They licensed Jerry Goldsmith's score from Alien and then made an extra 2 hours of music based on that.
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Alien: Isolation |OT| 1 Alien. 1 Ripley. No Jonesy.
- Thread starter VisceralBowl
- Start date
They licensed Jerry Goldsmith's score from Alien and then made an extra 2 hours of music based on that.
Of course.
Lord Error
Insane For Sony
SMAA has sharper overal picture, but it leaves too much aliasing. I think for a game that's supposed to look like a movie, high quality variant of FXAA is a better choice, even if a bit blurrier.
Delta Assault
Member
Anti-aliasing that leaves too much aliasing seems like a bad thing. They really gotta tighten down on that whole "Anti-" portion. Cause that's really the most important part.
BroggieDoge
Member
Really on the fence with this one... I want it bad but I'm so worried it will just be better than what we have had in the past but still sub par.
Lord Error
Insane For Sony
Depends on the type of visuals being processed, I guess. SMAA can look good on it's own. It's by far the best post-processing AA soluton when paired with good temporal supersampling, like what's done in Infamous, Ryse or AC4. However, adding temporal component is not something that can be done with a flick of a switch. That is why so many games resort to FXAA which is literally a drop-in solution.
You can see the results of each applied to AC4 here: http://bartwronski.com/2014/03/15/temporal-supersampling-and-antialiasing/
Keep in mind that I don't think they've showcased HQ version of FXAA here, and also that FXAA looks dramatically better in 1080p opposed to 720p..
Death Metalist
Member
Getting it as soon as it arrives here. Even if it got poor scores across the board, I'd still get it because I support the risk and I want to see them improve and expand on this style for an Alien game.
Delta Assault
Member
Really? Seems to me most games tend to resort to MSAA. I mean, that's just what I've noticed when going into settings for most games I play.
Lord Error
Insane For Sony
On PC, yes, although FXAA is a very usual option there as well nowadays. On consoles, very few games use MSAA, and majority uses FXAA/HQ on PS4/XB1 and FXAA/LQ on PS360.
CosmicQueso
Member
The people judging a full game by a GIF is hilarious.
byron_hinson
Member
After spending more time with it today here are some more impressions:
When Sega sent us a box of Alien: Isolation stuff this week the first thing we did was to get the game installed and patched up. This is a game fans of the Alien series of films have been waiting for, especially after the disappointment of the dire Alien: Colonial Marines game released last year.
Created by The Creative Assembly who are mostly known for their Total War series of games on the PC, Alien: Isolation is a first person survival horror stealth game set 15 years after the evens of Alien.
The game has you playing the part of Amanda Ripley, the daughter of Ellen Ripley. Amanda is trying to investigate the disappearance of her mother. As expected, nothing was ever likely to go to plan.
The game begins with voice-over work from the original Ripley, Sigourney Weaver and straight away fills you with confidence that Creative Assembly have done everything in their power to appeal to Alien fans.
After a short cutscene you finally get control of Amanda and get used to your fellow crew members and the android you are always likely to be wary of if you have watched any of the films before.
Because the game can last up to 20 hours, we are not doing a full review today, but early impressions are favorable. Graphically the game is very good, matching the look and feel of the early Alien film perfectly.
The only let downs here are the frame rate in some of the in-game cutscenes seem to be lower than 30fps and can judder and skip although Sega have told us they haven't come across these issues before. It also has some atrocious lipsyncing on characters both in cutscenes and during the game, some of the worst I have seen in a long time. The good news is that there haven't been any issues during proper gameplay sections.
The first sections of the game are slow paced, getting used to environment and story, it is only later on that you will finally get to meet the Alien and start the hide and seek games.
Voice work is excellent from nearly all of the Alien: Isolation cast members, even from the various bit-part NPC's seen during the game. At the moment though we haven't been able to play through the original cast part of the game as it won't go live until the public launch.
Woah Woah Woah. Don't say that around here. We all know the Xbox One is the working man's console but the ps4 is of the highest quality caliber. It goes toe to toe with 2 grand pcs
clutch.as.it.gets.
Member
I definitely prefer a sharper picture even if its means more aliasing. Most FXAA approaches are just too heavy/blurry for my liking.
I keep hearing this and I have to say that is one of the best creative decisions for this game.
BroggieDoge
Member
And with that my excitement rises again. I really hope it turns out well.
therealminime
Member
I totally agree. That quiet, simple music from the original film is so perfect.
Haloid1177
Banned
So torn on whether to pick this up along with 2K15 and Driveclub on Tuesday or wait. Ugh decisions.
byron_hinson
Member
Same issue on the Xbox one version with the latest patch.
