#1 – New Enemies

To be crystal clear, I think the primary antagonist for any Alien: Isolation sequel should still be the Xenomorph. But after Alien: Romulus and Alien: Earth, there’s an opportunity to add new, additional foes to the mix.

I’m mainly thinking of the Trypanohyncha Ocellus (a.k.a. ‘The Eye Midge’) from Alien: Earth. This thing was the standout star of the first season, effortlessly turning what was once a harmless sheep into one of the most intimidating creatures in franchise history.

Imagine clearing out a room of human enemies only to return later and find that one of them has reanimated after T. Ocellus buried its way into the corpse’s skull. It would introduce a terrifying sense of unpredictability, and I’m sweating just thinking about it.

Another enemy I’d love to see would be ‘The Offspring’ (from Romulus, not the punk rock band). Some folks thought this thing was a bit goofy, but I honestly found it to be horrifying. It’s a kind of Engineer/Xenomorph hybrid and, unlike the Xenomorph itself, moves relatively slowly. It would make for a great change of pace to have it relentlessly stalking you throughout the environment, moving between rooms like Mr. X from Resident Evil 2.

#2 – Even Better Xenomorph AI

The Xenomorph in Alien Isolation has some of the best behavioural AI (the good kind) I’ve ever seen in a game. The way it swoops through the environment before jumping up into the ventilation system makes it an incredibly unpredictable foe. Even after beating the game multiple times, I haven’t quite nailed down how to manipulate it to my benefit, and so I still find myself cowering in lockers or underneath desks.

Astonishingly, however, Isolation is almost 12 years old, so there’s ample room to expand upon the Xenomorph AI and make it act in ways that feel even more realistic. For as terrifying as it was to see it stalking through corridors, it never did much to interact with the environment. It would be cool to see it climb over obstacles, destroy go-to hiding places, or strategically use its own acid blood to coax you into the open.

#3 – A New Setting

This is a no-brainer. I absolutely love Sevastopol Station from the original, which paid homage to Ridley Scott’s original Alien, utilising the same retro-futuristic aesthetics to great effect.

It’s time for something new, though. One potential option would be something similar to Hadley’s Hope, the terraforming facility seen in Aliens. It became home for dozens of families before everything fell apart, so this would make for some nice variety. You could include the more industrial areas seen in the 1986 movie, but also areas geared toward family life: classrooms, a mess hall, or a garden of sorts.

Another option would be Earth itself. Alien: Earth proved that you can set an Alien story here and it not be an absolute disaster. Something similar to the Neverland research facility would make sense, but a more urban environment like New Siam would work, too.

Don’t make it open-world, though – keep everything tightly designed with narrow corridors and dense environments.

#4 – Better Pacing

As much as I adore Isolation, I’ll be the first to concede that it suffers from poor pacing. Whenever I recommend someone play it, I always feel the need to set expectations: “Don’t worry, it gets real good after about two hours.” Two hours is a long time, and though I’m certain Creative Assembly fully intended for the opening to be a slow burn, it went just a bit too far (and many folks reckon the latter portions drag on too).

With the sequel, we need something to really hook us right from the start. Perhaps you could open with a prologue sequence in which an unnamed playable character falls foul of the Xenomorph – just something to get the pulse racing, y’know?

Setting the right tone and pacing will prove a tough balancing act, and I don’t envy the developers one bit. It needs a little bit more momentum than the original, but if you stray too far in the opposite direction, you end up with something that’s more Aliens than Alien. Not a bad thing necessarily, but that’s not what Isolation is.

#5 – Sack the Working Joes

In addition to the Xenomorph and human enemies, Isolation also plays host to an unreasonable amount of Working Joes, synthetics that, thanks to budgetary restraints, don’t exhibit the same human-like characteristics as Ash or Bishop.

But while the Working Joes were certainly creepy at first, they outstayed their welcome, and there’s a section toward the end which threatens to veer into straight-up action territory, given how many of the blighters you need to fend off.

I’m not saying get rid of all of them, then, but just show a bit more restraint. If utilised right, they could be a terrifying, formidable enemy; they just cropped up far too often in Isolation, ultimately becoming a frustration.

#6 – A Bit More Polish

The environments in Isolation remain absolutely stunning, even on the humble Switch. Granted, I think the heavy noise filter hides a few blemishes, but whatever – it’s gorgeous.

However, a few things break immersion: the ladder-climbing animation is janky and weird; the human NPCs lack realism, particularly in their facial animation; and although the crafting system is simple, its UI needs refining, as it never quite felt intuitive enough.

These are just a few of the minor grievances I have with the original, but they all add up. Creative Assembly would be wise to ensure the sequel is even more polished, and I can only hope the team is afforded the budget it needs to deliver on its vision.