Is Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 Worth Playing?

Game Overview.

I Was Excited for Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2, but What a Disappointment

As someone who played a fair deal of the original Aliens: Fireteam Elite, I was really excited to play the sequel. Unfortunately, real life got in the way, and it was a few weeks after launch before I was finally able to do so.

But surely a game that had a fairly high profile within the AA market would still be thriving only a few weeks after its release, especially considering it launched at a very fair price of $49.99, considerably below what you would expect to pay for a full-priced AAA title?

Unfortunately, that was not the case. I queued up for the first mission and found nobody, and when I tried the second mission, it was exactly the same.

While I was eventually able to find one or two people in the mid-game chapters of the campaign, it took a considerable way into the game before I managed to get my first full lobby, even when I was willing to wait five minutes, and sometimes almost ten minutes, to find other players.

That is a huge problem with this type of game, because it can feel like you are spending more time waiting to start a match than actually enjoying the game.

While the missions themselves last longer than five or ten minutes, I honestly felt that many of them only contained about five or ten minutes of genuinely enjoyable gameplay, with the rest being a rather repetitive experience.

Walk, Shoot, Walk, Shoot, Walk, Shoot

One of my biggest complaints with Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 is just how repetitive the actual gameplay feels. A lot of the time, you are exploring caverns, corridors and hallways that look aesthetically almost identical to areas you have already explored.

While the locations may have different names and there might be a few different props scattered around, with the exception of the occasional trip to the surface or a different ship, much of the campaign feels like you are being sent back to somewhere you have already been, only to be told to do essentially the same thing again.

The visuals themselves are okay, but the environments become very repetitive, and when you combine that with gameplay that often feels like little more than walking, shooting, walking and shooting some more, it does not take long before things start to become rather boring.

I played Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 over approximately two weeks, almost every evening, and I can honestly think of perhaps one or two hours in total that I genuinely enjoyed. That is spread across a considerable amount of time playing through the campaign, and while there were some enjoyable moments, there simply were not enough of them.

The Story and Characters Are Not Particularly Interesting

There are conversations to be had with the NPCs aboard the Endeavor, the Colonial Marine starship that serves as your hub between missions, but I found them rather basic. In fact, they reminded me of worse versions of the conversations in the original Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, which essentially consisted of characters staring directly at you while delivering dialogue. The difference is that I enjoyed the conversations in KOTOR, whereas many of those in Fireteam Elite 2 felt rather bland and unnecessarily long-winded.

The characters themselves also felt incredibly tropey. You have the eager newcomer who is excited to get out there, the wisecracking character who makes jokes about death and dangerous adventures, and the tough-as-nails, hard-headed commander. It all feels like something straight out of the 1980s, and while I suppose that is rather fitting considering Aliens is based on a film from that era, it just was not particularly interesting to me.

There were a few cutscenes that I liked, and the boss battle towards the end of the campaign was pretty enjoyable.

Unfortunately, those moments were exceptions rather than the rule, and the narrative simply was not strong enough to make up for the repetitive gameplay.

Matchmaking Is Somehow Even More Frustrating

Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 suffers from some of the same matchmaking problems as the original, and in some ways, I think the situation is actually worse. The original game supported three-player teams, whereas the sequel has increased that to four, which means finding a full group now requires an additional player in a game where, at least from my experience, finding even one or two other people can be difficult.

The original Fireteam Elite also had matchmaking problems when it first launched, with players cancelling their searches if they could not find a match almost immediately. Thankfully, improvements were made to the original game later on, but I had hoped the sequel would have learned from those problems rather than leaving me sitting around for several minutes waiting for a match.

And looking at the SteamDB figures, the situation is rather bleak.

At the time of checking on 10 November 2026, SteamDB showed just 59 people playing Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2, with a 24-hour peak of only 177 players, compared with an all-time peak of 7,949. These figures only represent Steam players and do not include people playing on consoles, but they certainly put my own matchmaking experience into perspective, especially considering the game was released less than three months ago.

Even when I did find other people to play with, the experience was incredibly inconsistent. There were some amazing players who clearly knew what they were doing, but I also encountered people who were frankly so bad that I genuinely had to wonder whether they were trolling.

With such a limited pool of players to match with, at least in my experience, you can end up with wildly different skill levels in the same group, and when you are playing a game that relies heavily on cooperation, that can make things even more frustrating.

