If you’re jumping into Aliens Fireteam Elite 2 for the first time, there’s a lot to learn before you start taking on waves of Xenomorphs and Synths. The game gives you several classes, a large perk system, different weapon types, attachments, challenge cards, consumables, and plenty of ways to customize your Marine.
In this guide, I’ll take you through the important things you should know before getting too deep into the game. We’ll look at the classes, perk system, weapons, challenge cards, settings, combat tips, ammo management, and some simple tactics that can make your early missions much easier.
Whether you’re completely new to the series or coming back from the original Aliens Fireteam Elite, these tips should help you get comfortable with the sequel and avoid some of the mistakes new players commonly make.
Aliens Fireteam Elite 2 Beginner Guide – Perks, Weapons
Aliens Fireteam Elite 2 keeps the core co-op experience that made the original game enjoyable, but it expands the formula in some important ways.
One of the biggest changes is the increase from a three-person squad to a four-person Fireteam.
At first, this might sound like a small change, but it has a surprisingly big effect on the game. With four Marines on a team, combat arenas can be designed around larger encounters, more enemies can appear at once, and the developers have more freedom when designing both campaign missions and endgame activities.
You’ll also have to deal with new and more dangerous enemies, so having a full team and understanding your role becomes even more important.
The campaign remains fairly linear and comes with five difficulty levels, starting at Casual and eventually going up to Insane. The Insane difficulty needs to be unlocked by completing the campaign on another difficulty first.
If you don’t have a full group of players, the game also gives you options. You can use the Synth allies Alpha, Beta, and Gamma, each with their own loadout, or use Quickplay to matchmake with other players.
Cross-platform matchmaking is also available, so you have more options when it comes to finding teammates.
Challenge Cards Are More Important Than Ever
If you played the first game, you’ll already know about Challenge Cards.
These cards let you modify your missions by adding different conditions or challenges. The important part is that they can change things such as the weapons you can use, the enemies you encounter, or other mission parameters.
In return, you can earn additional rewards such as requisition.
I really like this system because it gives you a reason to replay missions instead of simply running through the same content in exactly the same way.
Some cards make missions easier and provide smaller rewards, while harder cards can increase the amount of requisition you receive. Certain cards can even reward attachments.
You can purchase Challenge Cards from the Armory, so keep them in mind when you’re looking for ways to build up your resources.
Settings You Should Change
Before you start playing, I recommend spending a few minutes going through the settings.
You don’t necessarily need to copy someone else’s settings because the best setup depends on how you play, but there are a few options worth checking.
Aim Sensitivity
Start by adjusting your aim sensitivity and ADS sensitivity.
Aliens Fireteam Elite 2 isn’t a competitive shooter in the traditional sense, but enemies can come at you from different directions, so you’ll often need to turn quickly.
Find a sensitivity that allows you to comfortably track enemies without making your aim feel uncontrollable.
Aim Snap
If you struggle with aiming, consider turning on aim snap.
It isn’t something every player will want, but it can make targeting enemies easier, especially if you’re new to third-person shooters or simply want a more relaxed experience.
Field of View
The game also gives you control over your FOV, or field of view, as well as your ADS FOV.
Try different values and see what works for you.
A wider FOV lets you see more of the environment around your character, which can be particularly useful when enemies are coming from multiple directions.
Persistent Shoulder ADS
If you’ve played other third-person shooters, you may want to enable persistent shoulder ADS.
With this enabled, your ADS view follows the shoulder you’re currently looking over instead of automatically resetting to the right shoulder.
This can make the controls feel more natural if you regularly switch between shoulders.
Enemy Outlines
If you’re having trouble spotting enemies in darker areas, permanent enemy outlines and ADS outlines can be very useful.
They make enemies much easier to see and track.
You may lose a little immersion by highlighting enemies, but personally, I think the extra visibility can be worth it, especially if you’re still learning the maps.
Which Class Should You Pick?
Before you head into combat, you’ll need to choose your class.
