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Alien: Isolation has terrified me more than any movie or game I've experienced.

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D

Dalek

Member
I'm 37 years old, I've seen just about every notable Horror movie and played nearly every notable horror/survival horror game. Alien: Isolation makes me act like a scared child. I have to keep telling myself that this is a videogame-and that it's ok if I "Fail" or "get killed" in the game-but It's such an immersive experience, that I'm feeling the terror that the character I control is feeling. There are sequences in this game, where I know I have to move and go to a certain objective, but I just sit there, afraid to move-knowing the risks involved.

The tension in this game is nearly UNBEARABLE. Obviously we'd be getting into spoilers to discuss specifics-but there is a certain sequence late in the game
Reactor/Nest
where I had lost, and had to revert to a previous save. I turned the game off for the night, and the next play session I was actually nervous to continue playing. When I finished that sequence, my heart was literally pounding-I could feel my blood thumping in my head with my headphones in-which brings up another point: you HAVE to use headphones when you play this game. The sound design is off the fucking charts-easiy the best I've ever encountered in a game.

The Creative Assembly have made a masterpiece, and it blows me away when I review their wikipedia page and see that this title is completely different than what they've made before.
 
D

Dalek

Member
BobbyRoberts said:
Love the shit out of this game. Haven't mainlined a game like that for at least a decade.
Click to expand...

I'm obviously not finished with it-very close, but I'd put it up for GOTY for me simply because it blows every other entry in this genre out of the water for me.
 
W

Wizard of GAF

Member
What people seem to miss is the little details that make is soo great. Like for example the depth of field when using the tracker, the film grain (works really well), the volumetric lighting on the steam (that doesn't seem to impact performance) and of course the A.i.

overall the in house engine they built is a masterpiece. Amazing game.
 
N

Not Spaceghost

Spaceghost
The best part about Alien Isolation is the constant state of actually having something to lose.

Dying in the game is horrifying because it's so immediate and sudden, you screw up and you feel your ass cheeks tighten as you know you only have a few more seconds to live.

Death feels like it means something, you get forced back to your last check point and you have to go through the hell of sneaking through all over again.

It's one of my favorite games of last year, few things even came close to being as refreshing of an experience, especially within the genre.
 
D

Dalek

Member
Wizard of GAF said:
What people seem to miss is the little details that make is soo great. Like for example the depth of field when using the tracker, the film grain (works really well), the volumetric lighting on the steam (that doesn't seem to impact performance) and of course the A.i.

overall the in house engine they built is a masterpiece. Amazing game.
Click to expand...

YES. Again, that's such a "tiny" detail, but it's so impressive that they can pull it off AND it's absolutely useful!

Not Spaceghost said:
The best part about Alien Isolation is the constant state of actually having something to lose.

Dying in the game is horrifying because it's so immediate and sudden, you screw up and you feel your ass cheeks tighten as you know you only have a few more seconds to live.

Death feels like it means something, you get forced back to your last check point and you have to go through the hell of sneaking through all over again.

It's one of my favorite games of last year, few things even came close to being as refreshing of an experience, especially within the genre.
Click to expand...

When I get killed in this game, I either close my eyes or look away. Yes, it's disturbing, but it's almost as if I can't take that I just failed and I can't watch.
 
W

Wizard of GAF

Member
Phat Michael said:
When people say you must use headphones.. Do you have a good avr and surround sound system? I've never understood that..
Click to expand...

Nope, what they mean is the experience is intensified x100. Hearing something crawl in the vents doesn't sound the same on the speaker than it does on headphones
 
NekoFever

NekoFever

Member
I love the Alien series but I just watched a playthrough of this on YouTube. Wouldn't have been able to play it. I can probably count the horror games I've finished on one hand because I get so far and then have the same feeling you talk about, where I can't start again once I've stopped. Even the playthrough scared the crap out of me.

I actually found the androids creepier than the alien.
 
B

Bobby Roberts

Banned
Phat Michael said:
When people say you must use headphones.. Do you have a good avr and surround sound system? I've never understood that..
Click to expand...

I do, but I used headphones for about 80% of my run. There's a LOT of subtle stuff in the sound mix that ends up feeling more... intimate, I guess?

Kill the lights, throw on the headphones, sit real close to the screen... It makes the game just that much more enveloping/immersive. Like the sound design is happening inside of your head.
 
