I think I’m almost done with the game and I’m still enjoying it a lot but the most frustrating part for me isn’t the alien, it’s the poor game vocabulary. It can be hard to know when doors are there for decoration, or for later, or for your objective. I got stuck in one part because there was a ton of storm shutters and I had no idea which was actually useful.
As for the Alien threat itself I think the pacing is well enough where this isn’t an issue for me.
6:13 PM
Finally beat it after 39 hours which probably includes time messing around with the DLC content. I was able to get past the hump by dropping down to medium difficulty and using my flares and gadgets as was suggested above. I tend to hoard crap in games thinking my items will come in handy for the next boss fight but in A:I you need to use everything at your disposal to keep chucklenuts distracted allowing you to slip away. Oh, and luring the alien to attack other humans was a real hoot. Better them than me.
Without getting too spoilery, the derelict ship mission was pure amaze balls and I kept hoping I could explore other parts of the ship as shown in Prometheus but the game pretty much stuck with what we saw in Alien.
I went into this game blind not knowing how many missions were included in the base game and there were a few moments where I was certain that this mission was going to be the finale but it turned out to be the opposite and a bit frustrating. Not 2 star frustrating but enough to cause me sliently curse at the A:I dev team for dragging things on too long.
The Nostromo DLC’s are very cool but I was a tad disappointed they didn’t use the original audio from the movie but I suppose it would have been obvious if the developers simply copied and pasted in the dialogue from the film. It felt like the original actors were phoning it in. It’s just not the same without Lambert’s WTF is happening moment when the beast comes for her.
I’d like to replay it but this time fully loaded with supplies right from the get go. Hopefully whatever Deadendthrill uses for his or her screenshots will give me what I’m looking for.
Just got this from Gamefly and am about an hour in maybe. To be fair, I just played The Last of Us (again) and some Dragon Age: Inquisition so I’m pretty spoiled but the voice acting is horrible so far in this game. It’s pretty clear that Ripley’s voice has never done voice acting before. Maybe it gets better later? Early on…ouch.
I was hoping to get fully immersed in this one but the first encounter with some goons kind of ruined that. I went in and disabled the generator as a distraction, tried to scramble out of there, and they saw me. The first time I tried it, they came in to investigate, saw me, and killed me dead. This time, they shot me up as I ran back into the vent that Axel and I arrived in. I turned around and came back and they’re walking into the generator room, wondering what went wrong even though they JUST shot me up on my way out of there. So I jog past into the open corridor and Axel’s standing there waiting to congratulate me on my “great” job. Huh?
Going to stick with it another hour or so but I’ll probably just send it back tomorrow. I’m kind of sick of walking around with this stupid flare in my hand too. I can’t seem to figure out how to put the thing away so the ‘Press SQUARE to activate’ message is constantly on screen for me.
EDIT - I was able to build a medkit and use it, so my flare has returned to my pocket - excellent!
EDIT 2 - And…I got on the transit car and the alien ran up and killed me, resetting back before the goon encounter. Ok, I’m done.
Oh Dr Morely’s office and your stupid ID card. Once i reach the shift board, i’m stuck, game over, can’t get out. Stupid alien just sits there and waits for me to leave. I have probably spent 3 or 4 hours trying to leave the Shift Office part of Mission 5.
So after struggling in medical and letting the game sit for a month or so, I just deleted it. It’s not worth it. The premise is interesting, the game looks amazing, but the entire game of “die so you can try again” is just too tedious for me. So, for the first time in however long I can remember, I actually agree with Tom’s review.
I’m waiting for this to drop way down in price ($5 or so). Then I’ll pick it up and play it on easy mode, just to see the environments. Maybe there will be a mod to remove the Alien by then.
This game cries out to be a Riddick-lite in terms of gameplay: stealthy killing, some shooting, lots of creeping around, and every once in a while the Alien shows up to throw some chaos in for player and NPCs alike. Tom nailed it on his review: CA had a cool idea, but really no idea on how to implement it.
I’m in the same boat right now. I’m in the last part (I think) of the med bay and just have no desire to move on.
I feel the game is awesome in the way it seems to understand exactly how to recreate 80s horror and its monster-under-the-bed aesthetic. It also does a good job at making the Alien a terrifying monster by tying it closely to the music, But because each little area is heavily scripted outside of the alien’s patrol path the seams seem more prominent than they otherwise would. I do enjoy the faithful reproductions of 80s sci-fi future tech because of the narrative opportunities it affords. Batteries on flashlights run out fast because it’s scarier that way, not because it makes sense.
I’ve always hated the flashlight battery mechanic in any game. I know it’s a pure gameplay resource management mechanic, but it bugs the shit out of me. You’re trying to immerse me in this carefully crafted world tied together with the logic of its setting - in this case a space station “manned” by murderous androids and a really terrifying monster - and the scientific knowhow to make a battery last more than a few minutes is beyond the grasp of industry.
Takes me right out of the game every time.
I have cheap, crummy flashlights from hardware stores that are more powerful and long-lasting than videogame flashlights.
Well that’s the horror of it. Remember all those crappy D battery flashlights we grew up with that lasted it seemed like 15 minutes before slowly dying? Where only “lantern batteries” had enough power to use? At least in Alien it was a product of its place and time. There is even a “film grain” filter in the game for that added horror effect.
Let’s do ammunition next.
So you didn’t like Grand Theft Auto V, Destiny, Mario Kart 8, Age of Wonders, or Diablo III, huh? Tough room.
-Tom
Ammunition runs out. You can quibble over size of clips, reload speeds, and whether or not you “lose” rounds by reloading early, but I have no logical issue with ammunition being in short supply. Flashlight batteries constantly going dim in 10 minutes is hot bullshit. I can accept that the batteries in the light when you pick it up only have 10 minutes of charge left, and maybe you get a couple dud batteries now and then, but as a standard time on all batteries? Ugh.
The same goes for weapons breaking after a dozen or less uses consistently.
Sad to see so many people give up on the medical mission. I would recommend that anyone having trouble with that mission is this:
Don’t be afraid to use all of your items. Throw whatever flares & noisemakers you have to distract the alien while you advance.
After that mission it’s smooth sailing and worth it.
Just imagine she has a smartphone attached to her head with the flashlight on.
The battery on my Note S 8.4 sucks nearly this bad.
Oh. My. Fucking. God. I just got done with the Medbay mission and this shit is off the hook! When I ran into the alien inside the goddamn VENTS I nearly pissed myself out of fear. I actually had to take short breaks every 30 mins or so soon after I first encountered the alien because I couldn’t handle the tension. But my favorite part so far has been when I realised I left some human enemies in the area alive just so I wouldn’t be alone with the alien, lol.
It feels like I’m 6 years old again, watching Alien for the first time. I fucking love it.
Medium. This is my 2nd attempt at the game, I didn’t get very far last time when I played because I got sidetracked by all the new releases. I played on hard the last time and it was a tad too frustrating at times to be really enjoyable but medium’s been perfect so far.
edit: The game’s been patched since I’ve last played it, they’ve added two new difficulty modes, Novice and Impossible. I don’t know if they’ve touched the others though.
Finally finished. Wow, what a ride. Easily one of the best games I’ve played. Now that I’m done I feel like lighting up a cigarette, even though I don’t smoke. The tension and stress from this game probably shortened my life span by 10 years. Worth it.