OFFICIAL Alien: Isolation

[RejZoR]

Dude, they are Aliens. They are not people. The Aliens always find you. That's how it is and always has been. If it was any other way, they would just be people looking for you.
It's not like they just have normal human senses.
In EVERY movie, they ALWAYS find you eventually.
That's how it should be imo. Not cheating. A superior killing machine.

Sorry but no. Locker guarantees absolute safety unless if it sees you getting in. Floor vent, i was there ages before alien even dropped out of the went yet it just found me for no reason. But in lockers, despite me slamming the door loudly half a second before alien entered and nothing.

 

[GhostRyder]

Sorry but no. Locker guarantees absolute safety unless if it sees you getting in. Floor vent, i was there ages before alien even dropped out of the went yet it just found me for no reason. But in lockers, despite me slamming the door loudly half a second before alien entered and nothing.

Not exactly, I am playing on hard of course but when I hid in a locker before it walked in and randomly ripped the front panel off. In this video something similar happens as well.

I mean the dynamic AI searches around based on if it thinks your in the room. It also learns your patterns based on what you did last time and tends to avoid or start searching around for you in different ways. I mean the Alien is one heck of a hunter its not surprise that it should find you eventually while hiding in an area. Most of the times I have been caught though have been because I have moved around too quickly instead of taking my time and planning out my route and strategy. It can also hear the motion tracker from what I understand so spamming it out is not the best thing if your very close to it.

 

[DayKnight]

dynamic AI

Hopefully you are not praising.

Dumb, pathetic A.I are some of the words I have.

 

[GhostRyder]

Hopefully you are not praising.

Dumb, pathetic A.I are some of the words I have.

Sorry but I disagree, on the harder difficulty it can figure out traps and other things if you repeat and it in all honesty feel pretty great. I do not call this AI dumb or Pathetic in anyway except in maybe the human AI areas because I have been able to trick them pretty frequently on hard but even so they still do a pretty good job.

 

[D007]

Here are some tweaks for the game btw:
http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=324612199

Haters gonna hate I guess.
Some people couldn't enjoy a million dollars.

 

[DayKnight]

Sorry but I disagree, on the harder difficulty it can figure out traps and other things if you repeat and it in all honesty feel pretty great. I do not call this AI dumb or Pathetic in anyway except in maybe the human AI areas because I have been able to trick them pretty frequently on hard but even so they still do a pretty good job.

Are you talking about the alien?.

The game is bigger than that. My A.I judgment isn't only limited to the alien. I judge the whole package.

On the side point, ignoring the A.I, the only enemy that I actually liked were synthetics.

 

[GhostRyder]

Are you talking about the alien?.

The game is bigger than that. My A.I judgment isn't only limited to the alien. I judge the whole package.

On the side point, ignoring the A.I, the only enemy that I actually liked were synthetics.

I was referencing mostly the Alien and the Human AI's but had not mentioned the synthetics as their AI in my book is pretty spot on how I would expect one to act.

The Humans are the only thing I viewed in the game that sometimes make very foolish decisions but the rest is very good in my book. I am enjoying the game and its styling's truthfully.

 

[DayKnight]

I was referencing mostly the Alien and the Human AI's but had not mentioned the synthetics as their AI in my book is pretty spot on how I would expect one to act.

The Humans are the only thing I viewed in the game that sometimes make very foolish decisions but the rest is very good in my book. I am enjoying the game and its styling's truthfully.

There is nothing much to 'not like' about the game in the start. Styling, etc. Please dont put me in that group of people who entered this game with negativity.

Play till end, and the ending itself, and the game is just a time pass.

Human A.I is a mockery to humans.

RejZoR and I , I guess, are experiencing/experienced a different game.

 

[Frag_Maniac]

Honestly I don't know why there's so much said about the AI pro or con. I knew going in from what I'd read and seen that there was going to be a few diatribes both directions just due to the common problems devs face with deciding on basic AI mechanics in a game. Yes, game, that in itself means you need to account for things beyond Xenomorph lore to offer both suspense and survive-ability.

