Ah, Alien Isolation I wanted to love you but you wouldn’t let me.


Being hunted by a predator, through the width of an unknown and hostile space station, where the only way to progress is to come out and enter the very area it stalks makes for one hell of a horror game sell. Especially since I have heard for years how intelligent the Alien in this game was.

I was one of the rare existence who played the game before watching the movie(s) , but I didn’t finish it back then, I didn’t even make it past the first quarter of the game at that time, I didn’t drop it for any particular reason, just got distracted by something else.

But this time I was ready, watched Alien and Aliens to prepare, (Alien is pretty great) and now with enough context and excitement I headed in again.

Games dont really need to look better than this

The game started and I was hooked, the Nostromo-like ship I was in at the start I just loved looking around it. It was the ship I just saw in the movie, the game does a fantastic job of translating the movie’s feel into the game itself. Even after landing on the Sevastopol Station , the game did a great job of expanding on the already fantastic aesthetics of the movie. CRT’s everywhere and all the tech has a solid, cube like look to it, with blinking lights everywhere, 80s vision of the future. They had access to the original art for the movie and made something amazing out of it, the art direction is both unique and having such a strong backbone for the graphics and being technically one of the best looking if not the best looking game of its time means this game has aged phenomenally well visuals wise. The station feels like it's active and has been active, the smoke coming out of the pipes, something in the station is always in motion, no part of the station lacks detail, even in the lockers to hide in, there’s variety in what you find stuck inside the locker wall. The lighting that moves between clinical looking hospital like and the yellow hue of the star. The effects are another part of the game that stands out to me, the thick smoke, the fire, and even the dust particles moving around inside this station is what completes Alien Isolation’s visuals. Moving through the numerous dark corridors and hallways of the stations as the light of my flamethrower turns the environment, a shade of orange I thought “ Do games really need to look better than this ?” . I mean the game does use some tricks, turning off all the post processing can show the game’s age a bit, it uses both film grain and chromatic aberration heavily, but why would you when it’s so tastefully implemented. The game uses a lot of fog everywhere dunno if it's a thing to hide rendering or just a choice on the designer’s part and its Anti Aliasing is kinda awful and these 2 are the only technical complaints I have about it.

The real shortcomings in this department are 2 things, the human characters aren’t that well done, not bad for their time but definitely not on par with the rest, there is a stiffness with the character animation, poor lip syncing and animations.

But that’s not my main problem with the visuals, that would be the lack of variety, after a point the environments of the game started to blend together for me, they didn’t really switch it up with different styles to different floors, I mean it does have variety but that comes too late in the game, when you have already backtracked through the station once.

Sevastapol is never quiet

But the sound design, that’s one thing that never got old, the station is always filled with sounds of machinery and the systems running, every area is filled with hum and buzz. And when there are weird noises around you it's hard to tell if it’s because the Alien’s nearby or because this station is falling apart. Everything has a nice tactile feel to it, the machines work loudly which makes the interactions both satisfying and nerve wracking as you know the alien will hear the sound and come to investigate. The sound effects are layered and immersive and the music reminds me of the movie in bits and builds up tension in other parts but never overtakes ambience. It can get scary enough in the right conditions that I hid even when there was no actual threat present in the area.

The enemies both the Alien and the Androids, always kept me on edge, and a lot of it was due to the sounds they made. The Androids also look creepy as fuck.

The station was already fucked, the Alien was still the worst thing that could happen to it

The overall atmosphere is enhanced by everything surrounding the presentation, Sevstapol and Seegson are no Weyland Yutani, with constant cost management and corner cuttings, they are much less the inhumane evil of Weyland Yutani, but when shit goes fucky there’s a more mundane reason to it all, it's clear humans are working on this ship, greedy humans always looking to one up one another but humans nonetheless. But this has caused the ship which was already in an awful condition before the arrival of the Alien to become hostile even without its presence, the humans have formed groups attacking and warning anyone they see, everyone is on edge. The androids which have some awful programming due to the mentioned cost cutting are quick to attack humans due to just about anything, a problem known much before the alien threat materialized. Things were so bad the whole station was decommissioned days before we arrive.

