From the pixelated horrors of Alien on the Atari 2600 to the claustrophobic dread of Alien: Isolation, the iconic Alien franchise has been terrifying gamers witless since the early eighties.
Now, thanks to the rise of affordable virtual reality (VR) headsets, the series is poised to crank up its jump scares to 11.
A new game called Alien: Rogue Incursion is coming to the Meta Quest 3, PlayStation VR2 and PC VR (via Steam) in time for Christmas.
What is Alien: Rogue Incursion?
Set on a seemingly abandoned spacecraft, the game puts players in the polished military boots of Zula Hendricks, the latest in a long line of fearless heroines birthed by the blood-curdling Alien series.
Hendricks, a Colonial Marine tasked with protecting human colonies, is plucked straight from the spinoff comic books and novels that have helped to expand the franchise’s entrancing lore.
Without giving too much away, the elite soldier is on a mission to rid the ship of its slimy inhabitants, including acid-tongued Xenomorphs and spindly face huggers in search of a host for their demonic embryos.
What do the trailers show?
The game’s developer Survios has shown off its action-horror gameplay across a series of trailers. A couple of weeks ago, we got a closer look at Hendricks exploring the shadowy bowels of the decrepit vessel.
Armed with a pulse rifle and a handheld radar, she didn’t seem phased by the Xenomorphs tucking into the dead crew members. Good luck matching her bravado when you’re being hunted down by the barbed-tailed killing machines.
The latest trailers have also revealed the other weapons you can use to decimate enemies, among them a classic revolver and a shotgun for when you’re up close to the menacing monsters.
Is it related to Alien: Romulus?
In case you’ve been living under a rock, there’s a new Alien movie coming out called Alien: Romulus. While Incursion isn’t directly connected to it (Survios has described it as an “original story”), it does have some cosmetics inspired by the film, which will be available to those who pre-order the game.
Still, Alien trivia nerds will be happy to learn that Romulus does call back to another iconic game based on the movies. The critically acclaimed film’s director, Fede Alvarez, recently revealed that he incorporated a visual cue from Alien: Isolation (hands down the best contemporary Alien game) into the new flick.
In the 2014 game, emergency telephones serve as save points, but also signal impending danger. Elaborating on how he integrated this concept into Romulus, Alvarez said: "The movie is set up in a way [that] every time something bad is about to happen, you will see a phone."
When is it out?
Alien: Rogue Incursion is heading to all major VR headsets on December 19, with pre-orders now open.
How much is it?
The standard game costs £33, while the deluxe edition (which comes with cosmetic Blue Camo weapon and armor skins) will set you back £40.