I think it's good enough that they manage to keep you on your toes. The Alien is never completely predictable, and he adapts to your tactics. That flare you toss isn't going to fool him every time. Conversely, if he could always track you by scent, it would always be "Game over!", as Hudson says. And if there were never any surprise attacks, you'd feel too comfortable.

I've been relying on frequent saves and the maps to test, then retry a segment that involves a lot of tough sneaks and pickup opportunities. It also is a way to go back and erase anything the Alien has learned about you. It's as well a good way to get to know routes and item locations for future runs on harder modes. In the process I have found the save reloads can result in many different scenarios as far as where the Alien is.

I'm sure they could have perfected a few things. Like taking a couple sec longer to optionally get in a locker more slowly and quietly by grasping it with one hand, then the other, gently depressing the latch, then pulling it open with your arm against it to muffle any noise. This of course accompanied with a variance in the Alien's detection level for each. The way it is though you're never sure whether it will find you in a locker or not, which again, adds suspense.

I don't think anyone's got the AI all figured out, and even if they had, I doubt Creative Assembly would say. The locker thing could be the Alien adapting, or smelling you if close enough for a certain time, or just a probability thing. It's been suggested by some that you're easier to smell in a locker due to being in a confined space while at times holding your breath, then letting it out.

If there IS a sense of smell that factors in, I would think extreme fear and breath at close range would be as much a liability as the locker is a safe haven. Prima Guide's info on the lockers in the game describes them as "both your best friend and worst nightmare". Personally, I prefer being under tables, desks and hospital beds.

I've played a little over 1/3 the game and have yet to use the hold breath feature, I don't even know how. I also read it takes health away within a few sec. This is one other common (and understandable) nit pick. Someone is going to find that script and change it from a few seconds to at least 30 sec before Ripley loses health holding breath.

Anyways, I don't have the flame thrower yet, and it seems even if I had it, I might not have enough time to aim and use it after jumping out of a locker. I suppose this locker stuff would add insult to injury for anyone that was a bullied student in their youth. LOL

 

[Mussels]

yup .. experimenting with it, so in the future we have a single thread for all normal discussion (specific game issue threads are still allowed of course)

I like it - should solve the drama we have with video card drivers too, getting scattered into oblivion then randomly merged.

 

[RejZoR]

Not exactly, I am playing on hard of course but when I hid in a locker before it walked in and randomly ripped the front panel off. In this video something similar happens as well.

I mean the dynamic AI searches around based on if it thinks your in the room. It also learns your patterns based on what you did last time and tends to avoid or start searching around for you in different ways. I mean the Alien is one heck of a hunter its not surprise that it should find you eventually while hiding in an area. Most of the times I have been caught though have been because I have moved around too quickly instead of taking my time and planning out my route and strategy. It can also hear the motion tracker from what I understand so spamming it out is not the best thing if your very close to it.

Sorry, but I disagree with you yet again. I watched that video when Joe released it (i was quite a bit ahead of him in terms of progress) and nope, that wasn't what happened there. If you'd read my survival guide i've posted here few times already, you'd see what this guy did wrong to get ripped from that closet on wheels at the very end of the video. Let me tell you. The motion tracker beeps and alien can hear that. It's right there in my guide/tips. He brought up a motion tracker when alien was basically next to him. That wasn't "randomly ripped the front panel off", he was killed for a very good and logical reason. When alien is so close, you use your ears, not the bloody loud motion tracker. And you even admit that later on, but in the beginning of the post you wonder why it ripped the door off. So, i don't quite understand your argument here...

I think about all the stuff i do in this game like it was real. And to most extent, they actually did things very reala nd i surive really well because of that. Like the alien hearing motion tracker beeping. Or if you're hiding under a desk, holding a molotov in your hands which is illuminating the world around you. Alien also sees that. Same goes for flame thrower. That's actually really realistic game design, because in most games, weapons you're holding only have decorative properties and the flame wouldn't attract enemies any more than it would without you hodling the weapon active in your hand. But there are things that don't quite make sense like the universal sensing of me only in the ground vents. I just haven't worked out taht yet on what logic it always finds me there.