D

Dalek

Member
NekoFever said:
I love the Alien series but I just watched a playthrough of this on YouTube. Wouldn't have been able to play it. I can probably count the horror games I've finished on one hand because I get so far and then have the same feeling you talk about, where I can't start again once I've stopped. Even the playthrough scared the crap out of me.

I actually found the androids creepier than the alien.
Click to expand...

There was a part where I tried to run from one of them by ducking into a vent in the floor and was crawling around. I then hear that calm monotone voice say

"I'm coming in after you."
 
W

Wizard of GAF

Member
NekoFever said:
I love the Alien series but I just watched a playthrough of this on YouTube. Wouldn't have been able to play it. I can probably count the horror games I've finished on one hand because I get so far and then have the same feeling you talk about, where I can't start again once I've stopped. Even the playthrough scared the crap out of me.

I actually found the androids creepier than the alien.
Click to expand...

The fact that they don't run and slowly corner you to your doom. But still the only reason my anus has muscles is because of the alien XD
 
P

Phat Michael

Banned
Wizard of GAF said:
Nope, what they mean is the experience is intensified x100. Hearing something crawl in the vents doesn't sound the same on the speaker than it does on headphones
Click to expand...
Why wouldn't it sound the same? Especially with bass or loud sounds... Larger speakers can displace a lot more air right? Or is it just because it's a more intimate experience?

I've never used my headphones for my consoles before...
 
A

Air Zombie Meat

Member
Android combat is the worst thing about the game. Thankfully there isn't that much of it and it becomes trivial once you get a certain weapon.
 
D

Deleted member 17706

Unconfirmed Member
Definitely one of the most memorable experiences in recent years. Loved just about every moment of it.
 
B

Bobby Roberts

Banned
Still don't know why CA hasn't made a soundtrack available. there are rips and such on Youtube, but I'd love to have an official release - while a lot of the tracks are just reworked versions of Goldsmith's original, there's enough changes (and new bits here and there) that justify it, I think.
 
P

Phat Michael

Banned
BobbyRoberts said:
I do, but I used headphones for about 80% of my run. There's a LOT of subtle stuff in the sound mix that ends up feeling more... intimate, I guess?

Kill the lights, throw on the headphones, sit real close to the screen... It makes the game just that much more enveloping/immersive. Like the sound design is happening inside of your head.
Click to expand...

Fair enough man i get you. I guess I wouldn't be able to as my headphones won't fit into my xb1 as they run balanced or 1/4 inch and it would be a mission to move my dac/headphone amp closer to the xbox.
 
B

Bobby Roberts

Banned
Phat Michael said:
Fair enough man i get you. I guess I wouldn't be able to as my headphones won't fit into my xb1 as they run balanced or 1/4 inch and it would be a mission to move my dac/headphone amp closer to the xbox.
Click to expand...

Yeah, but man - that mission might be worth undertaking :)

Although maybe I should give it another run through with the speakers running at a high level and see what that's like.

I mean, I basically, around the 2nd or 3rd mission, decided I wanted to crawl INSIDE the game if I could, so the headphones came out.

headphones almost made the motion tracker completely useless, too. Especially once I discovered the Alien can hear the fucking thing inside of a certain distance.
 
D

DedValve

Banned
Wizard of GAF said:
Nope, what they mean is the experience is intensified x100. Hearing something crawl in the vents doesn't sound the same on the speaker than it does on headphones
Click to expand...

Depends on the sound system. I tried playing using headphones (and I got some good ass headphones) and it didn't sound nearly as excellent as my surround sound. Partly due to how low it all sounds. I wish there was a way to increase the volume even more than what we already have (and yes I did set the options to headphones).


Isolation has its flaws (mostly in terms of pacing) but in terms of mechanics Isolation is brutal and absolutely true to it's horror vision of making a single Alien a terrifying threat. I'm on my second playthrough and absolutely shat bricks when I found out
that you can get the alien BEFORE the cinematic where you first meet him
 
D

Dalek

Member
DedValve said:
Depends on the sound system. I tried playing using headphones (and I got some good ass headphones) and it didn't sound nearly as excellent as my surround sound. Partly due to how low it all sounds. I wish there was a way to increase the volume even more than what we already have (and yes I did set the options to headphones).


Isolation has its flaws (mostly in terms of pacing) but in terms of mechanics Isolation is brutal and absolutely true to it's horror vision of making a single Alien a terrifying threat. I'm on my second playthrough and absolutely shat bricks when I found out
that you can get the alien BEFORE the cinematic where you first meet him
Click to expand...

