Alien: Isolation will officially launch in just two days – October 7th; worldwide – on the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, and PC. Being confident in developer The Creative Assembly’s latest work, publisher SEGA had sent out review-copies and codes beforehand, and here’s what journalists have been saying. We’ll first start with the most positive scores, and then take a look at those who were less-impressed or even downright disappointed with this latest entry in the Alien gaming franchise.
PC Gamer (9.3/10)
“It’s ridiculous that it took the developers of a historical RTS to finally create an authentic Alien game, but The Creative Assembly have managed it. They’ve succeeded where countless others have failed by treating Giger’s monster with the reverence it deserves: as something to be feared and respected, not faced head-on with a pulse rifle. Isolation is a taut, confident, and electrifying horror game that perfectly captures the essence of Ridley Scott’s legendary film. I just wish they’d been braver with the story”.
Game Front (9.2/10)
“There’s something beautiful about Alien: Isolation’s intensity, about the way it ebbs and flows, about how you learn when you’re a modicum safer than you were just a minute ago, and you can and should move a little faster, or risk waiting too long. It’s amazing how much it looks and feels like a film, translated into another medium, using that medium to make something similar and yet differently powerful”.
The Escapist (9.0/10)
“Alien: Isolation can be frustrating, but it’s mostly terrifying in a near-perfect way. The Alien is scarier than it’s been since Ridley Scott first showed it to the world, and the atmosphere is thick enough to cut”.
GRY Online (6.5/10)
“On one hand Alien: Isolation has great levels and some excellent sequences, but on the other it’s too predictable, has technical issues and a disappointing Alien. In the beginning you’ll be amazed, then you’ll get bored, just to be excited at the very end. Isolation is much better than Colonial Marines but not as good as other survival horrors out there. It could (and should!) have been great”.
GameSpot (6.0/10)
“It’s the endless meandering in between that proves troublesome, much of it intended to build tension, but most of it falling victim to a neverending sameness. I say neverending, but in reality, Alien: Isolation limps to its frustrating ending after many hours more than it can support”.
IGN (5.9/10)
“It may seem strange to complain that a game’s too long, but when the genuine scares of being hunted by an unstoppable predator are so diluted by repetition and padding, Isolation’s epic length really does work against it”.
You can check out more reviews via Metacritic.