The Witching Hour Night 13: Alien Isolation

Alien: Isolation is one of the most stressful yet enjoyable horror games you can experience right now. With October going full swing with spookiness it can be a great time to get back to certain games that you.. tend to “Put Off” for awhile. Even though these horror games are full of frights and fights, they are still full of delight! Alien: Isolation really hits home the feeling of constantly being in danger as well as always having you wonder when and where the Alien might pop up next.

Alien: Isolation came out on October 7^th, 2014 to wide praise from horror and franchise fans. The game was created by Creative Assembly and published by Sega. The team behind the game worked very hard to keep the feeling of the original movies; even going so far as to include early to mid-80’s retro style sounds and environments just as we heard them in the films. Being a fan of the Alien movies, playing Alien: Isolation felt like I was put directly in control of the main character in a brand new movie. That’s not exactly a uh.. wonderful feeling to have though in this case. What do I mean by that? Well, let’s dive into the game. Alien: Isolation focuses on a pure single player, first person stealth experience like many other horror games. You’re put in control of Amanda Ripley – daughter of Ellen Ripley – who is a mechanical engineer on a journey to Sevastopol, a space station that’s gone quiet and where your horrific journey begins (in a good way).

The game focuses on avoiding enemies whenever possible. Getting into a confrontation can be deadly so avoidance of androids and enemies is highly recommended (of course). You’re always on the look out for materials and items to help keep you alive throughout the game and constantly watching your back and making sure to not make too much noise. The most impressive game play mechanic that was implemented was the amount of noise you make actually matters, even when there are no enemies around. Loud steps when you run, quieter when you crouch and stealth as we all know, but make too much noise in a room/area and you’re bound to draw the one enemy you can’t kill in the whole game.. Alien.

You can stave off an Alien attack, you can avoid it or you can run away. Just be careful as to what you decide to do once the Alien invades the room you are in. You may think “Oh, I can just go into this ventilation shaft and be safe!” which might end up being true but don’t test your luck because sometimes the Alien will still find you. Sometimes even the “Ticks” from your motion tracker will draw the monster ever so close to you.. the amount of anxiety and stress during these situations truly sets it apart as a horror game for the sole reason of knowing this could happen at any time. Bonus for Xbox One owners that have a Kinect – you can activate a setting where the ambient room noise of the room your playing in actually counts to the noise you make in the game. Made a loud noise the room while playing? Expect the Alien to show its double row grin to you shortly after.

Alien: Isolation truly stands out on its own in the Horror franchise of video games. It holds true to the movies – you’re constantly on guard, always on the search for supplies to survive, what more can an Alien and Horror fan ask for? October is here and Halloween is coming so there is no better time to play this game and get that horror fix! If you even haven’t played it, there is no better time than now (Right, Kal?).