Like many fans of horror in the gaming community, I’ve been immersing myself in the world of Resident Evil Requiem. The game is a fantastic single-player experience, and a reminder of just how effective video games can be at good storytelling, when developers let go of the multiplayer, live service, everything-royale model, and just give people an experience they can sink their teeth into. And, of course, as a die-hard Alien fan, I couldn’t help but think of what my favorite franchise could do with the Resident Evil Requiem format.
For those unfamiliar, the game alternates between first-person horror (players control Grace Ashcroft) and third-person action/shooter (players control Leon Scott Kennedy). For Grace’s portions of the game, players must craft, creep, and cower before terrifying monsters. Grace’s character, power by voice actor Angela Sant’Albano, reacts with trembling and fearful stutters as she navigates the unnerving environments of the game, adding to the player’s sense of dread. I’m sure I wasn’t the only one reminded of Alien: Isolation as I played these portions of the game, crafting what I needed to outsmart the creatures stalking me. Leon’s portions of the game are pure tension release, as voice actor Nick Apostolides fires off epic one-liners like they’re the heavy weapons he uses to split open the heads of the infected. (One can imagine he’d get along great with PFC Hudson from Aliens).
Naturally, all of this got me dreaming about an Alien game that could follow this format. Imagine a modern, single-player video game retelling the fall of Hadley’s Hope (check out Christopher Golden’s Alien: River of Pain). Similar to Resident Evil Requiem, players would control two different characters, with radically different play styles. Players would start at Rebecca Jordan or “Newt,” the young girl who becomes the sole survivor of the Xenomorph infestation on LV-426. The beginning of the game could require players to do some trivial task given to Newt by her parents Ann and Russell Jordan; this would allow players to learn the layout of Hadley’s Hope and gain a sense of colony life before the infestation. In the chaos that follows, players would guide Newt through the ventilation ducts, as she tries to help others, gather supplies, and attempts to survive. Like Grace in Resident Evil Requiem (or Amanda Ripley in Alien: Isolation), these segments would be pure survival horror.
Alternating with the Newt gameplay would be action/shooter segments as a Colonial Marine. (For those who don’t know, Golden’s novel suggests a unit of Colonial Marines had been stationed on LV-426 before the fall, but were too few in number to stop what was happening.) Much like Leon’s gameplay in Resident Evil Requiem, these segments would provide a satisfying release in tension, as players blow away Xenomorphs with the M41A Pulse Rifle. The soldier controlled by players would attempt to save the colonists and to stop the infestation, but of course, players would know the outcome even before beginning. Ideally, the Colonial Marine missions and the Newt missions would intersect and overlap at key moments in the story, just like Leon and Grace.
It’s not likely to happen, but this Alien fan can dream, right?
Tell us what you think! Would you enjoy an Alien game that offers the mixed genre format of Resident Evil Requiem? Share your reactions in the comments below, or join the conversation on Boss Rush Network’s Discord, Facebook, and Twitter.
Featured Image: SEGA
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