Alien: Isolation

Editor's Notes

PS3 version reviewed.

Introduction

Ridley Scott's seminal 1979 sci-fi horror classic 'Alien' did far more than cement itself as a high-water mark of the genre and fully establish Scott as an auteur for years to come; it spawned a long running, highly profitable film series, not to mention comic series, and yes, the inevitable video game tie-in. 'Alien' fans (as well as those of the 'when worlds collide' 'Aliens vs. Predator' series) are no strangers to the numerous attempts to bring the panic and claustrophobia of Scott's vision to their consoles and PCs. In every case I can think of, a crack at the series in video game form has far more in common with James Cameron's action-packed follow-up, 'Aliens' than Scott's maze of corridors and H.R. Giger crafted terror. 

Enter 'Alien: Isolation,' a game that seems isolated from prior 'Aliens' game outings, and a game that takes the whole 'No One Can Hear You Scream' tagline to heart.

The Game Itself: Our Reviewer's Take

Our terrorized protagonist is none other than Amanda Ripley, daughter of Ellen, who during the course of this game is still drifting through space in cryosleep. Investigating the possible recovery of the Nostromo's flight recorder, Amanda, under the supervision of the nefarious Weyland-Yutani Corporation, travels to Sevastopol Station in search of answers regarding her missing mother. Naturally, a calamity has struck the station and following a thrilling spacewalk from Amanda's ship to the crippled station, it's up to the gamer to guide Amanda through the city-sized space station in search of answers and help for her separated crew.

The opening sequences of 'Alien Isolation' sets the pace for the game that will unfold over many hours. The environments are expansive and lived-in, appropriately damaged from some sort of disaster. And this of course means one thing, it's time for a first-person horror experience. Case in point: Just as soon as you have the basics of using tools and crafting items, you'll find the other humans on board are out to kill you. It takes a few, if not just one well-placed bullet to put you out of action. Add to that, rubbery skinned and soullessly eyed androids that won't hesitate to strangle you to death and you have the makings of a tense experience, especially when you discover it's not best to use your weapons.

Approximately a quarter of the way through the game's 16-20 hour campaign, our titular foe emerges in spectacular fashion and turns gameplay upside down. While your trust revolver is enough to bring down a human or android, you'll quickly find any noise you make is bound to bring the Alpha predator calling, which for quite some time will result in you dying, again, again, and again. Making matters worse, but adding to the rich atmospheric horror of the game, you can only save at sparsely located emergency call boxes. Then again, even if you reload, chances are you're going to have to think on the fly, because the game's main antagonist thinks, and on the highest difficulty setting, learns. His hunting patterns are random and your only clue to his whereabouts are the sounds of him skittering above or below you, or the solitary ping of your motion tracker, which if used in close proximity, serves as a dinner bell.

A large portion of 'Alien Isolation' is spent carefully navigating the corridors of the doomed space station, ducking all manner of enemy, but most importantly the sleek agent of death fans have come to know as the Xenomorph. There are plenty of places to hide in the game, from tables, to lockers, and in the most desperate of situations, the shadows. Even when you know the Alien isn't on your level, moving too quickly under an open duct results in yet another jarring death animation, and its back to your last checkpoint. All this is great up front, however, 'Alien Isolation' turns out to be the rare game where less would have been more. The game begins to feel sluggish midway through. Even though the final act throws in some great twists and surprises I refuse to spoil, more often than not the game boils down to trial and error and to be blunt, even on its normal difficulty setting, the game offers no quarter.

The increasing number of distractions you're able to craft will aid you in your progress, but as mentioned previously, on the hardest difficulty setting, the Alien will learn your habits and you'll be forced to employ some reverse psychology at times. Your only true salvation is the iconic flamethrower, which offers some relief, even though the Alien will inevitably return with more ferocity. There are occasions where making noise near NPCs will allow you to escape, if you don't find yourself distracted by the carnage ensuing form the Alien's attack on ill-equipped station holdouts.

'Alien Isolation' without question replicates the atmosphere and sheer panic of Ridley Scott's film, as well as returns the title creature to a mantle of menace that hasn't been evoked since the original H.R. Giger design lurked through the passageways of the Nostromo 35 years ago. That said, the game length coupled with the sometimes frustrating trial-and-error approach, can make this a tough game to get through in minimal sittings. I found it the rare game that I'd recommend playing on easy mode, that is, if you're really going in for the story and returning to later to up the difficulty and try to survive. It is however, a game that does the 'Alien' legacy justice and is a fantastic entry into what I hope to see a genre explored more on the consoles.