When the Combat Gets Frantic, It Can Be Great Fun

To give Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 some credit, there were moments when I really enjoyed myself, particularly when we were being completely overwhelmed by enemies and desperately trying to stay alive. Those moments where we were rolling into cover, using everything we had and trying to survive against overwhelming numbers were genuinely frantic fun.

Unfortunately, those moments were surrounded by far too much repetitive gameplay, and the gunplay itself just is not that good. When you are not being overwhelmed by enemies and forced to make use of everything at your disposal, the basic shooting mechanics are simply not particularly enjoyable.

Honestly, Fortnite, a game that is fundamentally a free-to-play battle royale (although it has obviously expanded well beyond that now), has far superior third-person gunplay. Call of Duty has far superior third-person gunplay, and to be honest with you, I am struggling to think of a major third-person shooter that does not.

The Division 2 is another obvious comparison, because the gunplay in those games is snappy, quick and enjoyable. Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2, on the other hand, feels like somebody decided to make The Division 2’s gunplay at home, and the result simply is not anywhere near as good.

I Expected More From a Sequel

The original Aliens: Fireteam Elite was fun, partly because it arrived in 2021, eight years after Aliens: Colonial Marines, at a time when we had gone quite a few years without another major multiplayer Aliens game. It was something I enjoyed, and because of that, I was genuinely excited to see what Cold Iron Studios could do with a sequel.

Unfortunately, Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 just does not improve on the legacy of the original in the way I had hoped, and if anything, I feel it detracts from it. There is so much here that feels like it should have been an update or expansion to the original game rather than an entirely new release.

I must admit that if they announced a third game tomorrow, I do not think I would be rushing out to buy it. I may possibly return to Fireteam Elite 2 if the developers release a really good update or some substantial DLC with a better story, especially considering they continued updating the original game, but as things stand, there is simply not enough here to make me want to keep playing.

Strong Language and Gore

Another thing worth mentioning is that anyone who is particularly sensitive to strong language or gore should probably avoid Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2, because there is a considerable amount of both.

While I do not personally consider that the biggest problem with the game, it is something worth being aware of before purchasing, especially if you are someone who finds either of those things offensive.

There Are Better Games to Spend Your Time Playing

It is particularly disappointing because I do not think Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 is necessarily a bad game, but it does not do enough to make me want to play it over the many other games available. The repetitive missions, mediocre gunplay and frustrating matchmaking problems make it increasingly difficult to justify spending more time with it.

There are other third-person shooters that I find considerably more enjoyable, and The Division 2 has just received another DLC, Echoes of Central Park, which is looking great. When games like that are still receiving new content, and their basic gunplay is so much more enjoyable, I really struggle to find a compelling reason to recommend Fireteam Elite 2 instead.

Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 FAQ

Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 is a third person shooter game developed by Cold Iron Studios and published by Daybreak Game Company, it released on 25 August 2026, and is available on Nintendo Switch 2, PC, Playstation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.

Is There Group Finding/Matchmaking Support?

Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 offers the following matchmaking options:

• ☑ Solo Matchmaking
• ☑ Group Matchmaking

Are There In-Game Microtransactions?

The Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 in-game store sells:

• ☑ Cosmetic Items
• ☑ Cosmetic Item Bundles

What Peripherals Are Supported?

Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 supports the following peripherals:

• ☑ Console - Controller
• ☑ PC - Partial Controller Support
• ☑ PC - Mouse and Keyboard

Is There Any Mature Content?

Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 is rated PEGI 16+ and contains:

• ☑ Strong Language
• ☑ Gore
• ☑ Mature Themes
• ☑ Violence
• ☑ Fear

Final Verdict.

Do I recommend Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2? No, I cannot, and it is not because I think it is a terrible game. The problem is that this is a game specifically designed to be played with other people, and while you can play through it on your own with AI companions, they are just not particularly good, and I really do not think that is the way the game should be played.

If you have friends who want to play it with you and you can pick it up in a sale, then great. Likewise, if you do not mind playing with bots or waiting a very long time in matchmaking hoping to find one or two other players, then perhaps it is worth considering when it is heavily discounted.

However, if you are hoping for fast matchmaking, full lobbies and engaging gameplay from start to finish, I genuinely think you would be better off looking elsewhere.

Ultimately, Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 is not a terrible game, and there were some moments of frantic fun that I genuinely enjoyed, but the repetitive gameplay, underwhelming story, mediocre gunplay and matchmaking problems mean I simply cannot recommend it to most people. I wanted to enjoy this far more than I actually did, and while a substantial update or some genuinely good story DLC might eventually convince me to return, as things stand, I do not think it is worth playing for most people.