Alien Isolation and Aliens Colonial Marines PTSD

[Werewolfkid]

So SEGA announced Alien Isolation today. A survival horror game set fifteen years after the original Ridley Scott film on a abandoned space station. You play as Amanda Ripley, the daughter of Eileen Ripley, as she desperately tries to survive being trapped in the space station with a single lone xenomorph. Basically, the game is Amnesia The Dark Descent set in the Aliens Universe and is the Aliens game that every Aliens fan has always wanted. However, fan almost immediately started bashing the game say how it will fail and that the developers can go suck it. Unlike other occurrences of fan rage this one is not without good cause. Because no matter how good Alien Isolation looks right now there is the giant, fat, smelly elephant in the room known as Aliens Colonial Marines,

For those were lucky enough to miss the scandal, Aliens Colonial Marines was a game that Gearbox Software "saved" from development hell and promised to the fans an authentic Aliens experience and a true sequel to James Cameron's Aliens. Early gameplay trailers were promising and the game was looking to be good. But, then it came out and the horrible true about the game was revealed. Turned out the game was a broken, poorly written, and just an all around punch to the face to almost everyone who played it. The gameplay shown in the trailers was revealed to actually be an elaborate pantomime made for thee expressed reason to made the game look good. It was also revealed that Gearbox Software was one of only many developers publisher SEGA hired to built the game with each of them pointing fingers at each other to avoid taking the blame. There are many, MANY more issues I could bring up, but the short story is that Aliens Colonial Marines was a disaster that has really hurt the Aliens Franchise, thus making it no surprise people are dismissing Alien Isolation right off the bat.

Now I am a optimistic person, but even I am very cautious of this new game. While the game is not being made by any of the same people that were involved with Aliens Colonial Marines, it is being made by Creative Assembly a developer with no prier experience making horror games. Luckily, almost every preview of the game I have seen on major game news sites have made it abundantly clear that they actually got to play a demo and were not simply shown a pretty video made to look like a demo. Right now, I'm just gonna sit back and see how this turns out. If it turns out to be good I'll buy it and if it's bad well the Alien Franchise will be dealt another painful blow that will make it impossible to gain costumer interest.

What are all your thoughts on Alien Isolation my fellow Escapists? Do you think it will be another Aliens Colonial Marines or will it be the game that renews faith in the franchise? Only time will answer those questions, but I'm still curious to see what everyone else thinks in the here and now.

 

[Johnny Novgorod]

I was meaning to make a thread about Colonial Marines to answer this very simple question - is it really that bad? Haven't played it myself but it seems like one of those band wagon hate trains everybody jumps aboard without really playing it or even feeling very strongly about it. It mostly just looks mediocre. Did anybody NOT hate the game?

 

[Werewolfkid]

I was meaning to make a thread about Colonial Marines to answer this very simple question - is it really that bad? Haven't played it myself but it seems like one of those band wagon hate trains everybody jumps aboard without really playing it or even feeling very strongly about it. It mostly just looks mediocre. Did anybody NOT hate the game?

I haven't played the game personally, but I have seen a full playthrough on the internet. I think the game does without a shadow of a doubt deserve the hate it gets. It used false promises of a reinvigorated Aliens franchise and used trailers to make the game look better then it was. If it had just been some cookie cutter science fiction shooter that everyone would have forgotten about it. It is the fact they abused a name that people have fond memories of for the sole purpose of suckering them to play a bellow average game that gets people so mad about it. Hopefully, we won't see more of that in this new generation.

 

[mrvenom]

I don't like the fact that's its gonna be about Ripley's daughter. I mean, come on. She's been in the movies for like what, 2 minutes? I smell a case of "MUST. MAKE. CONNECTION. TO. RIPLEY." Ugh.

The girl is going to be an engineer. First thought: Dead Space 1 style horror. That's good. Weaponized gadgets and all that. Second thing i read: More weapons in the later stages. AKA dead space 3 probably. Not Good. That took the horror out of the game. (I'm sorry but you can't have a horror game with the pre-order deathmachine)

Third: "We're gonna re-invent the Alien (Or something in that order)". Not sure. The horror comes not from the design of the wang with claws, it's what the bloody thing can do. That's my interpetation of re-inventing something.

I have mixed feelings about it.

 

[Sniper Team 4]

I was meaning to make a thread about Colonial Marines to answer this very simple question - is it really that bad? Haven't played it myself but it seems like one of those band wagon hate trains everybody jumps aboard without really playing it or even feeling very strongly about it. It mostly just looks mediocre. Did anybody NOT hate the game?

