Aliens: Darkish Descent Evaluate | New Recreation Community
It’s fascinating when video games look again at older motion motion pictures for inspiration. Final yr, Starship Troopers: Terran Command provided a good RTS expertise primarily based on the favored 1997 film. This yr, Aliens: Darkish Descent leaps again one other decade to adapt the Aliens film from 1986. Each video games characteristic humanity taking up an aggressive alien menace, colloquially often called bugs, however the similarities don’t finish there. Each characteristic isometric real-time technique gameplay, with Terran Command specializing in controlling a small military of squads vs. commanding a single squad (as one unit) in Darkish Descent. Each are single-player solely, priced within the center zone between the AAA monstrosities and low-budget indies. And, critically, the 2 are extremely loyal to the supply materials. Darkish Descent bests Terran Command as a result of it’s greater than the sum of its elements, due to good squad administration, an fascinating story, and enjoyable fight in opposition to brutal xenomorphs.
Darkish Descent begins on the Pioneer area station orbiting the planet of Lethe. Taking part in as Deputy Administrator Maeko Hayes, you witness an outbreak of vicious alien xenomorphs that decimate the Pioneer’s crew. After Maeko efficiently hides from the black killing machines, she acknowledges their menace to humanity and initiates a quarantine protocol that may destroy any ship in excessive orbit. One ship within the firing line is the USS Otago, house to the Colonial Marines. The ship will get badly broken and cares in direction of the planet. On the similar time, Maeko is rescued by a small contingent of Otago’s troopers that got here aboard through a shuttle, and so they comply with the ship to the planet’s floor. With the Otago badly broken and lots of troopers dying, Maeko takes on a management position to assist restore the ship, handle the restricted forces, and ship out squads to discover Lethe for provides. Sadly, the xenomorphs are additionally planetside, attacking settlements and rising a military through the use of people as incubators.
The marketing campaign gives extra tales than one may count on from a recreation of this kind and value vary. The twelve missions are unlocked in a linear trend and between every are respectable in-engine cinematics. Missions additionally comprise plenty of story dialogue, as conditions introduce obstacles or new avenues of investigation. Main characters should not one-dimensional, with the Otago’s crew initially unaware that Maeko brought about their ship to crash. Likewise, the main Marine (Harper) has unusual complications every time the aliens develop into frenzied. Character battle is nice, exacerbated by the worrying scenario. There are a number of narrative arcs, together with an gang of cultists who worship the bugs. Smaller tales are discovered inside every mission, saved on datapads or informed by survivors. Whereas a few of the dialogue is clichéd and quips repeat far too typically, it sometimes efficiently reproduces the movie’s narrative model.
As Maeko, you determine which 4 (and later, 5) Marines undertake missions and handle their development. The administration features are much like BattleTech from 2018, and it really works about as properly, encouraging gamers to maintain troopers alive. At first there should not many to protect, however extra manpower may be recovered by finishing facet goals. Marines endure each bodily and psychological harm. Flesh wounds heal, in time, and this may be accelerated by using restricted medical personnel. Trauma would not cease one other bug hunt, however concern can influence mission success; finally a psychologist can quell the terrors. Troopers acquire ranges which give a selection of perks, and every trooper may be assigned to a category, like a medic or gunner. Weapons may be bought and assigned, to extend fight choices. Even alien analysis may be undertaken, if the squad performs a couple of dissections in situ. And earlier than any squad is shipped to battle, you allocate tools: medpacks, instruments that weld or unlock doorways, and sentry weapons.
Initially of missions, the xenomorph menace is low. The extra aliens the squad encounters, the stronger their forces develop into. This rising hazard stage introduces more durable xenomorph sorts, like a praetorian, that may devastate a whole squad if given the prospect. Moreover, Marines endure from basic attrition: gaining wounds, dropping armor, working low on ammo, and buying stress. The stress is a giant deal, as Marines lose accuracy and should acquire damaging traits from previous trauma. If nervousness rises too far, you need to use a medpack to cut back it on a person foundation, or weld your squad right into a room to relaxation them, which offers extra bonuses and saves the sport. So the longer the mission clock runs, the tougher it turns into to maintain all of it collectively, which is a superb thematic match for the franchise.
Crucially, you’ll be able to extract a squad anytime and return to struggle one other day. No must replay the entire mission. Any doorways unlocked, survivors rescued, or goals accomplished will keep that method for the following workforce. This creates an fascinating dilemma. Over the 90-120 minute missions, gamers could be tempted to maintain going to take pleasure in extra fight and preserve a gradual tempo, however at a progressively larger threat. Alternatively, make a name to extract when issues begin wanting grim, to return again mentally and bodily ready. Other than it taking a couple of minutes to get again into the struggle, it wastes a day of in-game time, probably rising the worldwide alien menace. The second-string workforce might need fewer perks and, since assets are restricted, there may be the choice to return to earlier missions to scrounge for provides.
The APC brings squads out and in of missions. It may be moved to a handful of mounted places round every stage, with the choice to ferry the squad. It offers good offensive assist and is the place survivors may be dropped off for rescue. Further APC places are unlocked as a part of mission development, serving to to cut back journey occasions for the following incursion. However for some areas, like inside mines overrun by aliens, squads should discover the claustrophobic areas by themselves.
