Packaging: ***
Both figures come in clamshell packages with paper inserts and are effectively the same.  They cannot be sealed back in the packages once out.  Both have about the same amount of twisties, so that too is a push.

Sculpt: McFarlane ***1/2, NECA ****
Had to give NECA a bit more of the edge here as the NECA Warrior is a little more proportioned to screen accurate.  The McFarlane one is too leggy and the head is a bit short in length.  Detailing wise, they are both pretty screen accurate, if you are looking at the hero puppet.  The more common Warrior had very little detail and was filmed in low light so you couldn’t tell.  The leggyness of the McFarlane Warrior also makes him stand a slight bit taller than the NECA.

Paint: ***
Both Warriors sport a dry brushing technique to bring out the details, and NECA also does some airbrush detailing.  McFarlane uses only a reddish brown paint which is the color of the hero puppet in normal light.  On the screen, the Warriors appeared to be black with tinges of blue so NECA used both the reddish brown and blue colored paints for detailing.  The dry brushing is a bit sloppy on both, but that is the nature of the beast with that technique.

Articualtion - McFarlane **, NECA ****
McFarlane takes a big hit here because of the arm articulation.  No bending elbows.  There are also cut joints on the bicep and the thigh that really mess up the aesthetic of the sculpture unless they are positioned in one way.  The cut joints at the bicep and thigh on the NECA Warrior are positioned in a way that are less obvious and much more conducive to posing without big aesthetic changes.   

Both Warriors have ball jointed shoulders and necks, bending knees and ankles, cut hips and wrists, and bendy tails.  The NECA Warrior also has bending elbows, an opening jaw, and sliding inner jaw.  One photo shows each Warrior in the deepest crouch they can achieve and it is about the same position, but NECA wins on that count again because of the McFarlane thigh cuts.  

The neck joint on the NECA Warrior is also at the bas of the skull which allows a little more character to come thru in the posing with slight head tilts.  The McFarlane neck joint is in the body.  

One detriment to the NECA Warrior is the forearm blade is glued to the elbow and to the hand.  The blade is flexible and doesn’t limit the elbow mobility, as the Alien version has the same range of motion as the Warrior, but does limit the hand rotation a bit.

Accessories: Bupkis
Bupkis, nada, zero.  A little chestburster or facehugger would have been nice.

Fun factor:  ****
Both are great toys to play with and are pretty sturdy.   Kids should like them as much as the adults.  

Value:  ****
Both are great figures for the price, although the McFarlane on was $7.99 when it came out a few years back.  You can still find the McFarlane on the secondary market for about the same cost as the NECA.

Things to Watch Out For -
My NECA Warrior’s neck hose broke because it was a little stiff.  Didn’t have that problem with the NECA Alien first version.  

Additionally:  Here are a few photos showing the new parts made for the Aliens Warrior version.  The majority of the figure was the Alien version with a new head, hands, forearm blade, feet, and the neck on the Aliens Warrior is thicker than the Alien version.  The Alien version had a spike on its elbow which is glued on, for the Aliens Warrior, the forearm blade is glued to the elbow and to the hand.

Overall: McFarlane ***, NECA ***1/2

SCORE RECAP:
Packaging: **
Sculpt: McFarlane ***1/2, NECA ****
Paint: ***
Articulation: McFarlane **, NECA ****
Accessories - Bupkis
Fun factor: ****
Value: ****
Overall: McFarlane ***, NECA ***1/2