Today I will present you with a hypothesis because I decided to take the plunge and buy Alien Isolation: Nostromo Edition. There were a few reasons for this – obviously I love Alien and Aliens, they’re two cinematic Giants (this game is set between them), but the most notable reason was price. The hypothesis focuses on the price.
I live in the UK, a place where technology pricing is pretty terrible. Forget how strong the pound is compared to the dollar, we get shafted over here. It’s pretty much a like for like conversion. Big companies like Apple don’t even pay full tax here because they base themselves outwith the UK but close by enough that they can still ship cheaply. Tax dodging mothers, y’all.
The Alien franchise has been a rocky one. There have been many a shit game attached to the license, and the most prolific shit game still leaves a bad taste in our mouths. That game is none other than Gearbox’s megaflop, Alien: Colonial Marines. It promised the world, and delivered the generic. With that in mind I think Sega are still suffering because of Colonial Marines, which is a shame because Isolation by all accounts isn’t a shitty game. Sure there have been a few scathing reviews, but Metacritic doesn’t have it in the gutter. The survival horror series needed a bit of a shake up, and this is it. Stealthy, creepy, action.
Alien: Isolation originally retailed in the UK at around £44.99, but today I picked it up for £28.85. Pretend those prices are in dollars, and remember that Gearbox probably caused that decline in what, ten days? Because they had a shitty game out last year. Randy Pitchford, you absolute bastard. I will not have Sega’s name sullied anymore.
LET’S ALL BUY ALIEN: ISOLATION*!
Watch the first 20 minutes commentary-free if you need more proof of AI’s creepy fun:
*This article is not sponsored in any way shape or form.