I read that it was mostly Survivor Mode maps. I guess that's the closest they could get to shoveling multiplayer maps at us, since this is a single player game. As I don't have much interest beyond the story, I'm not going to bother with it.
It is an easy decision to make when you want to make a serious Alien game that erases the memory of Colonial Marines. It may not have been easy to get but it is an obvious thing to do.
Hopefully this is successful so CA can become the defacto Aliens guys. Probably what they are hoping too.
The Dear Leader
Banned
Sorry man, I had multiple tabs open and got mixed up.
That's odd. I found a thread on the official forums saying the ps3 version also does it. It's like the frame rate gets chuggy during cutscenes, really breaks immersion, very off putting.
Not sure if sarcastic, it does look glitchy without the sound.
Here's the webm with sound, you can hear it run up from the left and behind the player.
http://a.pomf.se/agbero.webm
As was mentioned, he should have crouched or stood still but he walked and made footsteps.
I picked it up...I said I wouldn't get season passes again but it better it be good for the price they are charging.
Then again, even shadow of mordor is charging 2/3 of the full game price for the season pass, who knows what value we'll get.
TheMoon
Member
Alcoholikaust
Member
play that clip with audio homie. you aren't supposed to walk (much less turn at full speed while standing) the footsteps alerted the alien and the idiot got what he deserved.
The AI makes no sense at all
word to the wise: don't ever turn your back on the alien when within spitting distance-much less walk loudly around the alien-and you will be fine.
crouching is integral when close
Neff
Member
So,
Scenes with human enemies = Okay. FPS of the month lite.
Scenes with Working Joes = Good. Stealthy, tense, plentiful opportunities for escape/diversion. They can take you down with ease, especially in numbers ("Would you please come with me?"), but on the other hand they can be outsmarted.
Scenes with Alien = Bad. Move a bit, check the motion tracker to allocate position of magically warping instakill Sonic the Hedgehog, move a bit more, check motion tracker again, hope he doesn't see you, attempt to use any one of collection of laughably ineffective utilities against him, die, reload, hope for the best, repeat.
I'll say it again, this game really doesn't want to give you any kind of reward whatsoever. In just about every stealth-related game, care and patience pay off with the opportunity to permanently take out a guard, take a shortcut, get to a cherry power up, or to turn the tables in some way, if only briefly. The tables just don't turn in this game, you're constantly at its mercy, and it becomes a chore. Rather than being scared of the Alien (and you will be at times, it's the best game representation of the creature yet- beautiful, graceful, ferocious and horrifying all at once), as you should be for the duration of the game, you just want it to fuck off. There are no peaks and valleys. After a few hours, it's just valley.
I'm about halfway through, and apparently the persistence of the creature only gets worse. I find I'm basically playing only for the fanservice now, since the fear factor has subsided and a weary resignation has taken its place where death is a random inevitability rather than a challenge to be overcome. I'll say that again. It started off as terrifying. Now it's boring due to overkill. It's obvious that the team behind the game wanted to recreate the reality of being on the Nostromo and the murderous efficiency of the Alien, but they simply went too far I feel.
Scenes with human enemies = Okay. FPS of the month lite.
Scenes with Working Joes = Good. Stealthy, tense, plentiful opportunities for escape/diversion. They can take you down with ease, especially in numbers ("Would you please come with me?"), but on the other hand they can be outsmarted.
Scenes with Alien = Bad. Move a bit, check the motion tracker to allocate position of magically warping instakill Sonic the Hedgehog, move a bit more, check motion tracker again, hope he doesn't see you, attempt to use any one of collection of laughably ineffective utilities against him, die, reload, hope for the best, repeat.
I'll say it again, this game really doesn't want to give you any kind of reward whatsoever. In just about every stealth-related game, care and patience pay off with the opportunity to permanently take out a guard, take a shortcut, get to a cherry power up, or to turn the tables in some way, if only briefly. The tables just don't turn in this game, you're constantly at its mercy, and it becomes a chore. Rather than being scared of the Alien (and you will be at times, it's the best game representation of the creature yet- beautiful, graceful, ferocious and horrifying all at once), as you should be for the duration of the game, you just want it to fuck off. There are no peaks and valleys. After a few hours, it's just valley.
I'm about halfway through, and apparently the persistence of the creature only gets worse. I find I'm basically playing only for the fanservice now, since the fear factor has subsided and a weary resignation has taken its place where death is a random inevitability rather than a challenge to be overcome. I'll say that again. It started off as terrifying. Now it's boring due to overkill. It's obvious that the team behind the game wanted to recreate the reality of being on the Nostromo and the murderous efficiency of the Alien, but they simply went too far I feel.
clutch.as.it.gets.