Aliens Fireteam Elite 2 has several different classes, and each one fills a different role. There isn’t one class that everyone has to play, so I recommend choosing based on the way you enjoy playing.
Let’s go through each one.
Duelist
The Duelist is the straightforward damage specialist.
If your main goal is to shoot things and deal as much damage as possible without worrying too much about complicated support mechanics, this is a great class to start with.
Unlike the other classes, the Duelist doesn’t have a signature weapon. Instead, it gets access to two primary weapons, giving you additional flexibility when creating your loadout.
Burst Configuration
The Duelist’s first kit ability is Burst Configuration.
It activates a special weapon that gives you 20 rounds of high-powered ammunition to fire into a target.
It’s a great ability when you need to put a lot of damage into something quickly.
Shrapnel Grenade
The second ability is the Shrapnel Grenade.
When activated, the Duelist pulls out a grenade launcher with a single shot. The projectile deals heavy damage and applies a bleed damage-over-time effect to enemies it hits.
Later upgrades can turn this into a Cluster Grenade, allowing you to deal with groups much more effectively.
Gunslinger
The Duelist’s passive kit perk is Gunslinger.
It reduces your ability cooldowns by up to 10% whenever you kill an enemy.
This works nicely with the Duelist’s aggressive playstyle because the more enemies you eliminate, the more frequently you can use your abilities.
Who Should Play Duelist?
If you want to focus on raw DPS and keep the pressure on enemies constantly, Duelist is a great option.
With two primary weapons, powerful abilities, and perks that reward kills, reload speed, fire rate, and ability usage, the class can feel like a one-person army.
Machinist
The Machinist is all about controlling space and giving your team additional firepower.
Rather than constantly standing on the front line, you’ll spend more time positioning your equipment, controlling areas, and helping protect your teammates.
The Machinist also has access to plasma weapons, which can offer better ammo efficiency when managed correctly.
Sentry Turret
The first ability is the Sentry Turret.
You can deploy the turret and let it automatically attack nearby enemies.
One useful thing to remember is that you can pick the turret up and reposition it instead of simply leaving it in one place.
This becomes particularly useful during difficult missions when the fight moves around the map.
Bodyguard
The second ability is Bodyguard, a flying drone that follows you and automatically attacks nearby enemies with its integrated rifle.
Together, the turret and drone can provide a lot of additional firepower.
Dual Targeting
The Machinist’s passive perk is Dual Targeting.
It increases the damage you deal to enemies that have recently been damaged by your abilities or deployable equipment.
This gives you another reason to coordinate your attacks with your turret and drone.
A Useful Turret Tip
Here’s a small tip that can make a noticeable difference.
If you recall your turret from a distance, you can end up with a cooldown of around 20 seconds.
However, physically walking over and picking it up can reduce that cooldown to roughly 7 seconds.
The same general idea applies to the drone.
Once you start playing on higher difficulties, knowing how to quickly reposition your deployables can make a big difference.
Marauder
If you like big weapons, explosions, and crowd control, the Marauder is probably going to be one of your favorite classes.
This is your heavy weapon specialist, and it can put out a huge amount of damage while also controlling groups of enemies.
The Marauder starts with access to the iconic Smart Gun and can also use weapons such as the rocket launcher and flamethrower.
Titan Rockets
The first ability is Titan Rockets.
It launches a barrage of small missiles that explode when they hit, dealing high area-of-effect damage.
This is particularly useful when you have a group of enemies packed together.
Blast Cannon
The second ability is Blast Cannon, and this is one of the class’s strongest crowd-control tools.
It fires a short-range concussive wave that damages and knocks back enemies.
It can even stagger many elite enemies, making it extremely useful when things start getting chaotic.
Dead Eye
The passive perk is Dead Eye.
As you continue hitting enemies, you gain a stacking bonus to stopping power while also reducing recoil.
Faster weapons get more value from this because they can maintain the buff more consistently.
Who Should Play Marauder?
For me, Marauder is one of the most entertaining classes.
You have huge weapons, explosions, and a strong crowd-control ability that can make you incredibly useful to the team.
