Phew! What a ride. The first keycard insert and the power outage section were the hardest. Didn't think I'd be able to pull it off. But I guess I was wrong. Have any of you managed to do the same?
Was replaying M17 and got jumped by xeno in the darkened corridor that you enter after crawling beneath the stacked crates in the canteen area. I've never encountered xeno here before and rightfully so. That's cuz there are no entry points for it to reach there; no vents and both the doors are blocked. The only way to access this section is through the door blocked by the crates, which you move as part of the objective. So where did it pop in from? That was a proper jumpscare.
I was rewatching this amazing submarine horror and something struck me. In the beginning, the crew gets the order to pick up survivors from a downed British ship with and given specific coordinates. Why then no one in the sub mentions that these particular coordinates are exactly the same as the ones where they mistakenly attacked a British ship, killed their own captain to cover it up and left friendly survivors in the water just a day before?
The point about "these are the same coordinates" becomes relevant later in the movie when they realize the "possessed" sub has done an about turn and is heading there again of its own accord. So, why not mention it when they are revisiting these coordinates themselves?
Upon a rewatch, I thought I'd have an aha! moment when I realize they knew it all along. But nada. Even amongst themselves in the beginning, they're feigning ignorance. Not a gesture or a word betrays that they know where they heading. Why behave like that?
The flamethrower.
After she awakens in the makeshift hive, how does she still have it in her possession? That's a big ass piece of equipment. I would go as far as to ask, how come she still has all her belongings intact after being abducted by the Xeno and being taken God knows where? Shouldn't she have lost them along the way?
That would make sense realistically AND narratively. It would've been better if she had come to and realised all of her stuff is gone. Except 1 medkit,.of course (if you had one to begin with at that point). Then she could've *found* a gun from a nearby body. The rest of the mission then could've unfolded the way it does.
This way several issues could've been avoided:
The logical one of course. You really can't be abducted by the xeno, knocked out, taken to an undisclosed location, bound to a wall and then wake up to find all your stuff with you. That just doesn't make sense. Getting abducted by Steve is a horrifying and traumatic experience. *If* you manage to make it out alive, losing your stuff should act as a reminder of what exactly you survived.
Since after that point, you're only fighting off a few facehuggers, having that much firepower dilutes the horror. A gun and a medkit, along with some building material for medkits along the way, should've sufficed to keep the tension and the pressure on.
This way all the old reliables- the distractions, the weaponry, even the motion tracker- are GONE. A gun and a medkit. Two basic things you started your journey into this nightmare with. Just that this time the whole station is in a free fall as well.
THAT'S how you know you're in the endgame.
What do guys think?
There's something that's been bothering me about what Sam said in one of his loading screen journal entries. He mentions that the naval command bunker with the fuel rods has radiation "as high as Novosibirsk".
How does he come to the conclusion that the radiation is THAT high? The Captain merely mentions that the radiation is high so they'll need special suits from the fire depot.
If the radiation is that high, why is it so? AFAIK the radition in Novosibirsk (8 times higher than Moscow) was due to a particular reason i.e. the city was targeted with a cobalt bomb because of the Research Institute.
Now, according to my understanding, two arguments could be made why is it so. First, it's a naval command building so maybe it could be a contender for a dirty nuke. But then the surrounding area as well would've been mighty screwed. I mean Novosibirsk is called The Dead City for a reason. Second, the presence of fuel rods themselves. But the rods are submerged in water as they always are in a facility like this. If the rods were exposed, then maybe it would've been understandable. But they weren't.
The whole "as high as Novosibirsk" remark sort of didn't sit well with me. Not that there wouldn't have been other places, realistically, with radiation levels that high. It just undermines the stakes of Novosibirsk for me. The high stakes, the desolate horror, the race-against-time and the sacrifices that were made there all were borne of the radiation levels of that place. That 8 times meant something and cost a lot. That's what made it such a singular experience, for both the players and the characters.
Anyway, what do you guys think? Am I missing something/overthinking this?
Yeah I know it was a welcome change from Artyom's vow of silence. But this dude just doesn't stfu. I'm three-quarters into the DLC and it's getting annoying as all hell. The devs really swung in the opposite direction with Sam. I mean I know he's spent all these years in Russia picking up words/phrases and I know he's an "American" but c'mon read the room, Sam. There are places where silence is highly preferred and any remark (in russian or english) comes across as crass and makes the situation lose its gravitas.
It seems the game is prepping you in M10 for what's to come in M17. At least in M10 backtracking you have floor vents to hide in and more light and sound to diffuse the horror. I mean as tension-inducing the blaring alarm and the flashing lights were in M10, the eerie silence of The Corridor is purely nerve-wracking. Also, the xeno in the Lab is much less hostile and present than the one in The Corridor. What y'all think?