I did not hate it. There were a few times where I had fun playing it. Setting the difficulty to the max and playing with three other people was amusing--when people actually played the game and didn't blitz through it. There were a few times where it really did feel like the Aliens move: Firing blindly, frantic reloading, backing into a corner, and ultimately, death.
Unfortunately, those cases were the exception. Most of the game is bland and ugly in terms of visuals. The Aliens posed little threat most of the time, opting to run straight at you instead of trying to flank or sneak attack. The only time that worked to their advantage was when there were so many that sheer numbers took you down--and I think that's only like twice in the game. The characters were all forgettable (I can't even remember any of their names, a rare thing for me), and you spent most of the game wondering where everyone was. What I mean is, in the opening scene you are in a ship full of marines. It makes it look like you are going in with a full squad and you are going to kick ass. But when you actually start playing, if you're by yourself, you are literally the only one in the airlock. All the other marines vanish. Finally, the story was rubbish, topped off with a boss fight where all you do is push a series of buttons in a hanger. Seriously, that is it. No fire fight, no nothing. The game was not good purely from a game standpoint.
But a lot of the hate comes from the sense of betrayal the fans of the series got, and the lies and the bucking of the blame. Fans are very passionate about their loved franchises (see Mass Effect 3), and if you promise them something and then deliver something completely sub-par, be ready.

Anyhoo, about this new game, I am holding out hope. The preview they posted here today, along with that trailer, makes it seem like this developer is taking the right steps to address the concerns I have about this game, like making sure the Alien AI can adapt and isn't just on a linear path the entire time. I will keep my eyes on this one, but I still have many questions and possible concerns about it.

 

[shrekfan246]

I was meaning to make a thread about Colonial Marines to answer this very simple question - is it really that bad? Haven't played it myself but it seems like one of those band wagon hate trains everybody jumps aboard without really playing it or even feeling very strongly about it. It mostly just looks mediocre.

Most people seem to just latch on to the fact that the preview demos for it ended up being nothing like the actual game, rather than using the actual game as a reason for why it sucks. While I don't doubt the base game was boring and buggy on release based on the few videos I've seen of it, I did watch Jim Sterling play through the DLC for it and it indeed looked more unremarkable than actually bad.

Did anybody NOT hate the game?

Rhetorical question may be rhetorical, but we've had a few people on these very forums post about how it wasn't as bad as everybody said since it released.

OT: Sega's massive mishandling of everything aside, I'd only say there's adequate cause to be worried about the development of this game if it ends up in the same position Colonial Marines was in. If it actually has a reasonable amount of development time in the hands of a competent developer, it has the advantage of the last big Aliens game being Colonial Marines. Not really a heavy standard to live up to there.

 

[senordesol]

Isolation looks like it could be interesting. Maybe it will be.

1. Let's look at who's working on it.
Creative Assembly. Oh...no.... The same guys who crapped out Rome TW2? Fuck.

2. Who's publishing it?
Sega Oh NO! The same guys responsible for TW2 AND A:CM AND the latest AvP? Not good...not good.

I think we have a pretty good idea what's going to happen now. It's either going to absolutely suck, or it's going to be FRIGGIN' AWESOME.

The reason it might suck is that CA proved to be just a big a pack o' liars as Gearbox when they were hyping up R:TW2. Whilst talking about 'Graphics' and 'Strategic AI', we wound up with a unoptimized, brain dead, glitchy game. Not *as* bad as A:CM per se, but a sad...sad entry in the Total War franchise, leading to the first TW game I've skipped since Rome 1.

BUT... With both developer and publisher reeling from savaging in the press from recent titles; now's the perfect time for them to rally. The central mechanic seems tight and focused: One alien, do whatever you can to survive. Perfect. Simple. Not a lot of reason for feature bloating or over-promising. All they have to focus on is: 1) Atmosphere, and 2) making everything -EVERYTHING- on the ship an interactive tool that you can use to your advantage.

It can be done, so we'll see if they do.

They better not expect me to pre-order a damn thing, though.

 

[The Crispy Tiger]

I don't like the fact that's its gonna be about Ripley's daughter. I mean, come on. She's been in the movies for like what, 2 minutes? I smell a case of "MUST. MAKE. CONNECTION. TO. RIPLEY." Ugh.

The girl is going to be an engineer. First thought: Dead Space 1 style horror. That's good. Weaponized gadgets and all that. Second thing i read: More weapons in the later stages. AKA dead space 3 probably. Not Good. That took the horror out of the game. (I'm sorry but you can't have a horror game with the pre-order deathmachine)

Third: "We're gonna re-invent the Alien (Or something in that order)". Not sure. The horror comes not from the design of the wang with claws, it's what the bloody thing can do. That's my interpetation of re-inventing something.

