Alien: Isolation Redux | AI and Games Digest - October 2024
Andy Kelly's 'Perfect Organism' book, IGN's recent defence of the game, and more!
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Hey all,
here and and welcome to the monthly digest, where I take a week to talk about the things that are on my mind, from books to games, articles and more.This month, perhaps unsurprisingly, I’ve found myself revisiting Alien: Isolation. Of course it was the games’ ten year anniversary on October 7th, hence it’s back in the conversation for sure, but given I’ve been working on my retrospective for the past couple of months already, it’s very much been in my headspace.
As announced last week, the retrospective has me interviewing numerous people who were either heavily involved in the production of the game, or can comment and speak to it at great length. Critically, one of the voices in the trailer linked to above is none other than Andy Kelly, a former games journalist who has been one the most ardent advocates of the title since its release. His crowdfunded book, ‘The Perfect Organism’, was published at the end of August, and so what better way to kick off this months digest, than exploring this companion piece.
But also, we’re going to be talking about the novelisation of the game - something I didn’t know even existed until recently - plus IGN’s newfound defence of the game 10 years later, plus I finally scored both Prey and Bloodborne off of my to-play list. Read-on!
The Perfect Organism
Andy Kelly, Unbound
This unofficial companion, titled after the phrase uttered by Ash in the original Alien movie, has been a labour of love for Kelly over the past year or two after he had it successfully crowdfunded via the Unbound platform.
As mentioned, Kelly has for many years been arguably the games staunchest advocate in the world of games media. This book is very much his love letter to the game, and while it’s something he doesn’t shy away from, he is equally critical of it in parts, and able to highlight failings and limitations of the project. That said, it is without a doubt a celebration of what makes the game beloved by so many fans.
The book looks back on the game and where it exists within the industry; something of a curio, despite the cult following it gradually developed
The book itself is broken up into three parts. The first details the origins of its production, some of the challenges faced in bringing it to life, and many of the weird and wonderful lengths taken by the development team to give the game a genuine authenticity. This was quite fun, given while I have read a lot about this game over the years there were still surprises to be found. I have to say it was a pleasant surprise to read the chapters detailing the AI behaviour of the xenomorph, to find Kelly makes direct reference to my YouTube breakdowns of the system - they’re also listed at the end of the book in the reference section. I knew my name would be at the back of the book, given I backed the book when it was announced on Unbound, but to see my name dropped in the midst of the prose itself was rather humbling - even though I think Andy gives me far more credit than I deserve!
The second section of the book is more or less a breakdown of the game itself: detailing every mission’s core story beats alongside any interesting facts and easter eggs about that particular segment. Followed by a discussion of many of the DLC chapters of the game, including the survival modes and critically the content that takes place on The Nostromo, in which Sigourney Weaver and many of the other principle cast members returned to voice their characters from the original film.
The closing third really looks back on the game itself and where it exists within the industry; something of a curio despite the cult following it gradually developed (thanks in no small part not just to my work, but most certainly Kelly’s).
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