Aliens: Fireteam Elite release date set for August with a new trailer

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Every formation's a parade

Aliens: Fireteam Elite has a release date, a pre-order trailer, and an extra word in its title.

The three-player co-op shooter, which was known as Alien: Fireteam when Alyssa Mercante went hands-on with it in March, is now set to be released on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X and S on August 24. The new trailer for the game shows off some of the eerie environments you'll explore as you take on the role of a team of Colonial Marines - just like Hicks and company from the Aliens film, though hopefully your team fares better than his did.

While Fireteam Elite is very much meant to be an Aliens-inspired experience, the trailer proves that it's taking some inspiration from the rest of the Alien universe, including the broader look at Engineer architecture and civilization we got in Prometheus and Alien: Covenant. The aliens themselves have some new biodiversity as well: on top of the standard shiny black ones, there are glowing green ones, gnarly red ones, and even a white one with a bunch of tendrils where its head should be. Developer Cold Iron Studios is teasing that you'll also go up against Weyland Yutani androids, who are presumably outside of their service warranty.

We also see some of the customization options you'll be able to use to make your particular marine unique (and all the more upsetting to see impaled by an alien's spear-like tail). If you want to make sure your space soldier is as kitted out as possible, you'll want to get in a pre-order to secure your Hardened Marine Pack, which includes a you're-just-too-bad red bandana, a chestburster emote, and more goodies.

Aliens: Fireteam Elite is definitely a co-op first game, but you will be able to play through in single-player with NPC squadmates if you prefer. Either way, you'll have four in-game campaigns to play through, each expanding the story of the Alien universe 23 years after the events of the original trilogy.

Hopefully Aliens: Fireteam Elite earns a spot on our list of the best co-op games once it arrives in August.

Connor Sheridan
Connor Sheridan

I got a BA in journalism from Central Michigan University - though the best education I received there was from CM Life, its student-run newspaper. Long before that, I started pursuing my degree in video games by bugging my older brother to let me play Zelda on the Super Nintendo. I've previously been a news intern for GameSpot, a news writer for CVG, and was formerly a staff writer at GamesRadar.