If your idea of the perfect Aliens experience is mowing down Xenomorphs in the most explosive way possible, this class is worth trying.
Hunter
The Hunter is a more specialized class built around long-range damage, powerful weapons, and combat control.
This class is great for players who enjoy taking out high-priority targets while also helping control enemy movement.
Particle Pulse
The first ability is Particle Pulse.
You can charge it to create a concentrated burst of energy, with the damage increasing based on how long you charge it.
A fully charged pulse also deals area damage, giving you some extra value against groups.
Stasis Bolt
Stasis Bolt is a projectile that can stick to enemies or surfaces.
It creates an area that slows enemies inside it, allowing you to control their movement and make them easier targets.
Puncture
The Hunter’s passive perk is Puncture.
By concentrating damage on a specific part of an enemy, you can create a new weak spot.
This can be especially useful against Xenomorphs or Synths that have difficult or less obvious weak spots.
As difficulty increases, being able to exploit these weak spots becomes even more valuable.
Who Should Play Hunter?
Hunter is a very flexible class.
You have powerful signature weapons such as the rail gun and particle emitter for dealing huge damage, but your abilities are more focused on controlling the battlefield.
If you enjoy accurate shooting and helping your team control where enemies can move, Hunter is worth considering.
The class also has a lot of interesting pieces that could be useful when creating more specialized builds later.
Medic
The Medic is your dedicated support class.
The main job is keeping your Fireteam alive, but that doesn’t mean you have to stand at the back and do nothing but heal.
Medic has access to close-range weapons such as shotguns and SMGs, allowing you to stay close to your teammates while still contributing damage.
Advanced Trauma Station
The first ability is Advanced Trauma Station.
It restores temporary health to allies inside its area of effect.
Enemies that die within that same area also help recharge the ability more quickly.
This makes positioning extremely important.
Combat Stims
Combat Stims give your Fireteam temporary health while also reducing the cooldown of your abilities.
Used at the right time, this can help your entire squad survive difficult encounters.
Guardian
The Medic’s passive perk is Guardian.
When you defend an ally, both you and the player you’re defending gain temporary health and a base 20% damage resistance for three seconds.
This makes the Medic particularly valuable when your team is under heavy pressure.
Can Medic Deal Damage?
Absolutely.
You don’t have to build your Medic as a pure healer.
You can replace the Trauma Station with a Poison Station and swap Combat Stims for an Overclock buff.
That turns the Medic into a more aggressive support character that can buff teammates while also contributing serious damage.
Specialist
The Specialist is one of the most interesting additions to Aliens Fireteam Elite 2.
Instead of forcing you into one predefined role, this hybrid class lets you mix and match abilities, perks, and weapons that you’ve unlocked.
In other words, you can build your Marine around the way you personally want to play.
You still have access to a primary weapon, signature weapon, sidearm, two active abilities, one passive ability, minor and major items, and a customizable perk grid.
The big difference is that you get much more freedom over the individual building blocks.
If you enjoy experimenting with builds, Specialist could eventually become one of the most interesting classes to level.
How the Perk System Works
The perk system is one of the biggest parts of building your Marine.
There are dozens of perks available for individual classes, along with crossover options that allow you to create much more specialized builds.
Your perk grid contains your active kit abilities and passive perk, along with different sections that unlock as you level up.
At level one, only 12 boxes are available, with additional sections becoming accessible later.
Core Perks
Core perks provide fundamental bonuses that are generally designed around your class and its abilities.
These can enhance the natural strengths of your chosen class and often work particularly well with its intended playstyle.
Ability Replacers
Ability replacers can completely change how an ability works.
Instead of simply increasing a number or making an ability slightly stronger, these perks can fundamentally alter the ability and therefore change how you play.
Miscellaneous Perks
Miscellaneous perks can be shared between classes and are useful when you’re trying to improve your weapons or fill gaps in your build.
You can also unlock perks from other classes by leveling those classes, opening up some interesting hybrid build possibilities.
