Alien: Rogue Incursion Part One Evolved Edition Review – Predictably Scary

by

As I cautiously explored the corridors of Castor’s Cradle, I was struck by how similar it felt to many other horror games I’ve played recently. Alien: Rogue Incursion doesn’t offer anything groundbreaking for the action-horror genre, but it does enough with its existing elements to provide an enjoyable experience within a well-established and iconic franchise.

Playing as Zula Hendricks and navigating a facility overrun by Xeonomorphs was a lot of fun, but I found the limited selection of weapons and enemies to be a significant drawback. The game felt too heavily focused on its initial challenges, though the story was compelling enough to keep me engaged until the very end of the adventure. It was thrilling, but lacked variety.

Taking place between the first and second Alien movies, Rogue Incursion puts you in control of Zula as she explores a GES installation named Castor’s Cradle. She arrives after receiving a distress signal from a friend and past coworker, bringing along her android companion, Davis. Unfortunately, things quickly go wrong, and the pair find themselves stranded on Purdan, the planet where the facility is located.

You don’t have to wait long before encountering the Xenomorphs, and that’s when the game really picks up. I won’t ruin the best parts, but be aware that Zula is working against the clock and ultimately chooses to destroy the facility to eliminate the Xenomorph threat. It’s pretty intense, I know, but I think it was the only way to handle the situation.

Initially, wandering around the facility is fun, but it gets old quickly. The challenges mostly involve fixing electrical panels to unlock new sections, and occasionally welding doors open from the opposite side. The game is engaging due to its strong visuals and detailed environments, but I rapidly became very familiar with the layout of the facility.

You could always find something interesting around every corner. It might be useful ammo and healing items, pieces of story that explained the GES’s secretive work at the facility, or messages that showed the employees’ more personal sides.

It was good that the game encouraged exploration, as players often had to retrace their steps, uncovering new routes along the way. There was always something interesting to find around each corner – useful ammo and healing items, pieces of story that revealed more about the GES’s secretive operations at the facility, or messages that showed the personal side of the employees working to maintain Castor’s Cradle as efficiently as possible.

One of the best parts of the game is how the story unfolds as you uncover new information. The game doesn’t simply hand you the answers; the more effort you put into learning about what turned Castor’s Cradle into a desolate Xenomorph nest, the more rewarding your experience will be. You truly get out of the game what you put into investigating its mysteries.

However, I have to commend Survios, the developer and publisher, for creating a truly terrifying experience. The Xenomorphs are relentlessly aggressive and pursue Zula with remarkable accuracy, frequently attacking in large numbers. Though it’s relatively straightforward to fight them using your revolver, shotgun, or pulse rifle, that didn’t diminish my enjoyment – my most memorable moments always involved facing one of these creatures.

You won’t have things handed to you easily, and the more effort you put into uncovering the history of why Castor’s Cradle became a ruined home for the Xenomorphs, the more rewarding your experience will be.

I particularly enjoyed a scene where I cautiously navigated a Xenomorph hive while carrying a detached robot head. All I had for defense was my shotgun and a limited supply of ammunition. This forced me to be thoughtful and plan my moves carefully, utilizing my surroundings to hold off a relentless, aggressive swarm. When Rogue Incursion truly clicked, it was spectacular! Unfortunately, these exceptional instances didn’t happen very often.

I chose the Story difficulty to finish the game quickly, but more challenging options are available if you’re looking for them. Unfortunately, Rogue Incursion’s combat becomes repetitive – it only features Xenomorphs and Facehuggers – mirroring the repetitive nature of its exploration.

That being said, the game’s audio design is particularly impressive. The voice actors for Zula and Davis quickly build a believable and comfortable connection between their characters at the start of the story. Moreover, the initial silence after leaving the ship is powerfully impactful, immediately creating a heavy, oppressive, and suffocating atmosphere.

The music changes just as unexpectedly as the Xenomorphs show up, and it really captures the fear and panic that facing such terrifying creatures would cause, even for experienced soldiers. Zula is pleasant and easy to root for, and Davis portrays a calm and serious presence as he supports her during the frightening ordeal they go through.

As you disembark the ship, a profound silence immediately descends, feeling like a heavy weight and creating a stifling, oppressive atmosphere.

I found Rogue Incursion to be really immersive and the pacing was spot-on – it kept me on the edge of my seat the whole time, even though it wasn’t super long. It’s the first part of a two-part story, and honestly, I think Survios might have been better off releasing both games as one complete package. The ending of this first part felt really sudden and, looking back, a bit of a letdown.

Overall, Rogue Incursion doesn’t quite reach its full potential due to a limited selection of weapons and enemies, and some gameplay that becomes a little repetitive. I started to anticipate encountering the Xenomorphs whenever I grabbed a key item or tried to fix a fuse box to open an important door. Predictability like that shouldn’t be present in a horror game, even if the enemies themselves are well-designed and intimidating. In fact, I was hoping for a couple of jump scares while exploring Castor’s Cradle to really keep me on edge.

Even though most of the issues I encountered with the game can be overlooked if you’re excited to play an Alien game, some glitches and bugs were really frustrating and could easily make you want to stop playing. For example, the directional controls stopped working for me a couple of times after interacting with a fuse box. This forced me to either restart the game or awkwardly slide around to reach a save point to fix the problem. Hopefully, these issues will be resolved with a patch released on day one!

Rogue Incursion is a captivating experience with a good flow, keeping you on the edge of your seat throughout its brief duration.

A frustrating part of the game was when characters would mention something important being close by, but give you no clues about its location. I appreciate the idea of letting players explore and discover things on their own, but these important items were hidden so well that it felt deliberately difficult to find them – like the game was trying to make it a tedious task. However, it’s possible this is just my personal experience.

Alien: Rogue Incursion is a fun addition to the Alien series, but it doesn’t quite manage to distinguish itself. The game boasts impressive graphics and sound, which initially blend well with the story and create a sense of potential. You expect the experience to improve as you play, but unfortunately, it largely remains consistent – and not in a good way – throughout the entire game.

It’s not that this game is bad, but the repetitive tasks-like rewiring fuse boxes and fighting similar enemies-can become tiring. You might find yourself just trying to finish the story to see what happens, and that’s partially because the story itself is interesting. Alien fans might enjoy it enough for another playthrough, but most players will likely only play through it once.

If you’re considering this game, I suggest waiting for a sale. However, if the idea of being chased by one of the most famous monsters in action-horror sounds exciting, then it’s a fantastic choice for a relaxed weekend night.

This game was reviewed on the PlayStation 5.

Read More

2025-09-30 17:44