Too long, Too one note

But I will stop my praise there. By the time I was done with the game I was exhausted, annoyed and bored with the game. This game is too frustratingly linear progression wise and lacking in depth gameplay wise to carry a game for this long. For exactly half of the game I kept thinking “I should be near the end now”, let's get the Alien praise out of the way, the AI of the Alien is great for a large part of the game I was always on edge thinking where the Alien could be, its erratic way of moving around the areas, its patience in sniffing out it’s Prey, and the way it tries to fool the player into thinking its leaving before jumping back down, all of its activities , its heightened senses and its ability to learn makes this a game of nerves and outwitting the opponent.

There’s basically nothing to interact with in the environment that won't progress the story, yes there are vents and and some panels controlling minor parts of the environment. But that’s it you can't turn off lights, you can’t hack anything the environment to work differently, pick up and throw items, move anything in the levels, or even fucking jump. Sneaking around in locations already decided for you, for over two dozen hours got boring in less than half that time, also the Alien being that hard of an opponent while being great at the start slowly got annoying. While hiding in a locker you can't do anything, if I could check the map, listen to voices or anything that would have made parts of the game significantly less dull. As the game went on I got more and more frustrated with this awful shallow stealth system and as my frustration grew I got caught by the Alien more and more and I wasn't scared of the Alien any longer, only annoyed at losing a few minutes of progress and then the game went on for several hours more. And when this game loses its ability to scare it loses its gameplay hook.

The gameplay loop is simple and the only thing separating it from being a chore is the fear of the Alien lurking (and the tactile feel of working the machinery do be kinda satisfying), explore, hide, do minigames and qte’s for 25 Hours while nothing happens to shake up the gameplay vast majority of the time, like new more fun things are there in later parts, combat and more enemies different environments but its too little too late.

The robots are creepy for a bit but they are even less engaging than the Alien, and even when they felt like a breath of fresh air after so many Alien encounters, but even this section went on for too long.

This might be the single worst paced game I have completed, it's almost twice as long as it needs to be and there’s multiple sections of this game that I thought the game would be better off just getting rid of.

And the story itself takes all the way to the last parts of the game to get going fully which is a shame cause I actually like it a lot, I feel like MArlow the game’s antagonist is a really well written character, the whole thing is well written but stretched too thin.

There’s a good well paced game in here somewhere, that game is not this, it's always disappointing to see a game that has so much going for it just completely fail at parts to the point of getting in the way of what is clearly good about it. Its a marvel that Alien Isolation exists, I will never give this game the time of day ever again.

Every Fromsoft game I have played before Sekiro, I have always felt like I have had nothing to add to the discussion, its like someone had already talked about exactly what I wanted to say about it before I even played that game.

Sekiro is different, mostly because the part that is most discussed about this game, the combat, I found pretty milquetoast, with all enemies having clear tells and perfect ways to counter every move. Swordman after swordman after swordman got boring, vast majority of the enemies in areas are dealt with similarly same for a lot of the mini-bosses in those areas. I just found the whole thing really easy till the very last stretch of the game, with general parry timings and block-parry-block maneuver being pretty overpowered throughout and most of your enemies lacking any of the mobility you have. I wont say the game doesnt try to mix things up with faster enemies but parry spam never stops being viable with the regular enemies.

The later bosses more or less fix my issues with Isshin in particular being what I wanted from this game's combat from the start, with unpredictable combos likely to break your posture, and what seems like a never ending variety of attacks.

About Sekiro's level design, there's something from Souls I really miss, progressing through areas in a slow calculated way, in vast majority of level exploration in Sekiro I was never in any danger when I didn't put myself in it, safety was always one grapple away. The levels never really surprised me, the ambushes that were there never made me panic because of how easy it was to deal with, there was no slow crawl to the idol as I carve out my path through the world, the enemies just there as a way for me to get stronger on my way to the boss more or less lacking their impact on my journey. The one encounter that stands out to me is crossing the bridge with the gunners shooting at you that reminded me of what I like about level exploration in Fromsoft games.