Modifiers
The Modifier section lets you push your build even further.
Many modifiers are class-specific, but there are also miscellaneous and cross-class modifiers that become available as you level different classes.
This gives you a lot of room to experiment.
Pay Attention to the Grid
One important detail is that perks associated with specific abilities need to be physically touching those abilities on the grid.
This means creating a good build isn’t simply about picking the strongest perks.
You also have to think about where everything fits.
Early on, parts of the grid are locked, so your build will naturally become more flexible as you level up.
Understanding Combat Rating
As you place perks into your grid, you’ll notice your Combat Rating changing.
Think of this as the game’s general measurement of how strong or prepared your Marine is.
It doesn’t necessarily tell you whether your build is actually good. A higher Combat Rating doesn’t automatically mean that your perks have great synergy.
However, it is still important because missions can require a certain Combat Rating before you can start them.
This encourages you to engage with the perk system instead of completely ignoring it.
Understanding Your Weapons
Your loadout isn’t complete without weapons, and Aliens Fireteam Elite 2 gives you plenty of options.
The primary weapon slot contains universal weapons that can be used across classes.
Duelist is the exception because it can carry two primary weapons, while other classes generally have one.
You’ll find everything from semi-automatic weapons and automatic rifles to shotguns and other weapon types.
Signature Weapons
The signature weapon slot is where each class becomes much more unique.
These weapons are tied to the class you’re playing.
For example:
- Marauder: Smart Gun, rocket launcher, flamethrower
- Machinist: Plasma weapons
- Hunter: Long-range rifles and beam weapons
- Medic: Shotguns and SMGs
These signature weapons can actually influence which class you want to play.
If you love heavy weapons, Marauder will naturally feel more appealing. If you prefer long-range precision, Hunter may be a better fit.
Don’t Forget Your Sidearm
Your sidearm is your emergency weapon.
The important thing to remember is that sidearms have unlimited ammunition.
That means your pistol can save you when you’ve burned through the ammunition in your primary and signature weapons.
Don’t be too embarrassed to pull it out.
If you’ve been firing constantly and don’t have an ammo crate nearby, your sidearm can keep you alive until you can resupply.
Weapon Attachments
After completing the campaign for the first time, you’ll begin unlocking the ability to add attachments to your weapons.
Attachments can change different weapon statistics, and different weapons can have different attachment slots.
For example, one weapon might have an internal magazine, barrel, and armature, while another might have an underbarrel, magazine, and optics.
The simplest way to get new attachments is through the Armory, although they can require a significant amount of requisition.
This is another reason why managing your resources properly is important.
Weapon Star Ratings
As you use weapons during missions, they’ll earn XP.
Each weapon has a star rating, and increasing that rating unlocks additional bonuses.
One Star
At one star, you unlock the weapon’s trait.
This gives the weapon a small passive performance bonus.
Once you’ve unlocked a trait, you can use it on other weapons too, making weapon progression an important part of build crafting.
Two Stars
At two stars, you’ll unlock a unique colorway for the weapon.
Three Stars
At three stars, you unlock a universal core perk that can be used across different classes.
Four Stars
At four stars, you unlock the ability to add an augment to the weapon.
This is where weapon customization becomes much more interesting.
Weapon Augments
Augments can have a much bigger impact than normal attachments.
An attachment might adjust a few weapon statistics, but an augment can completely change how a weapon behaves.
Augments can even change the elemental damage type of a weapon.
Some can go as far as changing the weapon’s overall playstyle.
For example, the Smart Aim onboard chipset can turn a normal weapon into a Smart Aim weapon.
So, don’t underestimate augments when you’re working on an endgame loadout.
Major and Minor Items
You can also bring major and minor consumable items into missions.
One improvement in Aliens Fireteam Elite 2 is that consumables are much easier to use during missions.
You can hold a full radio wheel of items, meaning you’re encouraged to actually use them rather than treating them like rare emergency resources.
Your item options include things such as:
- Turrets
- Grenades
- Stim packs
- Elementally enhanced ammunition
- Other combat consumables
If an item can help you survive a difficult encounter, don’t be afraid to use it.
