*Disclaimer- I am a large fan of the Alien movies and in turn feel it’s needed to inform you all that much of this game relies on that nostalgia. It will be addressed later in the review but as a heads up I know that knowledge directly correlates to enjoyment of the final product. Although discussion on the movie franchise is a must, be aware that spoilers for those movies come up. I apologize but without them, some might be lost with the plot of the game, which I will keep spoiler free.*

Close your eyes; imagine if you will the far-flung future. A time when space travel is nothing more than a matter of how long you would want to be in cryo-sleep. Super clean corridors, CRT monitors, and instant meals. Sounds terrib…wait that doesn’t sound too bad I guess. Wait, scratch that, I’m sorry I’m sorry. Imagine being born in the future to a space ship engineer who mysteriously disappears without trace early in your life. Highly depressing with a hint of intrigue wouldn’t you say?

How far would you go to try to find what happened to your mother? What stakes would you risk uncovering shady doings? Does seeking information outweigh the price of living? Those are the stakes brought to you in Creative Assembly’s latest release, Alien: Isolation.

So where do I begin, where do I begin? First off I have been a huge fan of the Alien series for many years. I know the characters, I know the world, and I know the lore. They are classics in my eyes, melding Sci-Fi with horror few have been able to do. Although I was hesitant after the shovel ware that has been recent installments in the Alien franchise, what was shown off with this title has been nothing but positivity and redemption.  This is due to a combination of solid gameplay mixed with a simple premise…survive.

Plot

Alien: Isolation takes place 15 years after the events of Alien (The movie) and many years prior to Aliens (The Sequel). You play as Amanda Ripley, Ellen Ripley’s daughter (only known by those who have watched deleted scenes from Aliens), in search of evidence of your mothers disappearance. The Nostromo, the ship Ellen and her crew are on and subsequently blow up in the first film, had a flight recorder that is on a ship they want Amanda to retrieve. With her mothers absence driving her actions she accepts the job and travels with a group to grab the recorder. At this point we can all probably guess how things are going to turn out. If you guessed extremely poorly, you’d be exactly right. In what feels like events repeating themselves, you find yourself face to face with what can only be described as a killing machine. With that I have one word, Xenomorphs.

That’s the general gist of Isolation, a simple premise with a simple motive that does indeed change early in but stays focused until the end. Similarly to how the films flipped its feel in the beginning to something more horrific, Isolation does the same. You start out seeking information but end up seeking a means to survive. How you do that though is all in how the game feels and plays.



Gameplay

What I’m about to say may scare you at first but bear with me. If you have played either Slender or Outlast, you will have a general feel as to how Isolation feels to control.

“But Vaughn, those were small indie games, shouldn’t a AAA title feel better to play?”

Well if you would’ve listened to me less than 30 seconds ago I said to bear with me. At first feel it controls like those two games, first-person with a weight to your own character, but quickly you adapt. You don’t turn on a dime and every movement has its uniqueness. On top of this you make noise, you make noise with everything you do other than crouching (something you will do quite often).

Don’t get me wrong, it takes some getting used to but once it clicks its very smooth. Very similar is the interaction with the NPC’s (non playable characters). There are 3 factions you have to deal with, Humans, Synthetics (androids similar to those in the films), and of course the Alien. They each have their own motions and rules behind them but once you understand their workings, everything comes together. For example Humans are either allies/neutral or Military, Synthetics are either helpful or on the fritz, and the Alien is either on a murdering rampage or on a murdering rampage. Constantly there are instances where you are interacting with zero entities or a combination of all, which leads into how you want to deal with them. 

The game does a great job in giving you the choice to go about the situation at hand on your terms. You can whether go in completely stealth not interacting with any living creature or you can go in loud with contraptions you find and create on the station or with guns.
…You know what, I take some of that back. You have some choice but most cases the choice will always fall back on being as quiet as you possibly can. Like I said earlier you make noise with everything you do except crouching. Any audible noise above breathing that you do will attract the Alien to your current area and it will begin searching. This isn’t all bad though as it can be used in your favor. Making your enemies create noise will distract not only them but the Alien as well, giving you the upper hand to escape to the next objective. It is easier said than done but the ebb and flow of the combat gives Isolation its major pull, the uneasiness and tense nature of the whole game.  

Horror is a terrible description for this game. For myself, an individual who has seen a large number of horror films including the quadrilogy this title is based from, never felt scared experiencing Isolation. This is the TENSEST game I have ever played. Most of this comes from me knowing the origins of the Alien and the danger it poses. There really aren’t moments of jump scares or other “scary” tropes. The tense nature is from the narrow hallways, silence of space and of course the AI of the Alien. AI that adapts to the way you play by never having set paths or behaviors. The tense atmosphere not only comes from the gameplay of hiding from and distracting the Alien, but also the visuals and sound design.

Graphics and Sound

Remember that preface at the very top of this review? What? You didn’t read it? I’ll wait, just scroll to the top, read it and come back here.
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Okay, fantastic, like I said above this game plays heavily on the nostalgia that is the Alien films. It’s hard to explain what I mean by this but the look and feel of these movies has been faithfully recreated for Isolation. The clean chunky white technology scattered throughout the station is also throughout this game. You see huge pipes with condensation, green and black CRT screens displaying text, the clicking on of lights as you walk down a white padded-esque hallway, and hear silence. Everything about the interior of this station screams 80’s era “future tech.” The art directors themselves brought up that is it wasn’t feasible in that time period/universe, they wouldn’t create it in the game. With that, they kept their word.

Movie or Game? You decide.

In that same vein the sound design is incredible. Most notable about this score is that there truly isn’t too much of a soundtrack. Rarely do you find yourself noticing background noise until something dramatic occurs such as the Alien dropping from the vent to seek its prey.  Much of the time you are reacting to the ships creaks and moans all of which are almost as uneasy as the silence. Overall the combination of sound design and 1980’s chic create a faithful nod to the series while also establishing its own flavor.

The only major negative I found with this game is that the cutscenes are very choppy at best. Throughout the video the frame rate stutters badly. It can be distracting in what is a constant 60 frames gameplay. An unfortunate circumstance with how good the cutscenes do look. Other than that, I can't pull anything from my mind that left a bad taste in my mouth.

Summary

Alien: Isolation is a fantastic romp through the universe that Ridley Scott first started in 1979. The horror icon, the Xenomorph, makes a great comeback in a much-needed way. The fundamental concept behind this monster is that it is a perfect killing organism. “Its perfection is only matched by its hostility.” Previous installments of the series had you killing them in mass numbers, something that degrades the horror that the first film established. Isolation travels back to those basic elements by not only making the Alien invincible but always in your mind letting you know that one false step could alert you to it.

That’s where Isolation shines, in that moment-by-moment tenseness. While you take in your surroundings realizing you are in the same time period as Ellen herself, you know there’s a killing machine in the vents constantly hunting, stalking, and listening.

In the end I feel every horror connoisseur or Sci-Fi buff should play this game. If you are neither of those and just a fan of games, give it a shot. It is definitely a hard title. At no point does it hold your hand but that is a good thing; you are working your hardest to survive. Not everyone will enjoy the slow stealth focused gameplay, but there is a chance it’ll hook you. I can’t lie and say the chances of it will be good, but…you have my sympathies.



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