Alien: Isolation

It's risky fare for Sega to pick up such a well-known franchise in an arena it has consistently failed to flourish. H.R.Giger's trademarked xenomorph has generally disappointed upon its plentiful player-immersing platforms, a cross-over plugging plunge that has always fallen short of expectation and in execution. But, the loyal fanbase continues to exist and for those inundated (and re-inundated) by 'Alien' prequel 'Prometheus', finally there's a game that lives up to the legend. For hardcore fans of the face-hugging fiends, 'Alien Isolation' co-exists in harmonious rapture to the first film of the franchise, controlling Ripley's daughter Amanda as she investigates the Nostromo to attain closure. An absolute delight whence interweaving Scott's feature within the game's plot, with a little aid from Fox, the game literally plays like the film - the production team have picked apart every element present within the film in great detail and recreated its brooding atmosphere, lo-fi retrogradation and deliciously dread-inducing soundtrack in making not only the best ever 'Alien' based game - fact - but have created much much more. SEGA have created the 'Alien' experience. For the ardent fan, the game is a must. For the gamer, however, its a necessity.

Experiential fabrication comes at a cost - and that cost was bucking the trend. With the capabilities of next generation consoles allowing for raging wars of epic proportions to engulf the screen, armies of thousands-strong battling it out have become commonplace for these supreme mega-bit simulations. Action revels in eponymous overture, guns blazing, kill everything in sight to win. Frankly, in todays market, all out warfare sells like hot cakes. 'Alien Isolation' renders this defunct. Or at least highly recommends against it. The aim of the game is to survive - any way that you possibly can, which means being strategic, being tactical, being stealthy, being quiet. It's a virtual game of chess between you and the alien. That's not to say you can't kill anything, it's just not advised - where you'd think offing the antagonist paves the way for linear progression, it's more worthwhile (and more satisfying) to plan out your undetected escape - be it in a locker, cabinet, under a desk or in a vent - it is for the virtues of patience and preparation that you will reap reward. As a minor con, the game is rather unforgiving, continual trial and error (and many a death!) will unquestionably frustrate the player, but the gratification is so much sweeter when you finally progress.

Graphically sublime, invigoratingly fresh, poignantly tense and foreboding; the wondrous intelligence of the game urges the player onto the edge of the seat and demands concentration. It's difficult, and at times rather repetitive completing an array of missions that require the player to go back and forth to fetch an item, but it's different. It's alien.

Just wow... why the hell people overlooked this game when it camed out? i mean yeah it got some problems (some people may not like heavy stealth and backtracking) but dear god this game is terrifying.

the game is so aggressive with it's gameplay and setup that always leave you at the edge of your seat the entire time and that can be frustrating sometimes but never have i ever felt the game was unfair because anytime you die, and you're going to die a lot it feels like you did a mistake and it's not the game being cruel.

without any question it's one of the best horror tension field games you'll ever play specially if love the 1979 alien movie or if you are a fan of the franchise in general it's a must play for you, it's easily the best alien experience out there.

Opinion is divided on Alien Isolation. You ever love it's inch-by-inch stealth, occasionally frustrating unscripted events and lack of combat, or you hate it. Certainly, if you have been raised solely on 1080p exploding uber-monsters, plasma turbo-cannons and a body count higher than a city-wide zombie apocalypse, you may well fall in the second category.

But that's not me and so I can only speak from what I have seen of the game.

The developer knows their audience, that is for sure. Even the grainy VHS tape appearance of the 20th Century Fox logo when you insert the disc is pitched at a male gamer who was too young to watch Ridley Scott's original Alien in the cinema, but who fell in love with it at home on video. This is no Alien Resurrection with its throwaway CGI and ugly evolutions of the original monster. Forget the lame AVP franchise with their atmosphere thinner than LV426. Last year's Colonial Marines? Nope, never heard of it. There isn't even a smart gun on show here. Instead, Alien Isolation is a faithful attempt to tie a loving companion story to the original film and amazingly it is done with completely authentic and painstakingly recreated music, sound effects and interiors.

So, forget your expectations of what a modern action game should be and join Amanda Ripley as the search for her long missing mother leads her to space station Svenstopol, where on arrival it is immediately obvious that, in this run-down backwater, something has gone badly wrong. Aboard the station the atmosphere is truly frightening. Chokingly tense, it's as visually creepy as Doom III with sound design to rival the high points of the Silent Hill series. Forget that you know exactly what the Alien looks like, forget that you've seen it do it's stuff a million times. It won't make any difference. When it finally does appear, the effect will be as great as it was all those years ago, watching the film. It is elegant, beautiful and utterly lethal.

