Critics who've had a chance to play Alien: Isolation early have been raving about its intense action and faithful interpretation of the "Alien" film universe. The horror action/shooter intrigued gamers when it was first announced that, unlike past games based on the film franchise, Isolation would pit players against a single Xenomorph alien.
The alien will stalk its way through the shadows of the enormous Nostromo, picking off humans one by one, forcing gamers to use their wits, improvise and scavenge to stay alive and defeat the relentless alien.
Sega has today announced that players will be able to interact with and play as characters from the original 1979 cast, thanks to a bonus mission pack called "Crew Expendable." Anyone will be able to download this additional content eventually for an added charge, but Sega is offering the pack for free to all consumers who pre-order the game. Gamers who pre-order from GameStop will receive a second DLC mission pack starring the original cast called "Last Survivor."
Lending their voices and likenesses to the game are actors Sigourney Weaver (Ellen Ripley), Tom Skeritt (Dallas), Veronica Cartwright (Lambert), Harry Dean Stanton (Brett), Yaphet Kotto (Parker) and Ian Holm (the android Ash). A sound-alike is used for Holm's dialogue; all the other actors are the real deal.
"Working with the original cast has been an incredible experience," said Alistair Hope, Creative Lead on Alien: Isolation. "It was important to us to have the key original cast members reprise their roles in order to perfectly capture the atmosphere of the movie. For some of the original cast, this is their first appearance in an Alien video game. Seeing them reprise those roles after 35 years was an unforgettable experience."
"Crew Expendable" picks up immediately after Brett is murdered by the Xenomorph. You'll choose to play as Ripley, Dallas or Parker, and explore parts of the Nostromo the rest of the game doesn't give access to. As part of the gameplay, you'll coordinate with Lambert and Ash to lure the creature into the ship's airlock. "Last Survivor" finds Ripley trying to escape on the Narcissus. Before she makes it to safety, she hears Lambert and Parker screaming, and is forced to work her way back down through the ship to activate the self-destruct sequence before reversing the journey to escape.
Alien: Isolation arrives October 7, 2014 for Xbox One, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, PS3 and PC. A virtual reality version of the game is in development for the Oculus Rift headset. It was recently available to demo at E3 in May 2014.
