Pink Xenomorph: The Rarest Xenomorph Color
The Pink Xenomorph was another Alien variation differentiated by its unique and bright color. Appearing first in Aliens: The Arcade Game by Konami, these Xenomorphs were the main enemy in the game, trying to hunt down Ellen Ripley. Here is the full overview of the Pink Xenomorphs, including some other pink Xenomorph types that were featured in the pages of Alien comics.
Pink Xenomorph Origins
Released back in 1990, The Aliens Arcade Game followed the events of Aliens and was one of the most colorful games ever to feature a Xenomorph. Having a wide variety of different Xenomorphs, including purple Runner Xenomorphs, green Facehuggers, orange jumper-Xenomorphs, and many others. One of the most common enemy types that Ellen Ripley fought in the game was the Pink Warrior Xenomorphs, appearing in every level and having a rare ability to melt upwards through the floor. This Xenomorph colorization can perhaps be explained by the radiation emitted by the Atmosphere processor, causing unstable mutations. A somewhat similar Irradiated Alien appeared later in the Aliens: Aftermath, having survived the Atmosphere processor explosion.
Pink Xenomorph By NECA
Decades later, NECA paid tribute to the Pink Xenomorphs from the game and released their own re-imagining of the creature, based on a regular Xenomorph Warrior. The figure was bundled together with a Xenomorph egg, a green facehugger, and a pink chestburster. Although no other figures were released for the game, another series was based on the AvP: Arcade game, even featuring Predators and a purple "Razor Claw Alien". Furthermore, the "Space Marine Lt. Ripley" figure based on the Space Marine comics fits well with the Pink Xenomorph, more so than the regular Ellen Ripley "Aliens" figure.
Pink Chestburster
Although chestbursters are naturally somewhat pink (or beige), the chestbursters from the game were fully pink, just like their grown-up versions of the Pink Warrior. In the arcade game, the chestbursters appeared in the hive levels, erupting from humans stuck on the hive walls. However, they were one of the weaker enemies in the game, easily dispatched by a flamethrower. The NECA pink chestburster was beige undernearth but pained with a pink line on the top, with tiny pink arms.
Pink Xenomorph Egg
The Pink Xenomorph did not originate from a fully pink egg, although the egg released by NECA was pink on the inside. However, a fully pink egg was featured in another piece of Alien media - the Kidnapped comic book. This egg was bundled together with regular Xenomorph eggs and was most likely a one-off mutation. The facehugger from this egg produced the unique variant of the chestburster - the black Bodyburster (also known as the Goreburster) that would not grow after hatching. The Goreburster's host experiences flu-like symptoms, likely due to the creature's size. One such egg, smuggled to a colony by Weyland-Yutani employees, led to havoc when the hatchling caused victims to explosively react to its poisonous bite.
Pink Xenomorph Queen
Finally, we have a Pink Xenomorph Queen, that surprisingly did not appear in Aliens: The Arcade game, but in the classic Aliens: Rogue comic book. Although nobody from the story (or the book based on the comic) seems to mention this distinct colorization, the Queen looks different from the other Aliens (who appear more purple). The Queen from Rogue was one of the strongest Alien Queens, she commanded a hive of hundreds of Xenomorphs and fought the Xenomorph King. Although the Alien King seemed to have the upper hand at first, the Queen wore him down with her agility and intelligence, finally defeating him. She did not live long after that, as the Pink Alien Queen was blown up together with the secret research base where her hive was located.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the Pink Xenomorph was a somewhat ridiculous Xenomorph type, designed to give enemy variety in the colorful Aliens Arcade Game. However, it left its legacy in the many other non-traditional Alien colors that appeared later, including the Albino Xenomorph and the Red Xenomorph from Aliens: Genocide. As was often the case with NECA, they made a fun reimagining of the character, giving a sense of nostalgia to the game's fans.