Member
Are you playing on hard? On normal the Alien supposedly isnt as sharp and you have some room for errors, while on hard you dont have that and its game over pretty fast.
I would be curious what the advice would be from someone that beat it. They say they recommend hard but maybe didnt realize gamers would actually reject a really long game. Seems like a really weird and potentially surprising problem for CA
Neff
Member
Yeah I'm playing on hard. The title screen states that it's "the recommended way to experience the game", so in theory it should be representing the game at its best. I do think it's worth playing for the visuals and atmosphere alone, especially for Alien fans, but it's frustrating to see such amazing production values wrapped around a trial and error at best, blind luck at worst experience.
I've never understood the internet propensity for basing purchases on one guy's view, but my most succinct review of half of the game would go thusly:
It's literally Alien: The Game. It's gorgeous. It's annoying.
Secret Fawful
Member
Again with that gif? The alien moves really fast and covers a shitton of ground, like a rooms length in a second and a half.
This bit very early on where you need to get a data cell is infuriating.
Hoping things improve when the alien stuff gets going, as this is the first example of actual game play and its just poorly executed.
3 enemies which come out the door always seem to spot you. I can't make it back up the stairs because of how they're spread out so I can't distract them and there's no clear direction of where I should be going.
Every indication I've gotten seems to be that the game is cheap, but the question is how does the cheapness actually feel. I got a mixed opinion in the press reviews honestly. Even the good reviews admit the game is challenging to love. The bad reviews come across more as like as being written by awful writers unable to explain what was happening in their experience. So I am looking to Gaffers! Go, Neff, and be free to tell the truth!
LowParry
Member
So if there are the people who want to avoid the trial and error part of the game, just play it on normal? I'm taking a wild guess but are all reviews out there going in on Hard mode?
IGN wrote a piece that seems to confirm that the DLC is all related to Survivor Mode, yeah:
IGN said:
I don't know how much I'm gonna care about Survivor Mode, though. But getting the season pass for $14 when buying them individually as they come out would add up to $40 is quite the savings...
Neff
Member
The Alien will stop its typical random pacing and suddenly come fucking THUNDERING round a corner and you have no idea why. If you're in the same room when it happens, you're a goner. It will disappear off your tracker and turn up in an area without vents to allow it to get there, or even inside locked rooms. You can hide under a desk you've previously not used and he'll still find you. The next time you hide there, he might not. It lacks consistency, learnable patterns and disadvantages, a sense of real world logic that all great one-on-one videogame stalker antagonists have thrived on; MGS3's The End, Arkham City's Mr Freeze, RE3's Nemesis to name a few. He doesn't even follow your trail of sound consistently, unless he actually sees you, in which case you're dead. You can't use wits and deduction to outsmart him, because everything he does is so random, and damn quick. The Alien, the star of the show, is just a drag to encounter honestly. Everything else is fine.
Like I said, the game wants you to play on hard, leading you to think the game is designed around its difficulty and that perhaps normal/easy are watered down versions of that, so it's possible.
wanderingprostheyltite
Member
Yeah I'd like to hear some impressions on how normal feels. If there's less cheap deaths and omnipresence of the alien on that I'd rather just play it that way tbh.
xBladeM6x
Member
Looks like I'll be playing it on normal. I don't want to get annoyed with the game to the point where it's no longer enjoyable because it's too difficult / unpredictable. (Not that being unpredictable is a bad thing, but if it's as frustrating as I'm hearing, then why not play it on normal?)
Same here.
Same here.
therealminime
Member
Yeah I've pretty much decided that I'll be going normal. I want to have the best experience possible and if that means dying less because the AI isn't as good, I am totally cool with that. I have no problems being patient and moving slow, but definitely get annoyed quickly when I die and have to replay sections a ton.
You can change the difficulty at any time apparently, so if it ever gets too frustrating there's always that option.
ArkkAngel007
Member
Easy to say, hard to do if the game is constantly sucker punching the player with how the A.I. is balanced.
I know I'll enjoy it, and Jim Sterling's review will be likely be my own review nearly word for word. But I can understand how off putting some aspects can be.
You know what yeah fuck it why not, I've been playing destiny got smash bros and shadow of mordor why stop there? Lol ill be picking this up and probably last minute pre order just to get the pre order stuff.Seems like a pretty clear cut yes to me
I can dig it. Different strokes for different folks. The last thing I wanna do is be worried about all the other shit while im trying to get immersed into the games world. from the time they introduced the alien it created the perfect level of tension for me. In my opinion its an amazing experience that im gonna enjoy. I dont think ive ever played a perfect game where something might not have been broken. To those who are buying enjoy.