ALIEN         Movement         Vision         Weapons         Abilities         Fighting     PREDATOR     MARINE

Without long-range attacks, the Alien needs speed and stealth to survive any length of time. Though the Alien's attacks are powerful, you must be at an extremely close-range to pull them off effectively, especially the health-regenerating jaw attack.

Claw Attack
The Alien's first basic attack (using the primary fire button) is a series of swipes with its huge claws. Humans can't take much punishment from your claws; in fact, you'll often take them down in just one or two swipes. When using the claw attack, make every effort not to approach the enemy from the front. If you do, chances are the Marine's weapon will plaster you. As the levels progress and the missions become more difficult, the Marines start carrying more explosive firepower. If you continue to attack from the front, you won't last too long against the flame throwers and the miniguns. Use your speed to circle around the enemy Marine; as you move around, keep hitting the claw attack. He won't stand too long.

The claw attack also breaks control panels, initiates elevators and disables electrical boxes. Because the Alien can't operate buttons and levers like a human, you must use the claw, or tail, attack. Just approach the control panel - or whatever - and hit the primary or secondary fire buttons.

Tail Attack
When battling Marines, the tail attack should be your top choice unless you are attempting to use the jaw attack to regenerate health (see below). Pushing the secondary fire button will initiate the tail strike, a powerful auto-targeting alternative to the claw strike. Because the Alien is so fast, hit-and-run tactics work extremely well, especially coupled with the powerful tail strike. Cautiously approach the Marine from the rear, then charge and terminate the foe with a quick swipe of the tail. Holding down the secondary fire button charges the tail; release the button to perform the strike, which will be more powerful depending on how long you held down the button.

Like the claw attack, the tail strike can be used to break control panels and other operation functions. Just walk up to the item you wish to break (everything from computer consoles to glass windows) and hit the secondary fire button to bust it apart.

Jaw Attack
The mother of all Alien attacks, the jaw attack is the only way for the Alien to regenerate its health, at least in significant amounts. To pull off a jaw attack, you must walk extremely close to the human enemy; point your viewpoint at the cranium and two sets of teeth appear on the screen. At this moment, hit the primary fire button to initiate the attack.

Against civilian, unarmed humans, the jaw attack is the way to go. If the human poses no threat, there's nothing stopping you from approaching the character and waiting patiently to line up this potent attack.

As for armed Marines, you'll want to use the jaw attack only from the rear. You usually won't have time to line up your jaws effectively before the Marine starts taking shots. Therefore, be extremely careful when judging whether the time is right for a jaw attack. If you don't need health, then you probably shouldn't bother with it. Sure, it's great to see your stats at the end of the level, but it's far more important to actually reach the end of the level.

Lastly, if you tail strike an enemy Marine chances are, with his or her body still intact, slumped on the ground, you can still perform a jaw attack and receive some health. Always check the body on the ground before moving on.