*NO SPOILERS* Is Alien: Isolation too much for some gamers? If so, asking for some perspectives from the community.

[TheCrusherOnSTO]

I decided to start this discussion after looking at my global achievement stats for Alien: Isolation, and I noticed that the percentages for most of the midgame achievements were generally low; being below 20% for a significant majority of them, and even below 10% for a more significant number of the achievements than I'd expect to see for such an incredibly well done game.

To be completely up front; I've had Alien: Isolation in my Steam Libary for nearly a year, and have admittedly been trudging through it on Hard Difficulty, very, very, slowly. I was actually stuck on Misson 06 - Outbreak for quite a long time.

I enjoy the game tremendously, and do intend to see it through to the end. The environments are spot on with what I think most people should be able to expect from the Alien' Series' Universe, and the fear factor never gets old because of the incredibly well designed AI of both the human characters, and of course the Alien itself.

I'll also acknowledge, Alien: Isolation is to some degree, a little too well done because there's an actual stress level and even some associated anxiety that both come with the game play experience. If every aspect of the game wasn't so memorable for the exact same reason, I probably would've quit playing for cause of eventually being completely lost in where I'm at in the game while having no idea where the story has gone or what it is that I'm supposed to do to complete the next objective.

That being said, here's what I'm wondering; Are the achievement percentages low throughout the community because people primarily have the xBox or Microsoft Windows Store version of the game? Are they low because Alien: Isolation is so well done, it just becomes too much after a time? Is it a combination of the two? Is there perhaps another variable I haven't considered in this article that may apply as to why some of the midgame, progress related achievements have such low numbers of completion throughout the Steam Community?

All perspectives are welcome, and appreciated. Looking forward to people sharing their experiences and persectives on Alien: Isolation. :)

IMPORTANT NOTES - Some Rules for How Comments to this Original Post Will Be Handled on The Author's (My Own) End That Will Contribute to This Original Post Creating Meaningful Content & Conversation:

1> As a point of self-monitoring, spammy or malicious posts will result in a block on my end, and in no way am I going to go against the Steam Moderators that I hope will treat such posts similarly.

2> As a point of proper n'etiquette, I'm not going to make a lot of comments on this thread because I'm the one that posted it; however if there's something I can post that does add to the quality of the original post as a pseudo-reply to a comment, I'll certainly do that. The purpose of this discussion is primarily for the Gaming Community's benefit to share perspectives about Alien: Isolation, so no comments made by anyone are going to be assumed as looking for a response on my end.

3> I'm certainly open to PM'ing with people about this post using the Friends feature of Steam, and am also looking forward to getting to know other members of the Steam Community that are also enthusiastic gamers a little better though this thread.

4> *NO SPOILERS* | This rule should be self-evident, but it's there, just in case. Please don't spoil the plot or any specific story points for others that haven't finished the game, and please keep in mind that the number of people that haven't finished Alien: Isolation, myself, the author included, seems to be rather high in light of the percentages I've seen in the Global Achievements stats here on Steam. WRITING TIP FOR COMMENTING WITHOUT SPOILING: A workaround for writing comments without spoiling anything is to "generalize" a little about what it is you want to say, or if you're an experienced writer, simply use the method that is right for you.

It is the hope that the above four simple rules will help foster a great discussion that everyone feels welcome to contribute to. :)

[BROOD-SkorpioN]

I'd say It is too hard for some players, but I wouldn't use achievement percentages as a metric on the subject simply because most games have a low completion percentage nowadays due to the huge saturation of games out there. People buy a lot of games, but don't really have the time/patience to finish most of them.

But yeah, the game might be too hard for some people. There is a definite difficulty spike between mission 4 and mission 5, simply due to the alien being so much more of a threat than anything else in the game. A player that doesn't have patience, doesn't pay attention to details around him and isn't willing to examine what it is that he's doing wrong will probably drop the game during missions 5-6. Those are the "trial by fire" missions. They are not the most difficult missions in the game (repeat playthroughs make that abundantly clear), but if you get through them you're ready for everything the game has to throw at you. Those missions tend to scar people, myself included (took me a couple of weeks to start a second playthrough due to the sheer dredd of having to deal with those missions again).