So what does it play like? While this game is in the first person, make no mistake, this ain't Call of Duty. This is old skool survival horror, complete with a clunky movement system that all but forbids you to out-gun or even out-run trouble. Progress is gradual, movement halting. The first lesson the game will teach you is to slow down, be prepared, never rush in. The puzzles and tasks reflect this. You are required to use observation and lateral thinking rather than a volatile trigger finger. As the story unfolds you will be reminded of those halcyon days of Resident Evil I and II when searching for keycards and missing components from broken-down machines to further your progress was the glue that bound the set-pieces together. None of the puzzles are prohibitively hard. But trying to execute them while you are being actively hunted, is.

But the granddaddy of survival horror is not the only touchstone here. There is a thoroughly modern sheen on this game, not just in terms of graphical detail and environmental effects but also features. Indeed the game owes a great deal to the original Dead Space, not just in the crafting system but also in overall atmosphere. The post Resident Evil 4 staple of strategically placed button bashing cues are present too and used to strong effect – always furthering the action, never impeding the story. It's a masterpiece of storytelling and like the genre-defining The Last of Us, it allows the other non-player characters to tell much of the story. Hence the action blends seamlessly with the cut scenes.

While these may sound like the doe-eyed ramblings of a super-fan, Alien Isolation isn't perfect. The very nature of the alien's unscripted arrivals can be frustratingly difficult, particularly early on when you have no defence against it and don't really know what you can get away with. If it sees you, you die. If you sprint, you die. If you make a noise, you die. In short, you will die a lot! Several hours into the narrative, I began to try and use the technique of making a noise on purpose and then relocating quickly to draw the Alien away from an area I needed to access. Even this, is very hit and miss as the creature can negotiate the air ducts so quickly that if it is hunting you, it can be on you in a matter of seconds. No doubt, this makes for a pulse pounding ride, but it can be frustrating too and were the makers not so generous with save points, I believe the game would be basically unplayable. The load times are also a little lengthy in places, although to be fair, the payoff is that the game looks incredibly beautiful.

I could go on but, really it's better that you experience the game for yourself. But make no mistake, this is high budget, high concept fan fiction pitched at the older gamer. Their mission statement was obviously to deliver not just an exciting experience but also to add to the Alien universe rather than detracting from it as, in my opinion, everything from Alien 3 onwards has done. And in this, they have succeeded utterly.

What can be said about Isolation that hasn't already been said by the big video game reviewers? This game is terrifying! And an incredibly faithful entry to the Alien Canon, I won't concentrate too much on story but obviously you are Amanda Ripley, daughter of Ellen, you find yourself on Sevastapol station in search for the Nostromo flight recorder to find out what happened to your mother who has been AWOL for 15 years, that's all I'm giving away.

What makes Isolation so special isn't its story, it's the un- predictable, radiant gameplay, one of my favourite moments so far was being spotted b a working Joe in an area I wasn't supposed to be in, they all start chasing me, I think I'm safe hiding in a corner until I turn around and find 7 of them staring at me, one grabs me by the neck and throws me into the wall and proceeds to beat the crap out of me, I whack him with my wrench ad run away into a locker, they give up looking for me, why this was so special is it only happened to me, did it happen to anyone else? Maybe, but certainly not in the exact same way, but it felt scripted, like it was supposed to happen, but it was pure chance and everyone who lays will have their own horrific story to tell that others would not have experienced.

This becomes more frightening when the Xenomorph makes his grand entrance.

The Alien in this game (There is only one) is un-scripted 95% of the time, it hunts you down like a real beast and is truly a complicated AI, and a true and horrific work of art, whenever you see it your skin will burn you will panic and find the nearest hiding place, don't bother fighting it, it will only become more aggressive, don't bother running away, it can run faster, hide or accept death and rethink your strategy.

Forget everything about last years Colonial Marines, if you're a fan of RIdley Scotts 1979 Alien, or survival horror in general, this game is essential, you will scream, panic and sweat but every survival will be something you laugh at and cherish in the end and this is easily the best £35 I have spent in a long long time, buy this game now!

Best horror game I have ever played. Best Alien game made. Simple. Should get a sequel and more recognition.