Games

How Alien Isolation's Sequel Could Improve

Published

1 month ago

October 13, 2024

Alien: Isolation is one of the most highly-rated survival horror games of all time, and it’s not just fans of the movie franchise who love the experience either. Since arriving in 2014, Alien: Isolation has become a cult classic, with many begging for more. Luckily, their prayers were answered a decade later, as developers Creative Assembly officially announced a sequel on October 7, 2024.

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It’s the perfect time to bring a sequel for the survival horror title, not only due to the genre’s resurgence in recent years thanks to the Dead Space, Resident Evil 4, and Silent Hill 2 remakes but also because of the release of Alien: Romulus. The movie was well-received, and it brought a wave of hype for the Alien franchise. With the Alien: Isolation sequel officially in the works, here are some ways it can improve on the original.

6 Variety in Setting and Location

Spaceships Are Cool, But What If They Could Travel?

Player looking out into space in Alien Isolation

The Sevastopol spaceship from Alien: Isolation is a stunning ode to the Nostromo from the original Alien movie. It was amazingly well crafted to fit right into the beloved franchise, putting fans aboard yet another Xenomorph-occupied spacecraft. While the setting was expertly designed, it would be progressive for the sequel to give players more than just another spaceship.

A distant planet like the ones seen in the movies could complement the spaceship setting well, providing a nice variety to keep players entertained. Fans will certainly want the game to dig its teeth into the roots of the franchise, so having a spaceship setting is a must, but what if there was a destination? The movie Aliens was set on planet LV-426, while Prometheus saw a crew find a crashed Engineer spacecraft on planet LV-223. Creative Assembly could go in many directions, and fans we’ll be hoping to see more than just the interior of a 70s-inspired spaceship for the sequel.

5 Unique Xenomorph Encounters

Stealth & Hiding Can Get Pretty Repetitive

While the AI for the Xenomorph antagonist in Isolation was applauded for its smart learning of the player’s tendencies, the cat-and-mouse gameplay loop became tedious as players got deeper into their playthrough. Encounters tend to force players into stopping whatever they were doing and hiding until the creature leaves the area, or using items like a Molotov to make it retreat.

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The tense fear that the unpredictable Alien creates is what makes the experience so immersive, and the community would love to see the clever AI used again, albeit upgraded. However, the sequel could improve on encounter variety, as perhaps giving players more creative options to repel, trick, and even hide from the Xenomorph will make those situations feel more unique even after a substantial amount of playtime. Some RPG elements that give players a sense of progression in their survival against the Alien could work great too – like upgrades to enhance items and movement mechanics such as a slide or a dodge to better deal with the Xenomorph.

4 Co-Op Feature

It’s Always Fun With A Friend, Even If It’s Less Scary

Alien Isolation Axel pointing gun at survivors

Alien: Isolation was a solely single-player experience. It did feature the Survival Mode, which saw players competing for the best completion times in a variety of missions on a global leaderboard. However, it would have been a blast to experience the Xenomorph’s terror with a friend if there was a co-op mode or campaign feature.

Co-op horror games have become extremely popular in the community, mainly thanks to titles like The Outlast Trials, Phasmophobia, Lethal Company, and more. An online mode for the Alien: Isolation sequel could open the game up to a whole new audience of co-op gamers. Whether it’s as simple as a co-op campaign experience or a mode like Survival where players have to work together to complete objectives against the clock, it would suit the game’s style extremely well and create some hilarious moments. It also fits in with the franchise, as players could occupy the space station crew rather than a sole survivor.

3 Graphical Fidelity

A Decade Of Hardware Enhancements

Naturally, games have developed greatly from 2014 when it comes to graphical fidelity. So, a more obvious improvement Creative Assembly can make when it comes to the Alien: Isolation sequel is through its visuals. As a horror game, a lot of the tension and suspense are portrayed through the atmosphere and environment, so putting the sequel’s graphics on the same level as more recent titles such as The Callisto Protocol would go a long way in terms of immersion.

The Alien franchise’s sci-fi setting and H. R. Giger’s biomechanical art style are the perfect marriage when it comes to nightmarish visuals. The original game did a great job at recreating those elements, but they have certainly aged, especially on the console. As well as improvements to the fidelity of the environments and character models, a boost to performance will be greatly received too, with the developers being able to take advantage of the PS5 and Xbox Series X|S’s hardware.

2 Smoother Experience

Autosaves & Cleaner Transitions

Alien: Isolation features a lot of janky transitions and a frustrating save system that forces you to replay large portions of the game if you miss a save point. While the save points are a contributing factor to the survival horror genre, the sequel could do a much better job at autosaving every so often to prevent repetition. Having to go back and do the same route just so you can pick up the same supplies you’ve found previously can become very tiresome, so it would be nice to have a more modernized save system.

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The transitions in and out of cutscenes and during certain animations have also aged quite a bit now. The industry is in a period where AAA games are seamless, with smooth transitions and minimal-to-no load times. Rough cuts from gameplay to cutscenes can throw you straight out of the immersion, especially when you have to wait for an NPC to make a move or for the scene to load in.

1 A New Story

Add To The Franchise While Staying Canonical

Amanda Ripley holding up her hands in surrender

What was great about Alien: Isolation was its close connection to the movies. You play as Amanda Ripley, daughter of the iconic Ellen Ripley played by Sigourney Weaver. The game fits in between the first two movies perfectly, making it a canonical entry to the beloved franchise. We know Amanda survived thanks to the movie Aliens, as Ellen is told that her daughter died on Earth at the age of 66 after being in cryosleep for 57 years. With that said it would be great for the sequel to bring a new story to the franchise as opposed to bringing back Amanda.

If the devs can find an entry in the timeline to add another canonical story to the franchise, much like Alien: Romulus did, it could equal, if not improve on the original and give lore-lovers yet another piece to the complicated puzzle. The community would love to learn more about the Engineers and their creation of the “black goo,” and the sequel is a good opportunity to do so.