That said, I don't find the game to be unfair in any way shape or form that might discourage a player who is willing to put in the time and effort. I am no survival/stealth game expert (Alien:Isolation is probably the first game in the genre I played all the way through), but I have done multiple deathless playthroughs of this game on Hard and Nightmare (Granted, none of them was my first playthrough). The game has a learning curve, just like any decent game that isn't there to pander to the player and hold his hand.

[NinthElement]

Even if only a minority of Alien Isolation players have the game on Steam, the achievement statistics here probably still have a correlation to the global percentages - this is how polling samples work, and there is nothing to suggest Steam players would be less adept than others. A lot of players, especially the mature audience this game is aimed at, only have limited time for gaming and so just play some early parts of many games to get a feel for them, and have to fall in love with a game to see it through to the end. That's the generalised side of the explanation

Looking at Alien: Isolation itself, its completion percentages may still be below-average compared to other games because it demands attention to your surroundings, objectives, events that have led you to where you are, tools at your disposal etc... It's all a bit too real, and like in real life we can be disorientated at first when exploring somewhere new. Having said that, like most games these days Alien: Isolation does still pretty much tell you where to go most of the time, it's just not as in-your-face about it and so some people don't notice. The constant threat from the alien can distract you from your objective too

Personally, I didn't find it a difficult story to keep up with even on my first playthrough, I guess it depends on your level of immersion

[Max Headshot]

Another aspect could be the gaming and entertaining culture itself. Most games are action-packed and focused on killing enemies whereever they occure, even so-called stealth games are focused on killing enemies. They are designed to convey a feeling of superiority, tension is not what gamers are seeking for in general, there is little willingless to accept this feeling, they are feeling tediousness and confusion instead.
The beginning of mission 3 is a good example for this, most players are trying to solve the problem by more or less confrontation. We are all used to this through our gaming experience, not solving a problem in a common way creates a feeling of frustration instead of satisfaction.
Alien Isolation does not offer this in the first place, it makes you feel too much uncomfortable, and at first appearance it does not offer an easy way through it, it's more demanding than entertaining, and it's taking too much control away from the player.
But this is what Alien is about and who is willing to accept the challenge is getting richly rewarded.
Would be a movie like Alien a big commercial success these days ? I'm very doubtful.

[Dayve]

I think it simply didn't appeal to the majority of gamers. Think about the gaming culture that exists around the Alien franchise - they're ALL shooters. They've ALWAYS been shooters, to my knowledge.

Even though Isolation was advertised as a stealth game, I think a lot of gamers believed it would ultimately be a game where you could blast the aliens with a pulse rifle, with SOME stealth sections interspersed with the action (kind of like Colonic Marines, where you lose your weapons and have to sneak around and avoid the boiler aliens).

I think a lot of fans of the Alien franchise realised that the whole game was gonna be stealth based... even when you got guns... and it put them off. In games, Alien franchise has always been a shooting game.

[Scorpion]

a

[Dayve]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von ChiNGlskHaaN:

a

Well said. I vote for this guy to be our official spokesman.

[★★𝕶𝖍𝖆𝖙𝖆𝖓]

a

[Jeno]

d

[HolyOrangeJuice]

F.E.A.R. was the first 'scary' game that I attempted to play. For a long time I was too scared to even play it. Then I bit the bullet and went in. I played the entire game. Loved it. Played all of them. At least in that game you fight back often.

This game and types like it where you're more along for the ride and having to be sneaky through the scary parts... not for me.

[Dayve]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Oscar Juliet:

F.E.A.R. was the first 'scary' game that I attempted to play. For a long time I was too scared to even play it. Then I bit the bullet and went in. I played the entire game. Loved it. Played all of them. At least in that game you fight back often.

This game and types like it where you're more along for the ride and having to be sneaky through the scary parts... not for me.

Huh? You're fully in control in Isolation and you can fight back, even before you get the flamethrower. Are you sure you didn't accidentally play a different game?

[Jesus-saved-my-life-and-soul]

It is just to scary for some and a long game in its entirety.A movie experience.Most have only the attention span of arcade type games.Instant playability with nonstop action or simple structured gameplay.Myself a sim too realistic is over demanding.Like elite dangerous at times or a flight sim that requires complete precision to get off the ground.This game is mystery,cat and mouse and hugely exploitable that's what I like but in vr and out it was to intense and realistic at times.The dlcs have very aggressive aliens and the textures as well as sound is very surreal and can really tramatize some in this dramatized fun.

