Creative Assembly’s Alien: Isolation released in 2014, and the survival horror title performed well both commercially and critically. Alien: Isolation received praise for its retro-futuristic visual style and faithfulness to the original Alien movie, as well as its sound design and atmosphere, but particular praise was reserved for its use of groundbreaking artificial intelligence to create a chilling portrayal of the terrifying extra-terrestrial monster.
However, despite the title’s success in bringing the iconic xenomorph to life, a sequel to Alien: Isolation is currently only an unconfirmed rumor. Fans hope the current franchise owner, Disney, will soon release official confirmation that the title is in development, especially considering now is the perfect time for a sequel to be released.
Fans Had to Wait a Long Time for a True Horror Adaptation of Alien
Fans of the original Alien had to wait a long time for a video game to do justice to Ridley Scott’s 1979 horror masterpiece. One main reason for this is likely the popularity of the film’s sequel, Aliens, which replaces the original’s hapless crew with blowhard space marines, and the single xenomorph menace with an entire hive of H.R. Giger's creatures.
This created an action-packed movie that, while not wholly sacrificing the slow pacing and dread that made its predecessor so memorable, certainly provided a better fit for video game adaptation. Sidescrolling shoot-em-ups and first-person shooters require a huge cast of cannon fodder enemies to fit their mechanics, and Aliens provided hundreds of xenomorphs for players to blow into showers of acid blood. Recent releases like Aliens: Fireteam Elite still choose to adopt the action-oriented route.
It took more modern AI technology, as well as survival horror trends leaning toward less powerful protagonists, to create Alien: Isolation. Creative Assembly invested an enormous amount of time and energy into getting the invincible monster to display enough predictable behavior that players could learn to evade it, yet enough impulsiveness to keep them constantly fearing for their lives. The end result was so effective that it has inspired a number of other frightening in-game pursuers, like Mr. X in Capcom's Resident Evil 2.
Their game also made ingenious use of other elements from the original Alien movie to further ratchet the horror. The film’s motion sensor is a constant companion; its rudimentary display and increasingly frantic beeping always present as the xenomorph closes, in providing many heart-stopping moments. The film’s android antagonist Ash is reimagined as a range of cut-price synthetics supplied by a rival manufacturer, whose cheap rubber skin and unmoving expressions make them perhaps even more unsettling than the movie's mechanoid.
Why Now is the Perfect Time for an Alien: Isolation Sequel
Given the first title received such a warm reception, it is surprising that a sequel has not already materialized. However, now is an ideal time for Creative Assembly to revisit the world of Weyland-Yutani.
Classic horror movies are enjoying a renaissance, with Halloween Kills performing strongly at the box office following the success of the 2018 reboot. The Alien franchise itself is also in reasonable health, with Ridley Scott confirming a new movie is “in progress” after the recent releases of Prometheus and Alien: Covenant, despite some fans disagreeing with the storytelling approach of these new films.
There is also a voracious appetite among gamers for science-fiction horror titles, with a Dead Space Remake in the works and an array of other successful releases from which to draw encouragement, including the System Shock and BioShock franchises. The original game’s relentless AI antagonist continues to be a popular feature of modern titles, with the Resident Evil 3 remake taking this approach using Nemesis.
If rumors of an Alien: Isolation sequel are true, fans of the original game will be delighted that the popular sci-fi horror title isn’t about to fade into obscurity. The timing for a new game feels right, but Alien enthusiasts will be interested to see whether the new title sticks to its survival horror roots or embraces the more action-oriented mechanics of other entries.
Alien: Isolation is available now for PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.