Now I am not saying that the way Sekiro provides a path for you to zoom to the bosses is bad but it is not my proffered approach to levels. but finally some praise is in order I faced some challenge in the enemies in return to Ashina castle and how it has changed from my first time through is great. Senpou temple's vertical design is also a treat to traverse. And finally Fountainhead Palace gave me a satisfying taste of the Souls flavour I was craving all playthrough long. The lack of dogshit boss runs is also appreciated.

What I heard less of when it comes to Sekiro discussion online is the story and storytelling, both of which are really effective, Wolf having an actual character and choosing to follow the path he believes in after a lifetime of following orders.

In a collapsing world of a typical Fromsoft fashion, where everything seems to be falling apart due to greed and hatred, where groups chase immortality without any mind to its consequences, dooming people to their deaths, while dooming themselves to a stagnant parasitic life.

In all of these the bonds Sekiro, a name given to Wolf by Isshin, a man who seems to be above the schemes of his kingdom Ashina that surrounds him. The relationship Sekiro forms first time, since being a war orphan and minus the toxic technicalities of his relationship with his adoptive father Owl, stands as a highlight. His relationship with Kuro, his master and the one who's dragon heritage is much sought after feels especially sweet.

And in the end when to give Kuro a normal life Sekiro sacrifices himself, I felt a pang of sadness. It is pretty common to sacrifice yourself in Fromsoft games' endings. For what is the greater good, he throws away his life, and for the first time this sacrifice hits.

Trying to stitch my thoughts together is more than a little difficult here.

Umineko is a game that holds as many virtues as it does small flaws. It can offer some of the most impassioned and thought provoking themes I have waded through in recent memory, offer up interesting character beats and thematic throughlines closed so tightly, you'd think this was a masterwork decades in the making. But, it is also present to flaws that exist outside this sphere, flaws in the pacing, in the prose, flaws in the sheer girth of some of the content on offer. Which is why it's difficult to offer great praise to Umineko.

In my reviews, I try to avoid discussing negative aspects as I find them to detract from any overall point or any quality look into a work's themes. With Umineko though, these negative aspects are a part of the themes, as the greatest theme of the game is in how we engage with media. The core heart of the game can be found in a battle between people debating mystery vs fantasy, whether mystery is really all its chalked up to be, and whether fantasy is worthwhile as a narrative to follow. It's an interesting discussion, one obviously inspired by R07's own experiences in writing Higurashi, which had a fantastical concluding arc that (in my experience) was upsetting for many fans of the time. Even though, that concluding arc is still very contentious, and a bit of spite can be felt in Umineko's discussions on this media. On the ideas of mystery and fantasy.

"To open the catbox" is seen as something undesirable, to preserve the mystery, but the reader is constantly egged on that the inside of the catbox is that of fantasy. It leads to this incredible desire to want to open it up and figure out the inner machinations of it, but that feeling is fleeting. Another flaw of Umineko's comes in here, and that is its length, it's very long and drawn out but it's to an advantage. That feeling of wanting to unravel every last mystery dissipates the more the characters sit around and discuss it. Are the answers really that interesting, compared to this? Could any locked room mystery solution really compare to the battle of wits that Battler has with Beatrice, Erika, or Bernkastel?

It makes sense in this way, that all the mysteries we do get upfront answers to are rather lackluster. The mystery of the epitaph is solved, and it's more a vehicle to explore the nuances of another character while the actual path to solving it is so obtuse as to be borderline impossible for any player not writing every detail shared about Kinzo and his island down. In the Episode 7 Tea Party, we are offered not a mystery, but a brutal series of murders, reflective of this desire to open the catbox. We open it, and we could receive one of the worst endings possible, one that betrays almost all of our expectations about these characters we trust. Similarly, Bernkastel's game in Episode 8 offers us the one truly solvable murder mystery, complete with correct answers, and it's the absolute worst outcome the player could receive. But, the point of that is not the answers, it's the fun you have speculating and piecing together the clues.

