Review: Alien isolation Xbox 360 version.

mjnurney

we live as we dream. Alone.
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First off Alien is one of my fav films and i was a little cautious about buying this as well, film type games are usually rubbish.

however i have to say that after oh 3 or 4 nights of light playing I'm happy to report its pretty good. The graphics are fair to pretty good. The audio is excellent and the music is very atmospheric. Of course all this is done to heighten the fear factor.

So whats is all about?

You Ripley daughter and you are sent to be part of a team to collect the Nostromo flight recorder from a decommissioned space station. Some story telling cut scenes happen and lots of poor lip sync chat but these can be skipped easily. The game evolves as time goes on to rescue people , contact the transport ship etc.

The opening sequence sees you leave you transport ship and space walk to the Sevastopol station , when all hell breaks loose and you loose all of your party but thankfully you make it to an air-lock and manage to get inside the semi-derilict space station.

Your mission objective is updated constantly and you begin with no weapons , no tools and no idea what to do. The start of the game is possibly the weakest as its too dark and there is no one about, obviously the Alien isn't going to eat you yet of make you in to a mummy alien so early on ...so its a little tedious knowing you won't die or meet a grizzly end.

But..

After a couple of early levels of wondering about you find yourself chatting to a survivor - Axel who tells you all the info and guides you on a quick seek and distract mission - no flashlight and no noise. sneak about lassy and all that kind of stuff. Its around this time that our fav slimy friend pops up and says 'hi' just a friendly introduction and he's off again.

Then your on your own with the Alien in a large lobby area, sadly this is both good and bad. The Alien is walking in a set routine and will walk by you completely if you and just out of sight, however it seems to find you in hidden places too. perhaps Ripleys perfume is too strong? Anyway escape to the transit system and your off to the next tower.

Whats this... robots?

Now the game really picks up pace when you find yourself moving from one of the three towers via the transit system and you meet the working joe robots or Androids. These little buggers are very hard to kill and are equally stupid and short sighted as they are relentless at trying to cave your skull in. The look wonderfully sinister and semi human like but with evil red / orange glowing eyes. (always a bad sign i find)

About this time you will of picked up most of the basics , rewiring to turn lights off/on, picked up a gun with very limited ammo., a jack thingy and various scrap to make things from.

The game is at heart a sneak em up with clunky FPS features that are what they are - a last resort. if you shoot or beat someone you are going to attract a lot of attention and in the wrong way if you know what i mean. its not an FPS so i don't mind this.


So what is it?

think silent hill and thief and your not far off.

best bits:

The graphics and audio - both the music and background sounds ... hear a noise ? well thats someone coming to eat you or beat your head in. Not once did i get offered a cup of tea/ medipack or uzi 9mm during the game.

Mr Alien dragging you out of an air vent ...i didn't expect that :)

the shadows and lights / general atmosphere. very good indeed.

The working joe Androids.

worst bits.

Seeing the Alien in full animation - it spoils it a bit. We never saw the full shark in Jaws did we?

long loading time between levels - something nearly a minute however you'll appreciate the rest.

don't expect an FPS or a run and gun - its not.


Overall.

8.5 out of 10.

Not perfect but very good and worth buying. Get the Alien isolation version with the Nostromo add on and you can play as in the film.


other reviews

David Houghton from GamesRadar gave the game a 4.5/5, praising the graphics and its intelligent AI which keeps the game unpredictable. He also thought that the game provided a lot of thrilling, engrossing, profoundly fulfilling rewards and will probably make players feel more alive than a video game has in years.[39]
Andy Kelly from PC Gamer gave the game a 93/100, stating that the game is the one the Alien series has always deserved. He praised the audio design, as well as the reactive AI of the Alien. He also thought that the pacing of the story was perfect, even though it took him about 25 hours to finish the game. However, he criticized the disappointing story as well as the flat voice acting and insubstantial characters, but he still summarized the game as a "deep, fun stealth game set in an evocatively realised sci-fi world."[46]
Alex Dale from Official Xbox Magazine gave the game a 9/10. He described the game as a "unique stealth-horror thriller that combines great pacing and smart design with razor-sharp AI that's unpredictable in all the right ways". However, he criticized the punishing difficulty of the game, saying players will suffer harsh punishment for small failures.[45]







 
UPDATE.

The credits a rolling now and the Alien theme is quietly playing...

Well I've just completed the game on medium skill level and its a bugger to do. those Alien so and so's just love to eat you and poor old Ripley , that girl needs a break.

So after fighting , running and hiding behind the sofa while playing. I'm going to say its a 9.5 out of 10 ......just a little too long?

I have to say its one of the most atmospheric games i have ever played and the graphics are beautiful , even on the lowly 360. Audio is perfect (mostly) but the voice and warning dialogue is too quiet and gets lots in the alarms and sirens that seem to happen the instant i want in a room.

The space walk outside really shows off the (supposed) size of the space station and its lovely just look at the semi abandoned wreck of a thing. If your not a shoot em up but a stealth em up - then this is for you! buy it now. However if you want a run and gun then stay clear.
The map system isn't always clear and its easy to lose your way.

And a word to any insurance company - if you hire a crew member called Ripley , sack her on the spot. nothing but bad luck that girl!

mike, last survivor of the Sevastopol. singing off.

maybe in a few weeks a freight ship will pick me up.

mike.

PS.

I just knew the air lock was bad news.
 
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