However, i was reading people posting how alien just randomly ripped them from the hidding places. That just isn't true. It never did that to me and i was actually playing on highest difficulty and decreased it for the sake of game feeling more realsitic and less cheating scripted through patrolling proximity. Just because of that and nothing else.

 

[Frag_Maniac]

Just finished this game. Holy crap, what a wild ride. One of the better games of the year so far I think.

I have to ask though, I had something happen that was pretty annoying and wondered if others did. There's red painted ledges with protrusions that stick out that almost look like stubby forklift forks equipped with hatches that automatically slide open to give you access to what appears to be a maintenance crawlway.

I had a lot of trouble getting the prompt to appear to crawl into it every time I tried, and I didn't have such problems with any other interactive objects. It was kinda unnerving sometimes when I wasn't sure if the Alien was coming into that room or not.

 

[GhostRyder]

Sorry, but I disagree with you yet again. I watched that video when Joe released it (i was quite a bit ahead of him in terms of progress) and nope, that wasn't what happened there. If you'd read my survival guide i've posted here few times already, you'd see what this guy did wrong to get ripped from that closet on wheels at the very end of the video. Let me tell you. The motion tracker beeps and alien can hear that. It's right there in my guide/tips. He brought up a motion tracker when alien was basically next to him. That wasn't "randomly ripped the front panel off", he was killed for a very good and logical reason. When alien is so close, you use your ears, not the bloody loud motion tracker. And you even admit that later on, but in the beginning of the post you wonder why it ripped the door off. So, i don't quite understand your argument here...

I think about all the stuff i do in this game like it was real. And to most extent, they actually did things very reala nd i surive really well because of that. Like the alien hearing motion tracker beeping. Or if you're hiding under a desk, holding a molotov in your hands which is illuminating the world around you. Alien also sees that. Same goes for flame thrower. That's actually really realistic game design, because in most games, weapons you're holding only have decorative properties and the flame wouldn't attract enemies any more than it would without you hodling the weapon active in your hand. But there are things that don't quite make sense like the universal sensing of me only in the ground vents. I just haven't worked out taht yet on what logic it always finds me there.

However, i was reading people posting how alien just randomly ripped them from the hidding places. That just isn't true. It never did that to me and i was actually playing on highest difficulty and decreased it for the sake of game feeling more realsitic and less cheating scripted through patrolling proximity. Just because of that and nothing else.

Yet again? We have not spoken yet in this post have we? It learns and adapts to your patterns and what you do hence why certain attacks and strategies do not work over and over. It learned that the flame thrower hurts and if it spotted me pointing it at it the Xenomorph would hesitate and instead choose to watch and move around waiting. It does learn that you can be in a locker or closet if you are seen exiting it as it does with other traps or hiding spots in the game. It also does not interact with rooms as much unless it hears you walking in them before hand which in some sections you can almost avoid it until you make machine noise. There is a cause and effect for everything in the game as that is how the Dynamic AI works in the game and the point of it.

Just finished the game...Loved it all the way through but the ending left me wanting more.

 

[Mussels]

Yet again? We have not spoken yet in this post have we? It learns and adapts to your patterns and what you do hence why certain attacks and strategies do not work over and over. It learned that the flame thrower hurts and if it spotted me pointing it at it the Xenomorph would hesitate and instead choose to watch and move around waiting. It does learn that you can be in a locker or closet if you are seen exiting it as it does with other traps or hiding spots in the game. It also does not interact with rooms as much unless it hears you walking in them before hand which in some sections you can almost avoid it until you make machine noise. There is a cause and effect for everything in the game as that is how the Dynamic AI works in the game and the point of it.

Just finished the game...Loved it all the way through but the ending left me wanting more.

it doesnt learn, it just doesnt allow the same trick to work twice in a row in X period of time.

 

[GhostRyder]

it doesnt learn, it just doesnt allow the same trick to work twice in a row in X period of time.

Meh close enough...

 

[RejZoR]

I guess i'm just hiding too well not to see any of what you're saying...