I have mixed feelings about it.

The developers were actually talking about this and to me it makes sense. When you get down to it, let me ask you two questions. Who would go out to save Ripley before Aliens, and why would we care about the character. When the developer explained, I got it and it doesn't feel like a cheap retcon. Not saying it can't be, it totally could, but it doesn't sound like it.

 

[The Crispy Tiger]

Isolation looks like it could be interesting. Maybe it will be.

1. Let's look at who's working on it.
Creative Assembly. Oh...no.... The same guys who crapped out Rome TW2? Fuck.

2. Who's publishing it?
Sega Oh NO! The same guys responsible for TW2 AND A:CM AND the latest AvP? Not good...not good.

I think we have a pretty good idea what's going to happen now. It's either going to absolutely suck, or it's going to be FRIGGIN' AWESOME.

The reason it might suck is that CA proved to be just a big a pack o' liars as Gearbox when they were hyping up R:TW2. Whilst talking about 'Graphics' and 'Strategic AI', we wound up with a unoptimized, brain dead, glitchy game. Not *as* bad as A:CM per se, but a sad...sad entry in the Total War franchise, leading to the first TW game I've skipped since Rome 1.

BUT... With both developer and publisher reeling from savaging in the press from recent titles; now's the perfect time for them to rally. The central mechanic seems tight and focused: One alien, do whatever you can to survive. Perfect. Simple. Not a lot of reason for feature bloating or over-promising. All they have to focus on is: 1) Atmosphere, and 2) making everything -EVERYTHING- on the ship an interactive tool that you can use to your advantage.

It can be done, so we'll see if they do.

They better not expect me to pre-order a damn thing, though.

You see I like Sega, and as far as I hear, for every A:CM there's The Cave somewhere in there releases. Not to mention they hired a whole new team and part to Creative Assembly instead of giving it to the RTS guys, but I can say I heard that, I can't say it as fact.

 

[Ancient Mariner]

I'm partially reluctant due to the Colonial Marines fiasco that went down, but on the other hand I'm also very excited. The Alien films have influenced the game industry so much, with the aesthetics of the films being prevalent in so many sci-fi games. Although the films have influenced games so profoundly, there really has not been a definitive, quality Alien game made yet which is a real shame. Alien Isolation however, looks promising. I also like how the game is pulling more heavily influence wise from the first film. The first film is my favourite of the series as it is so rich on a thematic level and deals with very disturbing, Freudian content all brought to life by Ridley Scott's directorial brilliance. Aliens while good, was a high octane action movie that eschewed the tense and most disturbing elements from the first film. I guess I'm saying that even if Colonial Marines turned out being a solid and skillfully designed game, it would still have fundamentally lacked the most appealing aspects of the Alien franchise: loneliness and terror. This is because it's main influence was James Cameron's action packed follow up film, the game was even meant to be a sequel to it of sorts even though it did really weird stuff with the canon. Anyways, I'm hopeful and fairly confident that this could end up quite well.

 

[senordesol]

Isolation looks like it could be interesting. Maybe it will be.

1. Let's look at who's working on it.
Creative Assembly. Oh...no.... The same guys who crapped out Rome TW2? Fuck.

2. Who's publishing it?
Sega Oh NO! The same guys responsible for TW2 AND A:CM AND the latest AvP? Not good...not good.

I think we have a pretty good idea what's going to happen now. It's either going to absolutely suck, or it's going to be FRIGGIN' AWESOME.

The reason it might suck is that CA proved to be just a big a pack o' liars as Gearbox when they were hyping up R:TW2. Whilst talking about 'Graphics' and 'Strategic AI', we wound up with a unoptimized, brain dead, glitchy game. Not *as* bad as A:CM per se, but a sad...sad entry in the Total War franchise, leading to the first TW game I've skipped since Rome 1.

BUT... With both developer and publisher reeling from savaging in the press from recent titles; now's the perfect time for them to rally. The central mechanic seems tight and focused: One alien, do whatever you can to survive. Perfect. Simple. Not a lot of reason for feature bloating or over-promising. All they have to focus on is: 1) Atmosphere, and 2) making everything -EVERYTHING- on the ship an interactive tool that you can use to your advantage.

It can be done, so we'll see if they do.

They better not expect me to pre-order a damn thing, though.

You see I like Sega, and as far as I hear, for every A:CM there's The Cave somewhere in there releases. Not to mention they hired a whole new team and part to Creative Assembly instead of giving it to the RTS guys, but I can say I heard that, I can't say it as fact.