[skinnyraf]

Scariness and difficulty levels are ok for me. The only issue I had was one lengthy section ending with a cutscene and followed by a series of quick time events, without an autosave in between. As a result, I did the first lengthy section a dozen times or so. It completely lost its horror quality and became just a chore.
I play it on Normal, because I find it the best balance between no tension and treating the game as a puzzle. As I mentioned above, if I need to repeat a section many times, it's no longer scary, it's a challenge, but not a horror.

[DessIntress]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von skinnyraf:

The only issue I had was one lengthy section ending with a cutscene and followed by a series of quick time events, without an autosave in between.

This goes offtopic, but...
... there aren't really QTEs.

There are tutorial prompts and each item has a specific combo (to get a better atmosphere and immersion).
If you press something wrong, just press the correct button... you will lose nothing and you don't have to repeat the combo from start. That only happens if you release all the buttons.
(For example: Don't release RT+LT, only because you have pressed LS -> instead of LS <-. just press LS<- again - Other example: Let's say you have to find a lever on a wall in a specific scene.. The game will show you the correct position through one of these tutorial prompt, but you can look in each direction before you look to the correct one - only the action in this scene will limit your time.)

These prompts are intended to make the game easier for some people because they can't remember or notice what to do. (for ex: because of fear or a lesser comprehension)
QTEs are usually in script scenes/fights and the player has only a short amount of time to press the right button and he will die/lose or he has to repeat a really long combo if he press the wrong button. That's not the case with A: I. For example, Resident Evil 4-6 have QTEs.

[NinthElement]

The QTEs mentioned probably refer to when you have to hammer a button to climb a ladder in the burning room... It is possible to die there, even if the button mashing isn't very demanding. I agree there ought to be an auto-save after the cut scene though, as the way out isn't terribly obvious at first and many players fail to watch their health

[DessIntress]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von 9thElement:

The QTEs mentioned probably refer to when you have to hammer a button to climb a ladder in the burning room... It is possible to die there, even if the button mashing isn't very demanding. I agree there ought to be an auto-save after the cut scene though, as the way out isn't terribly obvious at first and many players fail to watch their health

I will use the spoiler tag for the answer because i think that buring room and ladder is already to much^^ That's why I've also mentoined an item from the final scene as an example. (No ending spoiler)
Even in the burning room you can walk around and visit the other room inside this room. The ladder itself is also no problem. Just use a medpack if you are slow like a snail. = No QTE situation because you have options. There is also a difference between QTEs and forced progress. If a room collapses or burns down around you, you should leave it if you don't want to die. Due to the situation, it's also understandable that you need more effort to reach this specific ladder.

Smashing the button also doesn't mean it's a QTE, it only simulate the effort. (LT+RT = two hands, LT = one hand, smashing A = much effort because it's a old, rusty or heavy lever, screw, nut, rail etc blah blah.
There is also no prompt like classic random QTEs: A,A,A,Y,A,X,Y, next time A,X,A,A,Y etc.
You just have to learn what's for what like you have learned to shoot.

Every item and its usage is really well thought out.
In principle, all the item buttons/keys are just additional layouts/mappings like for shooting, jumping, running, crouching, inventory, etc., since each item has its own assignment.
And there aren't many things to remember as you can see above. Starcraft e.g. has a lot more shortcuts (and they all fit on a controller including groupings etc)
Just don't refuse to learn new things and it will get a very ingenious flow.

This is not for fresh beginners/noobs, but the healthbar is also a overrated game element since you can see and hear your health. :p ^^
And they have implemented a very easy mode (novice?) if someone totally sucks because he don't understand the game or has to much fear.

The biggest rule of this game is to give the most attention to your environment - audio and visual. Not only because you can hear stuff like doors, steps, aliens far away or even your own breath. Also because you can notice important elements and you will immediately know what's next.
A great example for finding stuff long before you need it, is the button from the final scene... his location can be found at the beginning of the game. You'll get a prompt for the right direction in the final scene, but even as a beginner, strictly speaking, you don't need the prompt if you've found the button at the beginning of the game and already know where it is. Otherwise you can use the displayed prompts for a "fast-finding" or you can look around and use your intuition = again, several options, no QTE.

People have to look for enemies and game-elements all the time, and that's really great, simply because it's a real survival game.
Often you also put yourself under greater pressure than the game actually does. And I think most players hang on it.
tl:dr : Prompts and usage effort explained with examples - no QTE ^^
e: typo...