The fun is in the dialogue. How you talk to others, and engage with them. This can be applied to all media, not just mysteries, but it's most apt here. To further this theme, Umineko even denies us a catharsis in an answer to all the events of the prior episodes. A new character alludes to them, but he offers us vague nudges, the onus is still on the player to piece it together for themselves. Beatrice herself is never truly 'revealed', we don't get a Higurashi moment where we learn who the mastermind behind the cycles all ending the same really is, we get nudges (very blunt nudges), but respect is given to the characters. They want to keep that vulnerability a secret from prying eyes. Even the true mystery, the one Ange wants to learn, the truth of 1986 is... left up in the air. We only know how it started and how it concluded, but as Battler shows in Episode 8, does that mean it had to be a massacre? Everyone could've had fun until the very last moment, all of this relationship drama they had could've been hearsay, all the family issues illicit rumors.

That is the heart of Umineko, to accept the magic. Battler takes the place of Beatrice in her portrait when he understands this, to keep the catbox closed so that the truth, however unpleasant and brutal, can never be found out. To let the dead rest, and to not pry and deface their memory. This feeds into the ending, the one true choice the player is allowed to make. Was Beatrice's magic truly magic, or was it a trick?

At this point, I found the latter option completely incomprehensible as a choice. Who would get here and decide "That was a trick", it's an obvious wrong answer based on the themes of the work. As George says, it's on the onus of an adult to clap at a magician's trick and not ruin the magic for the children, but I can look back on my own experiences with the game and remember how I was in the Question Arcs. I loved the idea of denying this magic, and proving it was all a trick, I completely fell into this idea and actually would realize things the same moment Battler did. It was probably the most immersed I've ever been in a game, and that offers me a reasoning why someone would choose 'Trick'.

'Trick' is the option for someone not paying attention. 'Trick' offers an ending that fulfills that, one where Ange embodies Erika, the detective who denies all magic and would seek to ruin the beauty of magic even for children. This ending is not an ending, it fulfills none of the themes of the work and is a conclusion that does not connect to the final Tea Party segments. When I reached the credits and saw the credits from the last seven episodes play out, complete with the first opening of the game, I knew what this ending truly was. It was a sign of a cyclical nature, the player indulging in the behaviors the game advised against, and ultimately repeating the past. Returning, to Rokkenjima, despite leaving it behind.

In sharp contrast, the 'Magic' ending is an ending that fulfills Ange's character and offers a conclusion worthy of everything she had gone through up to this point. It finishes by offering us a bit of 'Magic', a reveal on the fates of Battler and Beatrice. While this section didn't leave much of an impact on me, the Hidden Tea Party at the very end of the game did. Decades later, Ange writes for children, and uses her money to help them, even as she ages and nears death. In this aged state, she is offered her miracle, the blessing of that 'Magic'. She gets to meet Battler again, and then the two return to the Golden Land. Battler embodying the 'Love' behind the 'Mystery', and Ange embodying the 'Fantasy'. It was an ending that really hit me in the moment, gave me a pause for thought as everything reached this point.

I can't say Umineko is a flawless masterpiece, or it touched me in a really deep way (that was Higurashi). But, I find myself appreciating R07's humanity more and more. I played both this and his previous work completely in the original intended fashion. Original sprites and backgrounds, no new "modern generic anime" CGs, no VA, and I think that was best. It allowed me to grasp his works in a much more personal way than I thought possible, it gave me more immersion hearing a looping rain sound effect at my workplace, and the absolutely perfect music cues hit at their fullest potential. Like I said, I can't say any of this work is perfect, I can't even really say I would recommend this to most people, but it's left an impression that I will probably never shake.

A game made of 'Ai'.