A ComTech Hacking Device being used by a United States Colonial Marine during the BG-386 incident.
The ComTech Hacking Device is a piece of equipment manufactured by the Weyland-Yutani Corporation[1] and issued to combat technicians in the United States Colonial Marine Corps. It is a computer system primarily used to bypass a wide range of security systems on locked doors to allow the Colonial Marines access to otherwise restricted areas, although it can also be used to manipulate other electronic systems.
Description[]
The hacking device is used by Marines to gain access to certain restricted whenever discretion is required, such as investigations into illegal activities, or they are lacking explosives necessary to breach any door.
Operation of the ComTech Hacking Device varies based on models, but all are known to be relatively portable. It is also known that in order for any hacking device to override a door lock's security systems, a Marine must first pry open the console pad to access the console's internal mechanisms. The Marine then uses the hacking device on those internal mechanisms to override the lock.
Variants[]
Early Models[]
The earliest usage of the Hacking Device within the USCM dates back to 2179 in Acheron (LV-426). In one such case, Marines in 118th Battalion from the USS Sephora uses a Weyland-Yutani manufactured hacking device to access locked doors in the USS Sulaco, Hadley's Hope and the Origin Facility. Its appearance is a slim device that can be folded for the sake of portability, compared to its later successors. The marine attaches two electric clips to the wires of the door locks and and manually configures it using a keypad to override the locks. Once done, the marine de-attaches the clips and folds the device as the doors opens.
In Aliens versus Predator 2, the USCM makes use of one of the hacking device's later models years after the Hadley's Hope incident. It appears to operate in a stethoscope-like fashion with a specialized hacking wire connected to a small pad. A marine places the wire on the console's internal mechanisms and must manually configure the device via digital buttons on the pad to override the security systems.
Later model[]
In Aliens vs. Predator, a newer model of the hacking device is used. This model is mostly automated in its hacking processes, and the Marine only needs to type a special hacking sequence on the device's keypad, place it on top of a console's internal systems, and wait for the door lock to be overridden.
While the device is easy to use and accessible for less technically apt Marines, there is one drawback. The device's automated hacking processes take much longer to bypass a lock than an older, manually-operated model used by specialized technical personnel. The extra time taken to override a door could potentially give an enemy more time to engage the Marines, and they must hold their ground while the device completes the door override. This drawback could prove especially dangerous if Marines are facing ferocious non-human enemies like savage Xenomorphs or technologically superior Predators.
Behind the Scenes[]
Unlike in Aliens: Colonial Marines or in Aliens vs. Predator, the Hacking Device in Aliens versus Predator 2 uses a dedicated key in order to interact objects with it, as opposed to a contextual key in the former two games.
In Alien: Isolation, the Security Access Tuner functions very similarly to the Hacking Device in Aliens: Colonial Marines and Aliens versus Predator 2, being used to access doors. But they work very differently from one another.
Appearances[]
- Aliens/novel (First Appearance)
- Aliens versus Predator 2
- Aliens vs. Predator (2010 video game)
- Aliens: Colonial Marines (video game)
Gallery[]
References[]
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