I wasn't sure what kind of experience I was going to have going into Alien Isolation. Many of the larger, more reputable review sites gave the game a poor score, while the player base itself seemed happy with their purchases for the most part.
Me, I love the game. The majority of the gameplay is stealth based, sneaking around the incredibly atmospheric space station trying to avoid the horrifying Alien that relentlessly stalks you.
I'm so glad with the direction the developers took the game. Instead of a shoot 'em up which throws waves of seemingly witless Xenomorphs at you like something out of Starship Troopers, they have instead created the Alien as it should be – relentless, smart, and incredibly dangerous – a perfect organism.
The alien cannot be killed by small arms fire. Your best bet is to scare it off with a few blasts from your flame-thrower, or to stay quiet and try and avoid its attention. This might include using crafted items like smoke grenades and noise-makers, or hiding in lockers or under a table. You may hear the alien thumping in a vent above you, or see saliva dripping from a ceiling vent. These visual and audio cues are a great way of letting you know you might be in trouble.
The environments and sound are also stunning. The developers perfectly captured the look and feel of the first Alien film, with the music to match.
I'm only about 6 hours into the game as I write this, and I hear the game length is somewhere around 20 hours. This can be a possible downside, as it may become a slog later on. Time will tell, but for now, I'm loving it.