Aliens vs Predator Weapons Guide

Humans may be puny when it comes to a fight with an Alien or a Predator but the one advantage Marines have over their enemies is weaponry. The Marine arsenal is the best in the game. Aliens rely on speed, along with their claws and vicious sets of teeth, to make kills. Predators use stealth, although they do have a laser canon, explosives and meaty wrist blades. Find out the vital details in this Aliens vs Predator Weapons Guide.

As a Marine you’ll have a decent choice of weaponry although ammunition is liable to be an issue. Aim carefully and avoid wasting it on spraying the scenery. You get a handgun as default and can carry either two medium sized guns like the assault rifle and flamethrower or one big smart gun. Always make sure you choose your reload times carefully, take cover and reload between kills because you are extremely vulnerable when you are fumbling to get that new mag in.

Melee Attack – Using the middle mouse button you can pull off a block or shove your enemy back to give you room to fire. Just remember a heavy enemy attack will swipe through a block.

VP78 Pistol – This is your handgun and you’ll never be without it. It is a reliable back up weapon and very handy when you run out of ammo with your main gun. The default fire is a single shot and the secondary fire lets a quick burst of three rounds go. Always aim for the head and the pistol will serve you well.

ZX-76 Shotgun – Default fire is a single shot, secondary fire gives them both barrels for some serious stopping power. The shotgun is useless at range so save it for close encounters but remember Aliens have acid for blood so if you get too close a shotgun blast is liable to cause some acid splash.

M41A/2 Pulse Rifle – This is the standard issue gun you’ll remember from the films. Primary fire is a burst of rounds, secondary fire pumps a shot from the grenade launcher. Always aim for the head and if you’re going to let a grenade go make sure the target is not too close or you’ll get caught in the explosion.

M260b Flamethrower – Nothing likes fire so the flamethrower can be very handy. Primary fire lets a jet of flame go, secondary fire lets you spray fuel and then ignite to create a fire barrier. This is great for torching eggs and Facehuggers. Xenomorphs don’t like it either but it won’t kill them fast.

M42C Scoped Rifle – The sniper rifle is a welcome addition to any arsenal. The scope allows you to aim and pick off enemies from distance and it is great for spotting hidden foes. Even up close the rifle is handy because headshots are devastating but if you miss the low fire rate and long reload time can leave you fatally exposed.

M59/B Smartgun – This feels like cheating. It may take two weapon slots but the smartgun does all the hard work for you. It automatically targets enemies so you just point in the general direction and fire. The downside is you can’t aim at specific parts of the enemy and your ammo will run out fast.

Playing as the Alien you have to maximise your speed and agility advantage. If you hold down Q you can run even faster than usual. More useful is your ability to run up walls and across the ceiling. At each new surface you have to press middle mouse to make the transition. Practice this process until it is seamless and fast and you’ll reap the rewards. Always try to flank your enemy and attack them from behind.

Claws – Your primary attack is a swipe with the claws which does light damage but can knock your enemy off balance and allow for a follow up attack.

Tail Swipe – Secondary attack is the tail swipe which is slower but much more damaging than the claws.

Jaws – If you can get in behind your enemy without being detected and creep close enough you’ll get the option to hit E and kill them off with your jaws or impale them with your tail. This is by far the best way to kill people.

Harvest – If the person you approach is unarmed then the E option allows you to harvest them instead. You’ll hold them down and allow a Facehugger to latch on.

As a Predator you have a strange array of offensive abilities which take some mastering. Your best approach is to use stealth so you’ll want to use R to enable your cloaking device. You should also hold down Left Shift and scout for spots above to jump to with Space. These high spots are perfect vantage points and great for scanning the area. If you hit F you'll be able to change your vision to see heat which always reveals human targets.

Wristblades – Strong blades attached to your wrists are ideal for close up kills. The primary attack is a fast, light swipe and the secondary attack is a slow but powerful slash. You can also hit middle mouse for block although strong enemy attacks will break through. If you creep up behind an enemy, then pressing E will pull off a nasty kill with the wristblades.

Plasma Caster – This shoulder mounted cannon is very useful. Target enemies and primary fire will shoot off a low damage blast. If you hold down to charge the blast it will do far more damage.

Combi Stick – You have to aim very carefully but this will deal some major damage.

Proximity Mines – These are great fun. Plant a mine and when an enemy gets close it’ll blow them into oblivion. You can also use your lure ability to send dim-witted Marines to their explosive doom.

Smart Disc – Like an extremely deadly boomerang the Smart Disc can be thrown and it will come back to you. If you time your throws correctly and line up the enemies you can despatch them on the outbound and return journey.