to a Joystiq source, production has ceased on the game because of this.

Talking to a source who wished to remain off the record, they mentioned that it's entirely possible that Sega did though no real evidence exists other than perhaps Sega's financial situation. Current priorities are on Borderlands which is scheduled to ship first, lends itself to the assertion that Gearbox merely shifted focus to strengthen it's development.

Despite Sega's financial difficulties our source told us Gearbox owners could get Aliens: Colonial Marines done through "force of will alone."  For now priorities are on another cooperative shooter in Borderlands; I can't say we aren't disappointed, but all isn't lost.

It's an action packed X rated episode of the Co-Opticast. Don't worry, we're still kid friendly.

Phil Kollar of former 1UP FM and now Rebel FM fame joins us to discuss Part 2 of our co-op games of 2009 list. Ghostbusters, Aliens: Colonial Marines, Phantasy Star 0, Halo 3: ODST and Mad Balls: Babo Invasion...yes balls. I told you this was x-rated.

It's our longest, most detailed, and extreme episode yet!

Hit the Podcast Page to Listen or Download and don't forget to leave a review on iTunes!

Co-Optimus reader rafoca comes through again with a great find of this Aliens: Colonial Marines preview from GamesRadar.  The new Aliens game from Gearbox is penned by some veteran writers of film and TV, with credits like Battlestar Galactica under their belt, so you know there's an excellent story here.  In fact, throughout the single player campaign the player will take the role of one of six space marines and their perspective on the post Alien 3 events.

Gearbox is famous for their Brothers in Arms series, and Aliens: Colonial Marines is said to borrow heavily from it.  It's a lot more tactical in some sense, but it also makes gameplay much more team oriented.  And with anything team oriented comes co-op play, Aliens is no exception.
 

You can not only set up turrets but use technicians to hack and lock or weld doors, order your team to push tables and cabinets against windows, and set up strike teams to cover weak areas of a room. You can even set booby traps to cover air vents if your explosives guy is still alive. The pulse rifles feature a ticking ammo level, Hicks’ Remington shotgun is here for close quarter escapes and the Smart Guns, as carried by Vasquez and Drake, make a welcome appearance.

Yeah...I'll have that. 

Featuring full 4 player drop-in/drop-out play this game is one we are anxiously awaiting.  According to a recent Sega press release, Aliens is set to drop in Q1 of this year.  So we won't be waiting too much longer.

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2008 was a co-op fan's dream come true.  Dozens of quality co-op games were released on all platforms.  From January to December, you could be busy playing some fantastic games alongside your friends.  2009 looks to continue that trend, with intriguing titles like Resident Evil 5, Aliens: Colonial Marines, Halo Wars, and many more on schedule for release this year.  Our staff members share their most anticipated games for 2009 after the break!

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A new preview went up this morning on CVG, and thanks to the watchful eyes of Co-Optimer rafoca, we have some co-op tidbits for you!

Particularly interesting is this excerpt from the article's intro:

Like this month's exceptional Left 4 Dead, Colonial Marines is a four-player co-op game centred around survival: you're constantly under attack and the environments you move through are frequently hiding your enemy.

If you don't know why this is an exciting correllation, then click here before reading any further: The 2008 Co-Op Game of the Year Awards.

According to CVG, in-game locations will include planet LV-426, the vessel Sulaco, and prison facility 'Fury' 161 to round out the original trilogy. Supposedly, there will also be some type of supporting content to keep Alien: Resurrection a part of the game's mythology, but to what degree Gearbox Software isn't disclosing yet.

Click "Read More" to see additional quotes and comments.

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One of the most anticipated co-op titles next year is Gearbox's Aliens: Colonial Marines.  With four player co-op play set in the traditional Aliens universe, it's easy to see how this could be the best thing since Left 4 Dead.   While we've had numerous Alien games before, none have offered co-op play and none have put players in the raw experience of an Aliens movie.  DailyGame.net explains it best:

I want to suspend my disbelief and encounter eggs and pretend as if I had no idea what they were and then have a facehugger jump out at me like what happened to Kane in the original Alien. Indeed, an A:CM teaser trailer showed us this moment, though astute residents of Gearbox's official forums concluded it was CGI, even it if was done in the game engine. CGI, in-engine, teaser or actual gameplay ... it's hinting that this game is headed in the right direction. But there's more than that. 

Think about it,  none of the previous games attempted to bring fear into the equation.  Most were straight up action.  Gearbox has the opportunity to not only expand the universe, but reenvision it.  And there's no better way to experience that than with your friends!

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 Layoffs in the industry are never a good thing, so it's unfortunate we have to report that developer Gearbox has recently laid off 26 employees in an effort to "adjust internal strategy."

As you may or may not know, Gearbox is currently developing Aliens: Colonial Marines, a four player co-op shooter for multiple platforms.  When the story first broke it had first appeared as though the game was going to be canceled, but Gearbox President Randy Pitchford has set the record straight denying the rumor.

One of the more interesting things to come out of this whole situation is the downplaying that something like this is really news.  In fact, according to Mr. Pitchford, it's part of the natural cycle of game studios.

The timing of these tactical decisions relates more to natural maneuvering that all studios should only consider after they finish a big effort than anything else. I know there is a tendency in the press to get the maximum value out of a story, but unless we have a *lot* more fans that are *much* more rabid about what we are doing than I thought we did, I don’t imagine there to be much of an exciting story here after all.

I imagine he is referring to the recently released Brothers in Arms title which hasn't done to well in terms of sales, being buried in an already overcrowded holiday season.  Perhaps they shouldn't have cut co-op play from it?

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