 

[ste2425]

I think about all the stuff i do in this game like it was real. And to most extent, they actually did things very reala nd i surive really well because of that. Like the alien hearing motion tracker beeping. Or if you're hiding under a desk, holding a molotov in your hands which is illuminating the world around you. Alien also sees that. Same goes for flame thrower. That's actually really realistic game design, because in most games, weapons you're holding only have decorative properties and the flame wouldn't attract enemies any more than it would without you hodling the weapon active in your hand. But there are things that don't quite make sense like the universal sensing of me only in the ground vents. I just haven't worked out taht yet on what logic it always finds me there.

I like the sound of that, hate games where the flame on a flame-thrower, or lights on futuristic rifle don't attract enemy attention.

Going to have to get me this game.

 

[MilkyWay]

To be clear i played on medium so i have no experience of hard mode.

For me the AI can stupid; sometimes the xeno would just find me out of nowhere and other times i'd be right in its face but nothing would happen. I really don't think the xeno is that unpredictable it seems to me its all scripted and using predefined patterns. All the game does is use those patterns in different orders to give an illusion of unpredictability. Once i learned what it does, what not to do to trigger something then it was rather easy not to die as much.

The game for me became a grind, i felt no sense of accomplishment or sense of skill. The xeno is a nuisance rather than actually being dangerous like it was in the films. They just start it off doing simple things then introduce other things like being able to come down from ducts, rugby tackle you, later on other tactics. Most of the time i felt my survival came down to luck, whether or not the alien would suddenly appear or not when i was doing a simple quick time event video game tropes.

I can understand when i am making noise, being in its line of sight, using light, movement, all sorts of prior indication but no sometimes i would just be found. Another thing that annoyed me was that being under a gurney meant the xeno would never ever see me yet other times it would look in the vents in lockers i was hiding in. Why didn't it look sometimes under things? The AI had a tendency to stick around when i was hiding, you know patrol the room or just stand there for awhile hanging out.

EDIT: don't even get me started on the erratic human AI or the androids.

 

[RejZoR]

It would be a lot more challenging if turning on radio or knocking around boxes, bottles and chairs would actually affect alien. Now that would be brootal. I actualyl did avoid doing all thsoe things but later found out they don't affect it at all even on Hard. But i somehow wish they would. It would just make it more realistic. And give the player ability to pick and throw all objects. So you can form diversions and distractions tahtw ay or reveal yourself by messing it up. That would be pretty cool.

And yeah, like you said, while alien is challenging to a degree where you have to track its movement right, i find stupid Working Joes more annoying when they come in fuckin packs and they always seem to wake up in a way that they jump you without any chance to avoid it. Which sucks.

 

[MilkyWay]

I think the problem for me was it felt like i was playing a video game, the immersion for me was broken like a bit after dealing with the alien a few times.
It is a hard game and it comes from tracking its movements and knowing the correct responses to certain situations but once i knew what i was doing the alien became just another nuisance rather than a direct terrifying threat. They could have added more environmental stuff like interacting with objects or being able to move over things that you could as a real human. I liked that hacking and using an alarm in another sector would make the alien run to that section. A lot of the environmental things are scripted and i wish it was more player choice driven, being able to create your own distractions or fool the alien thinking you are in another area.

I felt the game needed skin of the teeth moments, where you barely managed to survive a situation.

 

[RejZoR]

Yes, that kinda applies. But that's also due to OUR nature of adapting. It's not that game is so damn predictable, it isn't, because i've come quite far in it and i'm still learning new "rules" that i add to my survival guide. But as we adapt, game becomes easier since we became a lot smarter. And with this, you also shake of some of the fear. Because i don't think i'll ever forget the sensation when i first encountered alien. Especially since i haven't watched a single gameplay video, so i was thrown in the unknown for real. The only thing known to me was that i will be at one point facing the alien which was known to me from AvP franchise. And that was it. I had no clue what would affect it and how.

But that also applies to for example annelide hybrids in System Shock 2 (SS2) that you first face with only a rusty wrench. But as i progressed, things became easier, though you never get rid of the feeling forever when game throws new nasty stuff at you, like the cyborg midwife and those nasty hissing spiders in SS2. Here, you only have one type of major enemy so to speak so that feeling goes away a bit faster...

