Aliens: Dark Descent, developed by Tindalos Interactive, is a highly anticipated video game that offers a fresh take on the Aliens universe. As avid gamers ourselves, Culture of Gaming is excited to provide you with our review and opinions on this immersive gaming experience.
A Unique Gameplay Experience
Aliens: Dark Descent stands out as a unique and thrilling addition to the Alien IP. However, it may not appeal to everyone, including die-hard fans of the franchise. The game features detailed environments that players will extensively explore. While this attention to detail is commendable, it can make the game feel sluggish and at times even boring. The side quests, although present, may not feel as important as the main story, unless players specifically require additional resources.
A Challenge for Strategic Gamers
Aliens: Dark Descent presents a considerable challenge to players. Although the game is forgiving in certain aspects, such as patient autosaves and checkpoints, it requires a strategic approach for success. Rushing through missions without proper preparation for boss fights or neglecting the well-being of the marines can lead to unfavorable outcomes. This game rewards players who strategize like military personnel, considering stress levels, stats, and when to rest and recover before deploying again.
An Amalgamation of Genres
Aliens: Dark Descent combines elements from popular games like Diablo, XCOM, StarCraft, and Age of Wonders. This unique blend creates an intriguing gameplay experience that, while impressive, might overwhelm players due to the complexity of mechanics and functionalities. Despite efforts to make the game accessible, certain aspects may lack ergonomic design and user-friendliness.
Technical Problems
The abundance of exceptional design ideas in Dark Descent makes it difficult for me to reconcile with the game’s technical state. While it is true that I could overlook minor and quirky bugs like out-of-sync dialogue in cutscenes, there were instances where I had to replay entire missions due to core mechanics failing to work as intended, even after a substantial and admittedly helpful patch was released during the review process. For example, a safe room that I had meticulously sealed off using valuable engineering resources failed to provide rest for my marines and reduce their stress, resulting in a significant loss of momentum. In another case, the stress meter inexplicably remained at its highest level even when no aliens were present, causing my entire squad to lose their composure and forcing me to extract.
These issues occur with a frequency that is too noticeable and have a significant impact on gameplay, making it difficult for me to simply overlook them. While most can be circumvented through painstaking workarounds like restarting missions, doing so often meant sacrificing over an hour’s worth of progress. Throughout the entire 12-mission campaign, which took me approximately 30 hours to complete, a considerable portion of that time was spent replaying missions due to bugs or having to retreat and return to the same location with a fresh squad.
A Cinematic Masterpiece
The cinematics in Aliens: Dark Descent are undoubtedly the game’s standout feature. Every cutscene is expertly crafted, capturing the essence of the Alien universe. The quality of production in these segments surpasses that of the in-game portions, leaving players yearning for more. Unfortunately, as the game progresses, the pacing becomes tedious and mundane, leading to a decline in overall enjoyment. However, it is important to highlight that the pacing issues may not affect all players equally.
Summary
Despite the presence of technical issues, this game has the potential to be one of the finest Aliens games ever created, and it might still be considered as such. Drawing inspiration from renowned squad-based tactics games while incorporating its own unique elements, it captures the essence of what made Aliens, the film, so captivating. Since Monolith’s Aliens Versus Predator 2 in 2001, few games have truly grasped the essence of what made Aliens special. Many have attempted, but this game stands out. It’s the kind of experience that makes me want to overlook its flaws and praise it even more, but when considering the overall picture, I simply cannot do so. Given some additional time in the metaphorical “med bay” for further technical refinement, it has the potential to transform into something truly exceptional. As it stands, however, it remains an intriguing, inspired, and imaginative survival RTS that I wholeheartedly recommend, albeit with a few reservations.
Overall
75%Pros
– Expands upon the Alien property with new stories and scenarios.
– Offers a unique amalgamation of genres, capitalizing on the strengths of strategy games.
– Boasts exceptional cinematics that rival those in feature films.
Cons
– Pacing issues may impact some players’ motivation to continue.
