What do we know about Area 51 or if you want to use its real name- Groom Lake Testing Facility, other than it’s the subject of many conspiracy theories across the globe? Well in reality Area 51 is real and can be found in the Nevada Desert (USA) and is home to a not so top secret military operations base, but the mystery remains as to whether any of the conspiracy theories of experiments, aliens and secret technology hold any truth; I guess we’ll never know.

Well Area 51 the game, takes you to the very heart of the conspiracy theories as something has gone horribly wrong within its dark corridors and secret labs. A contamination of sorts and a whole heap of mess needs sorting out. That’s why they have called for special “Hazmat” troops to come in and clean up the mess. Well as Ethan Cole it’s your job as one of these special troops to go in with your team. Welcome to hell!
Gameplay:

Well, Area 51 is a fast paced and extremely atmospheric first person shooter (FPS); where, as Cole you are thrust into the thick of it pretty much from the start. What appears to be pretty mundane stuff to begin with, such as grabbing weapons and running around a hanger soon becomes far more complicated and engrossing.

Game play begins with Cole and the rest of the 4 man squad going deep into the recesses of Area 51. There are some pretty cool team gun battles to be had here, although Cole is not the leader and will have to take orders from time to time or split up with another team mate to fulfil objectives. With a few weapons available at the start things really begin to hot up as the team get further into the innards of this mysterious place. I really don’t wish to spoil the story for you because quite simply it’s pretty engaging where as you are gunning down various mutants and whatnot it really draws you in the further you get. Of course this is helped by some excellent dialogue not only in game but also between levels where Cole’s narrative gives it to you straight from the mind of a very confused yet hardened character.

The enemies are actually quite an aggressive bunch of critters that often display very little intelligence where most often or not they will simply try to overwhelm you with vast numbers, crawling and jumping towards you. However later enemies display similar traits but are more wily in their actions- again I don’t wish to spoil anything here and by revealing too much I might.

Area 51 is full of atmosphere, like dead bodies and of course there are things to search around for, such as secret files and the like. Cole has a unique scanner attached to his wrist which enables him to scan these files amongst other things; which in turn unlocks more secrets within the game. Other noteworthy effects are interactive objects and some funny “Ragdoll” physics which often leave the fallen in uncompromising positions. You can also continue to shoot them in the head once they are dead for extra effect, although they do disappear after a while.

Graphics:

The graphics in Area 51 are typically dark and moody and are actually pretty impressive albeit often dark and moody. The graphics really do a great job of conveying the intensity of what one can imagine Area 51 would look like. There are some excellent lighting effects and the whole place really does feel vibrant and alive. The character models look great at times but not so great at others, especially some of the enemies who almost look out of place when compared to the environments. I didn’t notice any moments of slow down despite the intensity of certain sections and overall everything played and looked smooth.

Sound:

Once again ex X-Files star David Duchovney lends his voice to a video game and this time takes the leading role as tough nut Ethan Cole. I think many criticise his efforts because of that almost emotionless monotone style that he uses. I actually think in this game that it works. I can’t really say why but it just seems to fit with the whole style of the game. I would say the general level of voice acting in the game is of a very high standard and once again does a great job of creating the atmosphere that a game of this type needs.

Other sound effects are all present and kicking and do a grand job of immersing the player into the game world presented. So that’s a big “thumbs” up to the guys who worked on the sound for this game.

Longevity:

Area 51 is a reasonable length game and also one that offers some replay in that there are things to hunt down in each of the 18 levels on offer. This unlocks extra content which you may or may not be bothered with. Either way the intensity of some levels are good enough to warrant playing through again.
Area 51 also feature some multiplayer aspects including 4 player split screen death match and Xbox Live death match over a number of varied maps. Sadly there are no bots for multiplayer and no co-op play for the single player. Either way, it’s cool that they included this mode to mess around with should you require a break from the intense single player game.

Overall:

I found Area 51 to be an interesting, atmospheric, engaging and most importantly fun to play shooter despite being a little mindless at times. With some cool gun battles, charismatic characters (which does include Duchovney’s mono tone style, which you will either love or hate) and a gripping plot means that this game is bound to please fans of the genre, as long as you don’t go comparing it to that other game which we all know about! It’s hard to find many faults with this title other than some repetitive moments and “no brainer” sections; there are a number of games that try but fail to capture the imagination yet Area 51 does just that and I think is a worthy addition to any Xbox Library if you are a fan of FPS games. An above average title and well worthy of a rent before buy or even just go out and buy it anyway.