Thanks to some semi-popular video spreading like wildfire on the internet right now, aliens are the talk of the town. Between those who still don’t believe, the tin-foil-hat-wearing individuals who exclaim ‘they always knew’ and the cynical, yet mildly optimistic amongst us, there’s plenty of conversation to be had about whether we’re actually alone in this wide universe, or, as the case apparently is, the fact that we’re definitely not alone.
With that naturally made us think about our favourite video games involving extra-terrestrial life, and there are some doozies! Quite a few of our favourite franchises involve alien life-forms of some sort, we found, so without further ado and in no particular order, here are seven of the best alien game franchises out there!
7. Half-Life
One of the most infamous and arguably first memed video game franchises out there, it’d be impossible to have a list of alien game franchises without including one of the biggest. Started back in 1998 by Valve, Half-Life has gone down in video game infamy for it’s memorable twists, addictive gameplay and utter reluctance to continue the story in a third instalment. Fans continually fan the flames of the rumour mill expecting Valve to announce Half-Life 3 and Valve continues to disappoint. For now anyway.
Experiments gone wrong, alien invasions, the cake is a lie and more make up this franchise that will forever be in fan’s hearts, and whilst they continue to expand the lore of the universe in spin-offs and other media, it’s that elusive third instalment we all want so badly.
Related: Will Half-Life 3 Finally Be Revealed at Gamescom 2023?
6. Gears of War
The tale of Marcus Fenix and Delta Squad is one of danger, tragedy, friendship and loss against a backdrop of ugly, scaly-skinned abominations known as Locust. Burrowing up from the ground with the sole intention of wiping out the humans present on Sera, the franchise has gone on to release six (and counting) entries, multiple books, comics and even a long-rumoured film is in development.
To say the lore of the Gears universe is deep is an understatement, and as we wait for an inevitable sixth game, we’ll take our chainsaws and go boot up Gears of War 5, just to remind ourselves who the real aliens are.
5. Halo
It could be argued that without the success of the Halo franchise, we may not have quite the vibrant, competitive market between the gaming platforms as we do now. It cannot be understated how important Halo was to the Xbox and Microsoft in putting it on the map, and for good reason. Featuring Master Chief as he fights multiple enemies in glorious graphics, revolutionising the first-person shooter and doing it all whilst telling a relatable story? Yes please.
It may have fallen off significantly in recent years, but the significance of Halo will never be diminished, and hopefully we can see a return to it’s former glory days sooner rather than later. This is one of those alien game franchises that lead the way, so we don’t want to lose it.
Related: Halo Infinite May Receive Epic Firefight Mode After 2 Years – But Is It Coming Soon Enough?
4. Destroy All Humans!
You can’t have a list of the best alien game franchises out there without one where you play as the alien destroying all humans, right? And for the record, plenty of unfortunate cows too. Running around the beautifully crafted world and using a variety of tools and weapons to cause mass havoc and destruction is always fun and it never gets boring.
Designed as a parody of cold-war-era-alien-invasion games, every cliché and trope from the genre is present, from the little green men to the psychic abilities and probing. It’s all tongue-in-cheeks ridiculousness that’ll have you laughing one moment, and then the next in fact.
3. Mass Effect
The ending of the third game may have been derided and ridiculed by die-hard and long-time fans, but as a whole the franchise has added more to the video game industry than it has taken. From huge, multi-branching storylines and important decisions that carried over multiple instalments, the Mass Effect franchise so far has continued to expand the lore and spectacle of the universe it has created. Even those who haven’t played the games will recognise ‘N7’ or Commander Shephard for what they are, Mass Effect staples.
News on more Mass Effect is relatively low on the ground since the poorly received and critically derided Mass Effect: Andromeda, but for such a rich universe to go to waste is unthinkable, so we hope the developers take their time, and when ready with a great story, throw us back on in there for some more heart-wrenching decisions to make.
2. Dead Space
Claustrophobic survival horror in space. Just that sentence should be enough to immediately draw a memory from your time playing the franchise. One particular pant-ruining moment that has stuck with you through the years? Yeah? Don’t worry, us too. In fact, everyone that has played any of the Dead Space games has that moment, or multiple.
Playing as Isaac in a multitude of scenarios, you’ll find yourself fighting for survival against what feels like an unending horde of enemies, armed with a multitude of weapons that in normal circumstances wouldn’t make sense, but against enemies with more limbs than normal? Perfect! The recent Dead Space Remake took all the lessons of the first three games, and remade the first one with modern gameplay and graphics, and it was a blast. A terrifying blast.
Related: Dead Space Review – An (Inter)Stellar Remake (PS5)
1. Doom
This may be cheating a little, as the enemies in the Doom franchise are inhabitants of hell, rather than strict aliens, but in the definition for alien life it says ‘life which may occur outside Earth and which did not originate on Earth’, so we think we’re good to include it in our list of our favourite alien game franchises.
One of the first first-person shooters to go 3D, the Doom franchise has stood the test of time, with the most recent release being Doom: Eternal in 2019, which continued the franchise tradition of being high energy, high impact and highly graphic in nature. Bullets and blood would fly everywhere during every skirmish, and it was less about the size of the enemy and more about the amount, although there were times in the franchise where you’d encounter some behemoths. Hellspawn or aliens, or both, either way, the Doom franchise is showing no signs of slowing down, just like its protagonist Doomguy.
What do you make of the choices here? Would you have chosen differently in your own list of alien game franchises? Do you think we’re taking liberties or stretching the definition of an alien too much? Let us know in the comments!
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