How to Use the Armory
The Armory is basically your main shopping stop.
You can visit it for:
- Weapons
- Attachments
- Perks
- Challenge Cards
- Items
Everything costs requisition.
You won’t have a huge amount of requisition at the very beginning, so I recommend thinking carefully before spending it.
As you play more missions, use Challenge Cards, and level multiple classes, you’ll eventually build up a much larger supply.
Early on, though, try to spend your requisition on things that you’re actually going to use.
Keep Your Head on a Swivel
Now let’s get into the actual gameplay tips.
One of the biggest things you need to understand is that enemies can come from almost anywhere.
Don’t assume an area is safe just because you cleared the enemies that were in front of you.
Xenomorphs can attack from behind, above, below, and from unexpected directions.
Some enemies can climb walls or appear from places you weren’t expecting.
Because of this, you should constantly be checking your surroundings.
Know Enemy Damage Weaknesses
Different enemies have different elemental strengths and weaknesses.
Xenomorphs are vulnerable to thermal damage and resistant to electric damage.
Synths are vulnerable to electric damage and resistant to thermal damage.
This is something you should pay attention to when selecting your mission and loadout.
The game shows you what enemy types you’ll encounter before you start a mission, so use that information.
If you’re about to fight a large number of Xenomorphs, bring equipment that takes advantage of their weaknesses.
Likewise, prepare for Synth-heavy missions by considering electric damage.
Manage Your Ammunition
Ammo management is extremely important.
It can be tempting to hold down the trigger and destroy everything you see, but if you burn through all your ammunition too quickly, you’ll eventually be stuck using your sidearm.
That’s not always what you want when a major enemy wave appears.
Instead, pay attention to where the ammo crates are located.
When you reach an area where you need to hold a position, try to fight close enough to the ammo crate that you can resupply when necessary.
And here’s a simple habit I recommend: before leaving an area, hit the ammo crate one more time.
Going into the next section with maximum ammunition can make a big difference.
Don’t Ignore Health Kits
Health kits are usually located near ammo crates.
There should be one for each human player on your Fireteam, but you can only carry one at a time.
So don’t simply grab every health kit you see.
If you already have one, check whether another teammate needs it.
If nobody needs the extra kit, use your current health kit if you’re missing health and then pick up the new one.
That way, you’re starting the next section at full health while still carrying a fresh kit.
Stick Together With Your Team
Aliens Fireteam Elite 2 is a co-op game, and teamwork matters more as the difficulty increases.
Try not to wander too far away from the rest of your squad.
At the same time, don’t stand directly behind another player and fire through them.
Spacing becomes especially important on higher difficulties because friendly fire becomes a real concern.
With four players in the Fireteam, you have more angles to cover, but you also have more teammates who can accidentally get in your line of fire.
Try to hold your own angle, give teammates enough space, and make sure everyone can see and attack incoming enemies.
Good positioning can be just as important as having a powerful weapon.
Aliens Fireteam Elite 2 gives you a lot of systems to learn, but you don’t need to understand everything immediately.
Start by choosing a class that fits your preferred playstyle.
If you want straightforward damage, try Duelist. If you like deployables and battlefield control, Machinist is a great option. Marauder is perfect for heavy weapons and explosions, while Hunter offers precision and enemy control. Medic is the go-to support class, and Specialist gives you the most freedom to create your own build.
Once you’ve chosen your class, spend some time learning the perk grid and don’t be afraid to experiment. Your weapons, attachments, augments, challenge cards, and consumables all play a part in making your Marine stronger.
During missions, remember the basics: watch your surroundings, understand enemy weaknesses, manage your ammunition, use health kits intelligently, and most importantly, work with your Fireteam.
The higher difficulties will punish careless positioning and poor resource management, but if you build good habits early, you’ll be much better prepared when the Xenomorphs start coming from every direction.
Get your loadout ready, stay close to your squad, and keep that weapon loaded. The Endeavor needs you.