Aliens vs. Predator: Extinction manages to avoid many of the pitfalls of console real-time-strategy games, by placing an emphasis on action over tedious resource gathering and excessive structure building.
Most console RTS titles have been ports of great PC games, and as such, their developers have foolishly often tried to incorporate as many functions as possible onto a small console controller, though many of the PC originals often used nearly the entire keyboard's real estate. AvP avoids this pitfall with grace, as the controls are spot on and, dare I say it, rather intuitive. I didn't need the tutorials to explain every function to me, much of the control scheme was easy to figure for myself – a rarity for any RTS, let alone one on a console.
AvP does have a paper thin plot based in the franchise universe, but it's almost an afterthought. The name is just a reason to let hordes of aliens, space marines, and predators go after each other in real time combat. There isn't much strategy to be found here, at least not in the traditional C&C/Warcraft sense, as the game focuses on unit management and resource "ordering" instead of many tired conventions of the genre. Each species has its own way of ordering new units, and each is unique – this is another area where AvP sets itself apart, as the races feel like they are strategically different, and not just clones of each other with different textures.
AvP's biggest weakness lies in its sound and graphics – both are substandard. There is also something to be said for replay value – if crappy RTS ports can have multiplayer, then why oh why can't a game worth its salt like this one be granted it? I know online is asking too much for a relatively low profile title like this, but couldn't we have at least gotten some kind of link play or 2 player split screen option?
Regardless, Aliens vs. Predator: Extinction stands as a great example of a licensed game done with an emphasis on gameplay, and as a console RTS designed with the limitations of the hardware in mind. It's worth checking out.
-George
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