It’s game over man. Game over!
The oft-overlooked Alien: Isolation mobile follow-up, Alien: Blackout, is being pulled from mobile storefronts as the devs face a “hard decision” about the future of the game.
Alien: Blackout served as an “unofficial” sequel to Isolation, and players took the role of Ellen Ripley’s daughter, Amanda, once more.
Rather than personally sneaking around Sevastopol Station, however, Amanda was firmly planted in a control room, guiding other crewmates through a Weyland-Yutani facility to safety via security cameras.
Sometimes, though, the Xenomorph would sniff out the player and try to make their way into the control room, forcing them to cut off all power to seal the door akin to the Five Nights at Freddy’s series.
Players have until 31st October to purchase the game from either the App Store, Google Play or the Amazon Store for £0.99
— Alien: Blackout (@AlienBlackout) October 10, 2023
Publisher 505 Go took to X (formerly Twitter) to announce the decision.
No word has been given on what has caused this “hard decision”, as the game doesn’t have anything in the way of live services requiring developer support, but it is most likely a licensing issue.
We are personally hoping that Creative Assembly has an official sequel in the making and license holder Fox doesn’t want any confusion among players.
There is absolutely nothing in the way of evidence to support this, but that would be our darkest desire.
Creative Assembly’s foray into first-person survival horror wowed us back in 2014, and its retro-futuristic visuals still look stunning today.
Unfortunately, nothing other than Blackout has explored Amanda’s story any further due to some negative reviews.
In the director’s cut of James Cameron’s Aliens, Ellen Ripley’s daughter is revealed to have died aged 67, leaving plenty of time in Amanda’s life to continue the search for her mother.
We did get a new Alien game in the form of Aliens: Dark Descent, a real-time tactics game that captured much of the intense dread that made the movies and Isolation so compelling.
There was also the third-person co-op shooter Aliens: Fireteam Elite, released in 2021, which is thematically much more in line with Cameron’s Aliens.
Despite these good games, people are still clamouring for an experience like Alien: Isolation.
Fortunately, they might find what they are looking for in the upcoming Routine, which was re-revealed during the Summer Game Fest in 2022 after many years of silence.
Set on an abandoned lunar base, Routine bears many similarities to Alien: Isolation, down to its analogue retro-futurism and handheld scanner.
Mick Gordon of Doom Eternal fame has composed the soundtrack, so it’s safe to assume Routine will be an auditory feast as well as a visual one.
Listen to our One More Life podcast, subscribe to our free newsletter and follow us on Twitter for all the latest gaming intel.
Looking for something to watch? Check out our TV Guide or Streaming Guide.
Try Radio Times magazine today and get 10 issues for only £10, PLUS a £10 John Lewis and Partners voucher delivered to your home – subscribe now. For more from the biggest stars in TV, listen to The Radio Times Podcast.