When guiding the squad via ranges, they transfer as one unit, to maintain issues easy. The sport mechanically selects the perfect Marine for any activity: selecting the closest to open a provide field or utilizing the medic to heal. Whereas it really works okay, from time to time it fails, like when a single trooper takes a left whereas the remaining goes proper. Cowl spots don’t all the time adequately accommodate 4, not to mention 5, troopers. Many strategic components are begging for particular person unit management. Putting one Marine on the opposite facet of a room would permit for higher protection. Single troopers might be used as bait whereas the others held a defensive posture, which might be balanced by rising stress. And when rescuing civilians, they may have been saved out of hurt’s method, or escorted by a sub-team whereas others explored.
Stealth is vital due to the related stress and harm suffered in battle. The franchise’s iconic movement tracker offers invaluable details about threats, superbly recreated with the suitable beeps. Further recon may be gathered by accessing cameras or unlocking map layouts. Watching the mini-map like a hawk, shifting the squad between side-rooms, and ready for threats to traipse via main thoroughfares offering good pressure. If the squad can’t disguise behind partitions, they will take place behind crates and sprint between intermittent cowl—some xenomorphs stay stationary to identify threats. This line-of-sight stealth is pretty mediocre as a result of the hostiles can see a full 360 levels and shifting the entire squad of between small obstructions is clumsy at finest.
Direct fight is extra satisfying, even when the Marines can solely stand a lot of it. Primary fight in opposition to the xenomorphs is finest dealt with in lengthy corridors or open rooms, because the bugs are quick melee attackers. Troopers will mechanically interact, though they will focus hearth on chosen targets. If issues get furry, a particular command mode will give the squad extra firepower. Enabling this mode slows down time or pauses it utterly, permitting you to problem orders with command factors that slowly recharge. One order tells a Marine to fireplace their shotgun, which is nice for shut encounters. Suppressive hearth will decelerate inside a small arc, good targets at choke factors. Different orders embrace an incinerator to put down a cone of flames, mines that may skinny the herd, and flares that briefly increase accuracy.
More durable encounters crop up each on occasion to maintain squads on their toes. Particular moments, associated to the story, often give a pop-up warning that issues are about to get troublesome and to arrange. Additionally, when the aliens have had sufficient of your brazen disregard for his or her species, they may ship out an onslaught from certainly one of their tunnels. These onslaughts give simply sufficient warning to seek out a great spot to rapidly arrange defenses and hope to hell they maintain. Sentry weapons are supreme right here, though they’re susceptible from behind and may be overwhelmed. If any sentry ammo stays, they are often retrieved to be used elsewhere. With sentry weapons, stealth, and a number of other command choices, there’s a superb line between success and failure. Getting via a bunch of xenomorphs with a clear invoice of well being is all the time satisfying.
Not all threats are of alien origin. Just a few hostile human cultists got here out swinging blunt objects, and so they appeared to endure extra bullets than the xenomorphs. Different people use weapons and crouch behind cowl, making a boring sequence of two opposing forces losing bullets from waist-high cowl. Though the grenade launcher command is useful for these standoffs, its restricted use means giant teams of human opponents are nonetheless a drag. People are additionally dumb, forming a leisurely conga line as they stroll into sentry gun hearth; at the very least the aliens attempt to flank. For some motive, the franchise retains attempting to push human opponents on the participant, however like in Alien: Isolation, they are a misplaced trigger, and it’s lucky they seem occasionally.
Regardless of its lower cost, Darkish Descent is a splendidly offered adaptation. It punches above its weight as a result of such nice care has been put into the world. Ranging from the very first mission on Lethe, which feels ripped straight from the film, the sport oozes ambiance. The Aliens look nice and may lose limbs, dragging themselves towards gunfire earlier than exploding into acid. While you enter their twisted hives, coated in icky black resin, the ribbed flooring look superior and are sometimes crawling with skittering facehuggers. Marines can use flashlights, which helps to set the temper and even provides highlights. From the heart beat rifles firing to the aliens screaming, the sport sounds are all on level. It is usually nice that the digicam view may be totally rotated, to get the perfect angle for each encounter, and zoomed in to see extra element.
Whereas capturing the bugs, you’ll expertise technical bugs sadly. Some brought about a halt in mission development. Just a few squad members acquired caught in a “busy” state and couldn’t heal or open doorways. One random onslaught by no means ended, regardless of no extra aliens showing. Marines can get caught on doorways and partitions sometimes, which can have been much less of a ache if there was single-unit management. The sport does save pretty typically on medium issue, however there might be spots the place bugs (each aliens and associated software program) would require you to replay a tricky 5-10 minute part. Extra patches will hopefully guarantee the one bugs you see are these you’ll be able to shoot.
Aliens: Darkish Descent is a pleasing shock as a result of it’s an extremely trustworthy and entertaining squad-based technique recreation. It appears identical to the 1986 film and brings sufficient new to the desk to maintain issues recent. It has an fascinating story, informed pretty properly each throughout and between missions. Managing a bunch of Marines throughout the 20-30 hour marketing campaign is satisfying as you equipment them out and heal each bodily and psychological wounds. Fight is difficult and dynamic, rewarding cautious positioning, stress administration, and deployment of key skills, though particular person unit management might have elevated it additional. Whereas the stealth is a bit wishy-washy, it’s nonetheless rewarding to keep away from alien threats by watching the useful motion-tracker. And regardless of some technical blemishes, Aliens: Darkish Descent is the quintessential bug hunt of 2023.