 

[GhostRyder]

I guess i'm just hiding too well not to see any of what you're saying...

Well it only happened once so maybe I did do something I did not realize since it seems that everyones opinion is mixed so lets just go with that.

I really enjoyed the game as it was a whole lot of fun and I felt it was a good and realistic survival game challenge. I never felt there was to much BS floating around in game and that the ammo/tools available were just enough to make it ok to use once in awhile without feeling like the game was intentionally messing with you to make it difficult. I disagree with some comments around I have seen about the flamethrower being OP and making the game to easy. Its ammo burns through (No pun intended) very fast and the Alien changes pattern after using it to make it more of a challenge to hit it and scare it off. Not to the point its useless but I can say I tried not to rely on the flamethrower unless I was forced to since it really was one of the only major weapons that could actually scare the creature off.

 

[DayKnight]

Yes, that kinda applies. But that's also due to OUR nature of adapting. It's not that game is so damn predictable, it isn't, because i've come quite far in it and i'm still learning new "rules" that i add to my survival guide. But as we adapt, game becomes easier since we became a lot smarter. And with this, you also shake of some of the fear. Because i don't think i'll ever forget the sensation when i first encountered alien. Especially since i haven't watched a single gameplay video, so i was thrown in the unknown for real. The only thing known to me was that i will be at one point facing the alien which was known to me from AvP franchise. And that was it. I had no clue what would affect it and how.

But that also applies to for example annelide hybrids in System Shock 2 (SS2) that you first face with only a rusty wrench. But as i progressed, things became easier, though you never get rid of the feeling forever when game throws new nasty stuff at you, like the cyborg midwife and those nasty hissing spiders in SS2. Here, you only have one type of major enemy so to speak so that feeling goes away a bit faster...

Yeah. After flamethrower, game becomes easy. One squirt and it runs away. Later it takes more but easy, nonetheless.

BTW most of the games are like this. Challenging in the start, only, when you have little to no firepower.

 

[RejZoR]

Yeah, same here. I remember yesterday when i was hiding in a corner, waiting for camera to move away so i could rewire it and at that point i heard alien drop down from a vent. Then "just don't walk in the room now" was going on in my head. And it did. So i had to lick it with flame a bit. Then i rewired the camera and on next encounter in the very same room i was sneaking around a higher lab table with me on one side and alien on the opposide one. So, yeah i only use it when really necessary when i get cornered with no escape. But if possible i still always pick stealth. Same later on agains Joe's. Stun prod is really the only thing that helps you club teh fuckers down and even that only when it's just one. If you have 3+ together you have a serious problem.

 

[DayKnight]

Yeah, same here. I remember yesterday when i was hiding in a corner, waiting for camera to move away so i could rewire it and at that point i heard alien drop down from a vent. Then "just don't walk in the room now" was going on in my head. And it did. So i had to lick it with flame a bit. Then i rewired the camera and on next encounter in the very same room i was sneaking around a higher lab table with me on one side and alien on the opposide one. So, yeah i only use it when really necessary when i get cornered with no escape. But if possible i still always pick stealth. Same later on agains Joe's. Stun prod is really the only thing that helps you club teh fuckers down and even that only when it's just one. If you have 3+ together you have a serious problem.

Hitting humans with stun baton felt extremely satisfying.

 

[RejZoR]

For humans i usually provoked the alien and then hide myself so the alien deals with them. Or you can also provoke humans to start shooting first. Alien always scouts the small area where shots were originally fired, so if you provoke them from far away, you can easily hide before alien arrives plus humans might miss you so you don't lose health or waste any bullets. Win win.

For me, stunning damn Joes is more satisfying. So i can beat the crap out of them in peace. And that last blow to the head is very satisfying where you take the extra wide swing...

 

[rtwjunkie]

For me, stunning damn Joes is more satisfying. So i can beat the crap out of them in peace. And that last blow to the head is very satisfying where you take the extra wide swing...

LOL, sadistic!