An inconsistent publisher and as untested dev team? You realize that's not the contemporary formula for success, right?

Look, if you like Sega; that's your right and more power to ya. I've already said that this would be a great rallying title, but who knows? But I think, IF this game is going to be a success it should be by its own merit and not hype or goodwill. As punishment for taking advantage of the good will and faith of their customers, both CA and SEGA shouldn't get preorders no matter what promises dribble from their mouth holes.

They've already proven we can't take them at their word, so I say: shut up and EARN my money.

 

[The Crispy Tiger]

The developers were actually talking about this and to me it makes sense. When you get down to it, let me ask you two questions. Who would go out to save Ripley before Aliens, and why would we care about the character. When the developer explained, I got it and it doesn't feel like a cheap retcon. Not saying it can't be, it totally could, but it doesn't sound like it.

There were a bunch of other people on the Nostromo though. It being Ripley's daughter and just Ripley's daughter is a bit convenient, isn't it? I mean, are there no boyfriends or girlfriends, any other children, brother or sisters of anybody on that ship?

Of course it's convenient but it's also a character that hasn't been explored that they can do awesome things with, so don't be too scared of that.

 

[The Crispy Tiger]

Isolation looks like it could be interesting. Maybe it will be.

1. Let's look at who's working on it.
Creative Assembly. Oh...no.... The same guys who crapped out Rome TW2? Fuck.

2. Who's publishing it?
Sega Oh NO! The same guys responsible for TW2 AND A:CM AND the latest AvP? Not good...not good.

I think we have a pretty good idea what's going to happen now. It's either going to absolutely suck, or it's going to be FRIGGIN' AWESOME.

The reason it might suck is that CA proved to be just a big a pack o' liars as Gearbox when they were hyping up R:TW2. Whilst talking about 'Graphics' and 'Strategic AI', we wound up with a unoptimized, brain dead, glitchy game. Not *as* bad as A:CM per se, but a sad...sad entry in the Total War franchise, leading to the first TW game I've skipped since Rome 1.

BUT... With both developer and publisher reeling from savaging in the press from recent titles; now's the perfect time for them to rally. The central mechanic seems tight and focused: One alien, do whatever you can to survive. Perfect. Simple. Not a lot of reason for feature bloating or over-promising. All they have to focus on is: 1) Atmosphere, and 2) making everything -EVERYTHING- on the ship an interactive tool that you can use to your advantage.

It can be done, so we'll see if they do.

They better not expect me to pre-order a damn thing, though.

You see I like Sega, and as far as I hear, for every A:CM there's The Cave somewhere in there releases. Not to mention they hired a whole new team and part to Creative Assembly instead of giving it to the RTS guys, but I can say I heard that, I can't say it as fact.

An inconsistent publisher and as untested dev team? You realize that's not the contemporary formula for success, right?

Look, if you like Sega; that's your right and more power to ya. I've already said that this would be a great rallying title, but who knows? But I think, IF this game is going to be a success it should be by its own merit and not hype or goodwill. As punishment for taking advantage of the good will and faith of their customers, both CA and SEGA shouldn't get preorders no matter what promises dribble from their mouth holes.

They've already proven we can't take them at their word, so I say: shut up and EARN my money.

I can agree and I understand where you're coming from. Not to mention, I will be saving up all year so when the time comes, I can get a PS4 on Black Friday. Then, I can save up and get this.

 

[Smooth Operator]

Well the good news is that Gearbox isn't working on it and there is actually some suspense drama planed.
Bad news is Creative Assembly have never done anything close to this, now they are managing a whole new team of unknowns and they are possibly the worst at QA, actually no they are even worse at patching.

Certainly wait and see what happens, also remember that people came from Colonial Marines previews and said it was amazing... actually they say that for every damn preview, then again so would I when getting free flights/hotel rooms/drinks/parties.

 

[beastro]

CA has a hard enough time developing genres they've been doing for over a decade like the Total War series, let alone breaking into new territory.

 

[shogunblade]

I'm going to be optimistic and say the game looks good, sounds good, and if I am still into gaming by then (I'm on the wane again), I would hope the game will be good enough to play.

I ran into this issue with Duke Nukem Forever, even if A:CM is bad, we need to keep an open mind, hopefully, it will be better, and there is nothing saying it can't be.

I don't like that it's an Xbone or PS4 or PC game, because I do not plan to upgrade, but it makes sense, and it could certainly turn out like Arkham Asylum did, Rocksteady wasn't a company with great expectations, and look how the first Batman game was. Arkham City, not so much, but Asylum? Magnificent. I say give it a chance, at least it's not canon and trying to be anything other than being Outlast...
IN SPACE!