10 Years of Alien: Isolation. Remembering the Best Alien Game

On October 7, 2014, Alien: Isolation was released. It told the story of the events that unfolded between the first and second films. The main character was Amanda, Ellen Ripley's daughter, who also encountered aggressive xenomorphs. In honor of the project's 10th anniversary, we decided to remember why this horror turned out to be the best Alien game.

The very first Alien film was released in 1979. It was shot by Ridley Scott, who later became famous as the director of Blade Runner and Gladiator. Seven years later, a sequel was released by James Cameron, known for Terminator, Titanic and Avatar. It was called Aliens. The first two films about xenomorphs are considered the best in the entire series.

But if Scott's picture is a full-fledged horror, then Cameron's creation is a dark action movie. Almost all games based on it were based on the second film. Among them were shooters, arcades, platformers and tactical strategies, where xenomorphs were exterminated in industrial quantities. With this approach, Aliens no longer caused fear.

Alien: Isolation differs from other video games in that it creates a feeling of confrontation with an extremely strong enemy who runs fast, can hear the main character at a great distance and is able to kill her with one blow. As a result, we really find ourselves in the rights of the characters of the very first film. But if the crew of the Nostromo was doomed, then we still have a chance.

However, you should not think that other Alien games do not deserve your attention. For example, in 2001, an excellent shooter Aliens versus Predator 2 was released. The developers were Monolith Production, who at that time were known for Blood and No One Lives Forever. Later they would release the F.E.A.R. dilogy. In their Alien game you can play as a foot soldier, a xenomorph and a Predator, and the campaigns are united by a single plot that continues the events of the third film. Of course, the game has aged noticeably in 23 years. Therefore, if you want to get acquainted with it today, we recommend installing a graphics mod.

In 2006, SEGA acquired the rights to use the intellectual property associated with the Aliens series. Two years later, the publisher commissioned Creative Assembly, a studio known for its global historical strategies, to develop a game about a xenomorph. The team had no experience working with horror, so it actively began inviting employees from other companies, from Crytek to Ubisoft. From the very beginning, it was planned to move away from the action movie concept and return to horror in the spirit of the original 1979 film. To do this, gigabytes of footage from the filming, concept art, and unused materials were studied. In addition, the developers consulted with Terry Rawlings, the editor of the first Alien.

On February 12, 2013, the shooter Aliens: Colonial Marines was released. According to many players, it turned out to be one of the worst Alien projects in history. The game combined a bad plot, boring gameplay and stupid artificial intelligence, due to which the xenomorphs sometimes did not see the main character at point-blank range. Moreover, the game was developed for seven years, and at exhibitions it was presented as potentially the best Alien shooter. Therefore, the disappointment with the final result was especially strong.

Against this background, information about the new game in the series did not cause enthusiasm. Unofficial screenshots appeared throughout 2013, and a full announcement took place on January 7, 2014. Journalists who got acquainted with Alien: Isolation claimed that this was a masterpiece, but their words went unnoticed. As a result, the project suffered from the sleeper hit effect — no one really expected it, but it turned out to be excellent. In the end, over two million copies of Alien: Isolation were sold, which made it one of the most successful games from SEGA during that period of time.

Amanda was mentioned as Ellen Ripley's child in the movie «Aliens». While the heroine of the first film was in suspended animation, her daughter managed to grow up and live a long life. The game Alien: Isolation tells the story of the girl. It turns out that she was looking for her mother and went to the Sevastopol station because the flight recorder from the Nostromo ship was there. However, the data was damaged, and the crew was attacked by xenomorphs. Moreover, the androids that act as service personnel suddenly became aggressive and began to attack people. As the action progresses, secret details about the true activities of the station are revealed, and its individual modules were destroyed by explosions. As a result, Amanda ended up in outer space, where she was accidentally discovered by a spaceship.

If you study the notes and listen carefully to the dialogues, you can see the full story of the Sevastopol tragedy. However, the plot cannot be called outstanding. At the same time, it fulfills its main task — it explains what is happening on the screen and carefully fits the events of the game into the universe of the films.

Alien: Isolation relies on a thick atmosphere. The possibility of meeting an Alien makes you peer into every corner, inspect the ventilation, constantly turn around and hastily seek shelter at the slightest rustle. And some elements of the environment from afar resemble the silhouette of a xenomorph. Moreover, the motion sensor does not calm you down, but creates even greater paranoia, because a deadly enemy can be hidden behind every dot on the device's screen. The atmosphere of the game is as close as possible to the first film.

Although the action of Alien: Isolation takes place on the Sevastopol station, its setting is completely consistent with the scenery of the Nostromo ship from Ridley Scott's film. But if in the late 70s, pot-bellied monitors were perceived as an environment for ordinary science fiction, then in the mid-2010s they created a sense of retrofuturism. In other words, we see the future through the eyes of people from the past. The Fallout series is in a similar genre.

A good plot and a thick atmosphere are important components, but they fade into the background when it comes to gameplay. Alien: Isolation cleverly alternates genres, which helps keep things interesting throughout the 20-hour campaign. Early on, we fight regular enemies. People can be killed with accurate shots from a revolver, but it's best to run away from androids, since you'll need to spend an unreasonably large amount of ammo on each of them. With enough skill, you can try to pit them against each other, and then finish off the survivors.

The appearance of a xenomorph completely changes the rules. It's impossible to kill it, and you can't escape by running away, so all you can do is hide in lockers or ventilation and hope that it passes by. At the same time, the Alien can suddenly spot the heroine and kill her with one blow. And sometimes you get the feeling that over time it becomes smarter, and it becomes more and more difficult to hide from it. For example, if you were hiding under tables all the time, the xenomorph will start looking under them more often.

The crafting system comes to the rescue. From improvised items, you can make sound generators that attract the blind xenomorph. While he runs to the side, you can slip behind him. But additional items should only be used as a last resort, because resources are strictly limited.

The situation changes when Amanda finds a flamethrower. With its help, you can scare off the Alien with a stream of flame. After that, you will have some time to go further. It is worth considering that after a while the monster will attack again. It is important to monitor the amount of fuel and not waste it in vain, otherwise you will again become vulnerable to the xenomorph. And in the later stages of the game there will be several of them, so you can't just hide and wait it out.

It is also worth mentioning the facehuggers, who jump on people's faces to lay a larva. Their behavior is reminiscent of the headcrabs from the Half-Life series, with the only difference being that the very first jump will be fatal for the main character. Small monsters die from the first shot from a revolver, but the loud sound attracts an adult.

Alien: Isolation received seven DLCs. We found two of them to be the most interesting. The first is called Crew Expendable. It is dedicated to the Nostromo crew. You play as Ellen, Dallas, or Parker. Your task is to drive the xenomorph into the airlock. The second DLC, called Last Survivor, is dedicated to Ripley, who must activate the Nostromo's destruction system. In our opinion, these DLCs are a must for fans of the film. The remaining episodes are dedicated to various characters from Alien: Isolation, who are trying to confront the xenomorph before Amanda arrives. They are worth playing for those who found the main single-player campaign insufficient.

A lot of horror games have been released over the past 10 years. However, Alien: Isolation has not had any direct analogues to date. It remains a unique representative of the genre to this day. In our opinion, it is worth checking out not only for fans of xenomorph films, but also for anyone who loves scary games.

And thanks to its unique retrofuturistic style, Alien: Isolation has not become outdated in the slightest. In 2019, it was released on Nintendo Switch, and the project is available on PS5 and Xbox Series via backward compatibility.

***

Have you played Alien: Isolation? Or are you just planning to check it out in the future? Share your opinions in the comments!