Alien: Isolation - Game Preview

Alien: Isolation

In 1979, Ridley Scott exposed the world to an unknown terrifying entity as Alien movie hit the theaters. The concept was way ahead of its time and it was a brand new experience for the audience. The film went on to become a cult hit in spite of its B-movie image and generated a series of sequels under its franchise. And it seems Creative Assembly too have been inspired and influenced by Ridley Scott’s masterpiece as they have tried to recapture the original classic’s essence into their new game titled Alien: Isolation.

Confirmed on January 7, 2014, the game has been in its development phase for three years. The first-person shooter game incorporates stealth mode and will be a survival horror venture. The game is waiting to be released on October 7, 2014 and will be published under Sega. It will be a part of the Alien franchise.

Before hitting all the major platforms, we have given a preview to depict a clearer picture of what we can expect from this game.

The Origins:

The Creative Assembly team was formed with an objective to recreate a survival horror game rather than a regular first-person shooter action. The assembled team of Alien-obsessed individuals committed themselves for a duration of three years into developing this game. The creators focused on developing a stealth approach to the game, leaning more towards the style of Ridley Scott's classic film Alien with an objective to recreate its essence, rather than an action-oriented approach like James Cameron's sequel Aliens which has inspired many Alien games in the past.

The Isolation team pointed out that they specifically wanted it to be a scary horror game. They wanted to create an experience that was terrifying and claustrophobic. The players will always have their nervous mode on, knowing the fact that an Alien is lurking somewhere around their vicinity. On their journey to turn their venture into reality, the personals behind the project concentrated on getting the story and its elements right.

What has the engaging storyline got to offer? We take a deep insight into the plot and the gameplay.

Story and Gameplay:

The setting is 2137 A.D. which is well over a century ahead of modern times. The game follows the protagonist Amanda, fifteen years after the events of Alien. She is the daughter of Ellen Ripley who mysteriously vanished without leaving any trace. To unravel the truth behind this incident, she takes on the mission to investigate the space station Sevastopol and find the flight recorder of Nostromo.

But in the way to discovering the truth stands the answer she never wanted to know; an Alien who has invaded the space station. The unknown entity haunts the vicinity of Amanda as she has to survive the scary and dangerous atmosphere knowing that she is not far away from its wrath. The other characters in the game include Samuels, Taylor and Verlaine.

As the gamer, you will have to be prepared to face an increasingly hostile and degrading world where the worst situations are waiting to be exposed. There will be a lot of violently killed bodies and panicked population for you to confront. And then there is the overwhelmingly powerful entity waiting to prey on you.

Unlike the other previous franchises, this game focuses on a sole Alien that is more than enough to destroy everything it encounters. Throughout the entirety of the game, the Alien is invincible which will demand the under-prepared gamer to use their stealth instincts to succeed in not only accomplishing their mission but to survive as well . Usage of weapons to fight have been limited to humans and androids although the game allows you some rare gun fight opportunities.

The motion tracker that helps you to navigate and track the Alien’s location

The Alien Al has been designed with multiple behavioural patterns to determine the player's location and hunt them by using their sound and smell. The instincts become stronger with every encounter as it grows intelligent with time and adapts to its hunting strategies. The player can feel the presence of the Alien as it always emits a sound when its somewhere close. To locate its motions, the gamer will have to utilise their inventories as they won't be given an on-screen heads up warning when in danger. Instead they motion tracker and flashlight available at their disposal are the only equipments which will help in locating the entity.

While motion trackers can help you locate the Alien, it won't reveal its movements which will keep you in the edge of your seats. Firing a gun may work to your disadvantage as it could make it easier for the Alien to find out your whereabouts. The mere thought of the devilish creature always hunting for you keeps you fully engaged and unsettled at the same time. The technology resembles those of the 1970’s to helps you relive Alien’s classic feeling. Crafting objects appear in randomised locations, forcing players to explore the level to find them on each playthrough, instead of memorising their locations.

An insight from the Developers: What gamers can expect

In their making of The Alien video, the major personals responsible for the development gave their opinions and thoughts on how the project was visualised and what they have worked on.

Creative lead, Al Hope, gave his take on the game.

“When people went to see Alien in 1979, they were introduced to a new, terrifying creature which was totally unique. We wanted to make a game that recaptured that original experience. We wanted to make the Alien scary again.This is an enemy you need to avoid at all costs. An Alien that is stalking you, that’s intelligent, unpredictable and extremely dangerous. Even if you find a gun, your first thought is going to be, if i fire this gun will the Alien hear it.

Alien Isolation is about encounters that are meaningful and terrifying. So that even when the Alien is not on-screen, you will be terrified that its somewhere around. This is a game where you will never feel safe.”

Here is the trailer of the game.

http://youtu.be/meNE4CPtnCo