? Explain!
 
W

Wizard of GAF

Member
Phat Michael said:
Why wouldn't it sound the same? Especially with bass or loud sounds... Larger speakers can displace a lot more air right? Or is it just because it's a more intimate experience?

I've never used my headphones for my consoles before...
Click to expand...

From what I've seen, sounds such as the groaning and creaking of Sevastapol are much much more intimate with headphones on. To the point of which you forget you are sitting down wearing headphones, but instead feel like you're actually being hunted by the alien.

I tried both headphone and speakers. Speakers give you that little extra. You should try them sometime
 
D

DedValve

Banned
Dalek said:
? Explain!
Click to expand...

The moment
alien kills that crazy guy with his tail it is possible to get him to start hunting you all throughout the level up until the cinematic where you "first" see him pop from a vent triggers.

Absolutely terrifying. I also had an amazing moment where I made a break for one of the elevators and managed to close it right in front of the aliens face.
I did that once with an android and he glitched through the door saying "nope".
 
E

Enco

Member
Gotta agree.

I've had to pause it numerous times to deal with the tension.

The expendable DLC is on another level too.
 
C

Cormano

Member
Man, these games terrify me, I cant get past a couple levels and I never touch them again, I love the Alien franchise, so it feels like a wasted opportunity. Might get it when its 25 or lower just to support the developers even if I cant play the damn game.
 
L

lilltias

Member
Once, I couldn't hold myself and just ran for the save station. Big mistake. I heard it coming after me and just as I was about to save the tail went through my stomach.

GOTY 2015.
 
M

MattyG

Banned
One of my unexpected games of the year, second only to Wolfenstein (and even then, they're pretty much tied in my book). Watching Alien right before it again made it even better. And it had one of my favorite subtle unsubtle references of the year;

4012C1A1BE31AB668C797633978150A1B1CB2AB1
Click to expand...

I've really got to get back to the DLC and maybe just replay the whole thing.
 
Solidsoul

Solidsoul

Banned
Truly an amazing game. Glad you are immersed OP.

I will never let IGN live down that 5.9 review. It's not only inaccurate it's downright disrespectful to Creative Assembly.
 
V

Vincent4756

Member
Solidsoul said:
Truly an amazing game. Glad you are immersed OP.

I will never let IGN live down that 5.9 review. It's not only inaccurate it's downright disrespectful to Creative Assembly.
Click to expand...

That IGN review for me was the last straw. I was just upset after playing the game and going he gave this game a 5.9. It was like the 4th game they did the whole .9 bullshit I was just sick of it.

Game deserves to sell more just cause it tried to be different in The AAA space. After so many complaints of run of the mill games not trying anything new and such something like this comes by and gets ripped to shreads... I don't understand it.

Fantastic Game and CA should make a Jurrasic Park game just like it.
 
NekoFever

NekoFever

Member
MattyG said:
One of my unexpected games of the year, second only to Wolfenstein (and even then, they're pretty much tied in my book). Watching Alien right before it again made it even better. And it had one of my favorite subtle references of the year;



I've really got to get back to the DLC and maybe just replay the whole thing.
Click to expand...
Haha, the guy on the playthrough I watched didn't get that reference and it really annoyed me.
 
D

DedValve

Banned
Jurassic World by Creative Assembly
Resident Evil 3 Remake by Creative Assembly
Jurassic motherfucking World by Creative Assembly

I hope these guys get more work. Alien was brilliant.
 
I

Itchy//Tasty

Member
It was probably my favourite new game of the year (TLOU: R notwithstanding). That said, P.T is much more unbearable for me, scare-wise. I find it hard to take simple steps in that game.
 
T

Toa TAK

Banned
I don't think it really scared me, but it definitely was an incredibly tense game. I had to actually put down the controller and take a few minutes just for a quick break. They nailed the tension here like no other. I really hope CA comes back for a sequel (and a good story with it).
 
S

SCULLIBUNDO

Banned
MattyG said:
One of my unexpected games of the year, second only to Wolfenstein (and even then, they're pretty much tied in my book). Watching Alien right before it again made it even better. And it had one of my favorite subtle references of the year;
Click to expand...

How is that reference subtle? lol
 
N

nacimento

Member
But can it scare me more that the two nights with little sleep from watching An Appointment with Death? I doubt it.
 
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