While I’m not the most experienced in reviewing video games, especially in comparison to Film and Television, I also have my opinion on games. I’ve been playing games since I was five years old – that’ll be forty years for me next year, so when I had the opportunity to demo the new Alien: Rogue Incursion VR game during NYCC, I jumped at the chance.
I enjoyed what I played even though I don’t regularly play many VR games even with owning PSVR and PSVR2. Now, I’ve had the chance to play the full and final version of Alien: Rogue Incursion, and I must say I’m quite impressed with the game. For me, this game feels like the perfect mix of action horror and survival horror; as I played through the game, it kept me at the right balance of tension, along with wanting to explore the setting the game puts you in. In this game, you play as Zula Hendricks, an ex-Colonial Marine on a mission with her sentient AI companion, Davis 01, tracking down a friend who’s sent her a message. That’s how this game sets you up to be in what is a pretty familiar to Alien stories type of setting on a planet called Purdan. While Zula and Davis 01 aren’t new characters to the Alien franchise, I believe they’ll be new for most people, including myself, playing this game.
It took me a bit to get used to playing in VR, even after playing the demo a few months ago. Now, I know there are VR versions of Resident Evil games, but I just chose to play those games in the non-VR play style. Controls are quite good and responsive to movement with the controllers. I don’t think it’s that far off from what one may be used to with First Person Shooters, but it also works well as making it feel like physically using weapons and tools. I’ll have to say that walking around and shooting are very different when things are all around you and you are not just sitting back and looking at a screen. The choice by developer Survios to create the whole body adds to the immersion. When your hand is shaking in real life, it is in the game, and man oh man, there are times when them Xenomorphs will have you shooketh. You don’t want your face eaten, nor do you want to be impaled by their tails. You looking down while you’re being killed is not fun at all. Yet the repetition will have you feeling like Tom Cruise in Edge of Tomorrow. I played the game either standing or sitting on PSVR2; standing will tire you out after about 20-30 minutes. Sitting, I could go a few hours before my hands got tired.
Zula is a great character to inhabit, navigating this desolate, ruined base; her reactions to the events are realistic and believable for what you expect from a person who deals with these acid-blood-having Xenomorphs. The relationship between Zula and Davis 01 is cool and different from what we see in most Alien stories. He also works as an AI-controlled assist character, which is funny as he’s also an AI being in the story. That metaness in this tidbit is amusing to me. The game on the first two difficulty settings is a very worthy challenge. The easiest difficulty level is called just “Story” for those who care more about enjoying the narrative more than gameplay difficulty. It may be the easiest, but that doesn’t mean it’s a pushover. When your gun is out of bullets, and you have to reload in real time to try not to die, I don’t know if there is an easy mode to speak of. I find playing as Zula just open enough that it’s a character I’m following while also having agency in what I’m doing. It doesn’t feel like I’m doing quick actions in an R-rated animated film or show.
My main criticism is that there is no melee ability. I don’t care how I can’t win a fistfight with a Xenomorph; I just want to punch things. Maybe some type of melee weapon that could push them back a bit. While I get having no jumping ability makes sense in terms of puzzle solving, and for a character having some back issues, maybe having the ability to do limited climbing could ease some frustrations in certain areas you explore in the game. There were parts that it would be nice to just climb up on a container like you can on a ladder. I think it is an issue with VR as it is an issue with grabbing and moving things. I think if you don’t like it or it feels off because we can’t actually feel what you’re touching and you’re using a controller. It was easy to get over the frustrations I had with reloading and shooting because most of that was me and how the game was making me feel, which I must say is a great thing. Getting flustered and you can’t load a shotgun fast enough because the game makes you feel shook cause a Xenomorph is in your face is exhilarating. Most of the other Alien games don’t get that out of you.
When I played the demo, I thought they were decent but felt like PS3/360 era graphics but were also VR, and I get why maybe it was for the whole VR world – you know, draw distance, full 360 view, head tracking, etc. At that time, it was also a demo build, and I was playing on a MetaQuest, but I’m not that impressed with MetaQuest graphics. I was super impressed when I started this on my PlayStation 5 and PSVR2, which has some of the best VR graphics experiences. I was like, DANG, this is looking like current gen right now! Textures pop, the framerate is smooth, and different environmental effects like snow, smoke, and other particle effects are also great. The Xenomorphs look amazing and disturbing, as they should. When they are in your face, they are as real as they can be, and you don’t want to see those terrible monsters for too long.
I honestly read other game reviews to see how others write them, as I haven’t read a video game review in years. I don’t think I want to go on about super specific ideas and personal likings about gaming or people who might or might not like or will play the game. I’m not going into every nook and cranny about the story either, as I don’t want to spoil and tastes in stories are very subjective. I know that from reviewing films for thirteen years. I think Alien: Rogue Incursion is a very good game, and it’s one that made me really try and enjoy a VR game that isn’t just playing Gran Turismo 7 constantly. I feel it captured the feeling and spirit of a great Alien experience. It’s not a terribly long game, and it’s something that I could see replaying with higher difficulty in the near future. I think this game is something people should play and they’d have an entertaining time. It mixes Action and Horror perfectly and doesn’t have you doing a ton of boring puzzles or mazes. If you are easily scared, though, be wary because seeing Xenomorphs in a theater or on your TV or even other games are not the same as this. I don’t want any blame for you having nightmares of them stalking you in your sleep. I look forward to playing even more games with Zula and from Survios as they’ve both made a great impression on me.
Alien: Rogue Incursion is out now on PSVR2 and PCVR via Steam. This was reviewed via review code on PSVR2 (connected to a PlayStation 5 console).
