Despite past hiccups, the Weyland-Yutani Corporation is intent on mining the planet's wealthy mineral deposits.

The storyline takes us back to the planet known as LV-742. It will feel clunky if you are used to a mouse and it can be tricky to select troops, especially when they are on the move, but these and a few minor AI issues aside, the game holds up quite well. Predator Extinction hasn't totally solved all the control issues.

RTS developers have never managed to break free of the keyboard and no matter how cool your controller is, it can't compete with the speed or accuracy of mouse control. Going from edgy PC shooter to StarCraft-wannabe is a serious change in direction, especially on the PS2 and Xbox, where the real-time strategy (RTS) genre is not all that common.

Predator: Extinction marks a bizarre turnaround for the series. Predator franchise has spawned a number of titles, including two quality first-person shooters. By JON MINIFIE (Herald rating: * * *) The Alien vs.