Ridley Scott's influential sci-fi horror movie Alien has inspired dozens of video games since its debut in 1979, but Alien: Isolation is the first in a while that has aspired to matching the claustrophobic terror of the original film.
Is Isolation as bone-chilling and nerve-racking as its big-screen inspiration? Well, not quite – but it does deliver some thrills.
The game takes place 15 years after the events of the film. The protagonist, Amanda Ripley, is searching for her mother – Ellen Ripley – when she follows a lead to the Sevastopol, a decommissioned space station. Unfortunately, the joint has also attracted a visit from one of the toothsome alien xenomorphs that wiped out Ellen Ripley's crewmates on the spaceship Nostromo.
The Sevastopol is a fascinating environment, with a retro-futuristic design that looks like something you’d see in, well, a 1970s sci-fi movie. The computers run on a primitive version of DOS. The emergency check-in points – where you save your progress – look like wall-mounted pay phones. There aren’t any high-powered plasma rifles – the most effective weapon you’ll find is a flame-thrower.
Amanda has to scavenge everything she needs to survive, including medical equipment, bullets and the materials to build bombs. There are a few friendly humans still on-board, but most have degenerated into a desperate survival mode and aren’t too welcoming. Worse, the androids that help run the station have gone haywire and are more likely to strangle you than assist you.
Of course, the nastiest threat is still that hungry alien. You can’t kill it, and if it sees you, you have only a few seconds to live before it turns you into lunch. You do, however, have a hand-held motion detector that starts beeping and displays a moving dot if the xenomorph is in the vicinity. When that happens, your best option is to stay hidden until the beast goes away or finds someone else to chomp on.
It’s a unique game mechanic that requires a lot of patience. If the alien kills you – and it will, frequently – you are sent all the way back to your last save point, which can mean losing up to a half-hour of progress. I’ve had few gaming experiences more frustrating than being inches away from the next save point, only to suddenly realise an alien claw had just penetrated my intestines.
Your overall goal is simple – get off the Sevastopol – but Isolation requires you to go back and forth across the space station so many times that it becomes awfully repetitive.
The 20-hour mission could easily have been cut in half and still been rewarding. And I never jumped out of my seat like I did while watching the movie in the cinema decades ago.
Still, fans of the original film will find much to savour – even as the beast is sinking its teeth into them.
• Alien: Isolation, from Sega, is available now for Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 3 and PC
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BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE
Starring: Winona Ryder, Michael Keaton, Jenny Ortega
Director: Tim Burton
Rating: 3/5
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The specs
Engine: Long-range single or dual motor with 200kW or 400kW battery
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Max touring range: 620km / 590km
Price: From Dh250,000 (estimated)
Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas
Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa
Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong
Rating: 3/5
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SPECS
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The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
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BORDERLANDS
Starring: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Hart, Jamie Lee Curtis
Director: Eli Roth
Rating: 0/5
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MEFCC information
Tickets range from Dh110 for an advance single-day pass to Dh300 for a weekend pass at the door. VIP tickets have sold out. Visit www.mefcc.com to purchase tickets in advance.
Know your camel milk:
Flavour: Similar to goat’s milk, although less pungent. Vaguely sweet with a subtle, salty aftertaste.
Texture: Smooth and creamy, with a slightly thinner consistency than cow’s milk.
Use it: In your morning coffee, to add flavour to homemade ice cream and milk-heavy desserts, smoothies, spiced camel-milk hot chocolate.
Goes well with: chocolate and caramel, saffron, cardamom and cloves. Also works well with honey and dates.
25%20Days%20to%20Aden
%3Cp%3EAuthor%3A%20Michael%20Knights%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EPages%3A%20256%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3EAvailable%3A%20January%2026%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The Kingfisher Secret
Anonymous, Penguin Books
Milestones on the road to union
1970
October 26: Bahrain withdraws from a proposal to create a federation of nine with the seven Trucial States and Qatar.
December: Ahmed Al Suwaidi visits New York to discuss potential UN membership.
1971
March 1: Alex Douglas Hume, Conservative foreign secretary confirms that Britain will leave the Gulf and “strongly supports” the creation of a Union of Arab Emirates.
July 12: Historic meeting at which Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid make a binding agreement to create what will become the UAE.
July 18: It is announced that the UAE will be formed from six emirates, with a proposed constitution signed. RAK is not yet part of the agreement.
August 6: The fifth anniversary of Sheikh Zayed becoming Ruler of Abu Dhabi, with official celebrations deferred until later in the year.
August 15: Bahrain becomes independent.
September 3: Qatar becomes independent.
November 23-25: Meeting with Sheikh Zayed and Sheikh Rashid and senior British officials to fix December 2 as date of creation of the UAE.
November 29: At 5.30pm Iranian forces seize the Greater and Lesser Tunbs by force.
November 30: Despite a power sharing agreement, Tehran takes full control of Abu Musa.
November 31: UK officials visit all six participating Emirates to formally end the Trucial States treaties
December 2: 11am, Dubai. New Supreme Council formally elects Sheikh Zayed as President. Treaty of Friendship signed with the UK. 11.30am. Flag raising ceremony at Union House and Al Manhal Palace in Abu Dhabi witnessed by Sheikh Khalifa, then Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi.
December 6: Arab League formally admits the UAE. The first British Ambassador presents his credentials to Sheikh Zayed.
December 9: UAE joins the United Nations.
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