Alien Isolation 2 really ramps up the tension, but it hasn't scared me yet

Somehow, it's been 12 years since the first Alien Isolation released. Following often-forgotten mixed launch reviews and calls for a sequel, Alien Isolation 2 has finally been revealed. At Summer Game Fest, we got our hands on the game, and the tension has been ratcheted up tenfold.

The demo was Alien Isolation 2's prologue, following a group of characters who stumble across the crashed Sevastapol in a storm in the middle of a forest. In an attempt to find some survivors, they force their way inside. What could ever go wrong here?

What follows is exactly what you'd expect from an Alien Isolation game. Creeping around the ship, trying to find items, open doors, find a way out, and avoid the Xenomorph. There's only so much you can do with a first-person Alien survival horror game, and it seems like Creative Assembly has focused on improving the whole experience over making something completely different. I think that's a smart move.

From the moment the hands-on section began, the atmosphere did everything it could to ramp up the tension. Misty forests, torrential rainfall, crackling thunder, mysterious shadows, and perfectly creepy music meant I was nervous in seconds. That's the pull of Alien Isolation. You know what's coming; you know what the threat is, even when the characters you're playing as don't. You're not waiting for some unknown horror to unfold, you're waiting for the iconic monster to appear out of nowhere and eat your face. To make it actually scary, the game needs to lean into its atmosphere and the sense of dread it creates.

Once I got into the ship, said threat increased exponentially. The monster was going to appear at any second; I just didn't know when. When it did, the game really began. Sitting in the pitch-black room where the hands-on was taking place, Sega was filming my reactions for its only promotional content - we may be able to share it ourselves soon, too. They wanted to catch me grimacing at the horror, or jumping out of my skin once the alien finally showed its face. 

Disappointingly, for both them and me, none of the attempted jump scares got me. I think they were a little too signposted, so I was ready when the really loud noises finally arrived. I'm sure the final game will have more than its fair share of jump scares, but I didn't find the sequel inherently scary. Tense and unnerving, yes, but not scary just yet.

The process of actually avoiding the alien is the other aspect of the game that impressed me. The Xenomorph is actually intelligent. In our first encounter, needing to avoid it to get to the exit, I had to hide in a vent as the monster paced back and forth. It learns where you like to hide, what your tactics generally are, and what you sound like. That means you're constantly on edge, knowing the alien is just a moment away. You start second-guessing yourself, thinking you're doing something obvious, or hiding somewhere your foe will be expecting. The first game worked in a similar way, but it seems to be implemented in a more intelligent and effective way in the sequel.

Since I only played the prologue, I'm sure the tools you have to help you escape will change later in the game. The ability to distract the alien, block its path, or interact with the world to help you will inevitably be introduced as the protagonist gets used to the terror they're facing. Speaking of protagonists, I'm not entirely sure the characters in the prologue are who you play as in the meat of the game. I have a feeling they're horror movie fodder whose lives are short-lived, but we'll see as more of Alien Isolation 2 is shown off.

What I played of the long-awaited sequel is more of the same, and that's far from a bad thing. Creative Assembly has improved everything around the basic formula to make a beautifully atmospheric and creepy survival horror game.