I dunno why I ignorantly thought it wouldn't be on my case while backtracking. Just reloaded my M16 save to find the logs, the ID tags and to just generally take in the sights. But Steve is making it mighty impossible to do so.
Of all the places he could've come down to wander, he again chose the server farm for that. Couldn't even listen to the gas room log properly, since I was so preoccupied with keeping a check on his movements. And then again in Systech Lobby, he chose to say hi.
Would I have a backtracking companion throughout the way? And I know I could load up Mission 11 save but then I don't have ion torch and gas mask with me.
Man it's rough. I don't wanna flame him to piss him off more, and keeping an eye out for him ensures that I can't stop to smell the proverbial roses.
And before somebody asks or suggests, yes Mike Tanaka's room would soon be visited.
Now I'm not necessarily talking about the backtracking parts here. Just straight playthrough stuff you didn't know was there or situations that were supposed to happen but didn't because you intentionally or unintentionally skirted around those.
Like, I just found out the barricaded vents could be opened from the inside as well. And, thanks to u/HotmailsInYourArea, I found out there's a hazmat joe present in Mission 16.
Another interesting one that was a near-miss was the fate of Francis and his crew in Seegson Synthetics. In my playthrough, the alien attack didn't trigger on its own and I had to do it "manually" by using a noisemaker. Now I'm thinking, is it possible to make it back to the elevator without having them killed? Maybe a flare would've been better.
Anyway, I'm sure on my second run there's gonna be a lots of things like that. Curious to hear what all you discovered only later.
Do you have dis appointment, sir?
Do you have dis appointment, sir?
These two questions have been bothering me for a while. Curious to hear what other people think of them.
In Mission 14, after we do the reactor purge, why is there a horde of Xenos climbing out and scattering across the station? Shouldn't the drones be already spread out through the station, considering that's their job? Shouldn't the hive only have a minimal crew of Xenos to protect it and maybe run maintenance. I could also think of a few drones being there "dropping deliveries". But to see Ripley think that somehow she unleashed the whole swarm of them on the station is something that I really don't understand.
In Mission 18, when we reach the cutscene of the two Xenos perched right in front of us. The loud, distant sound that the xenos keenly listen to and then promptly respond to belongs to the Queen, right? I mean the devs have sorta confirmed it as well. So, could it be said that this sound was Queen's DEFCON-1 level emergency alert being sent to the swarm? That, through it, it was her who sent the drones "out there" to save the hive and ensure the survival of their species any which way possible?
I recently finished the game on Hard and realized I didn't use certain items at all, while other I barely used.
Things I never used:
Pipe bomb (didn't come across a single blueprint)
Smoke bomb (thought I might attract more attention with it than without it)
Flashbang (found it to be the most useless)
Things I barely used:
Flare (once)
Shotgun (once)
Molotov (once)
Gun (twice)
Stun baton (thrice)
EMP (thrice)
As for the flamethrower, I used it only 4 times against the xeno. (One time each in Mission 10, 16, 17, 18)
How was your minimalist playthrough like? What all items you never used?
EDIT: Forgot to mention stun baton
Phew, what a ride!
The xeno made sure I loved (and hated) every second of it. I was puckered up through most of it. After San Cristobal, I even took a break from the game for a while. But I'm glad I came back and powered through it.
The Working Joes also (especially the heavy ones) were psychological menace. Brilliant design there. It's interesting how both the quickest and the slowest beings on the station could fill you with so much dread.
The humans, on the other hand, could've done with a bit of love as well. Seems like the devs poured so much of their energy towards the xenos and the Joes, the humans were sorta left undercooked in the final serving.
When it comes to the levels, Mission 10 absolutely takes the cake. Just the sheer length of it and the whole mission feels like a race against time. Surprisingly, the tail end of the mission with the KG-348 Lab went by harrowingly but smoothly.
The twin San Cristobal missions I'd put as a close second for both being the first time we're actively being hunted and the ensuing confusion and panic figuring out the path to the next goal.
Even the Hive was a task because of the same thing. The heavy Joes in the reactor core also had me sweating bullets. (Question: Did anyone else snipe the Joes from above before going down in the elevator in the reactor core? I did because of the single joe closest to the elevator spotting me every time.)
The dreaded Mission 17, just like KG-348 lab, went by with the least amount of frustration. The common thread between these two sections being the fact that you're alone with the xeno and you go back and forth on a linear path. The lack of other distractions in both made the fear somewhat manageable.
Mission 18 I think could've been so much better had they not pulled their punches when it comes to the twin Xenos. I barely registered the twins before I reached the "safety" of the airlock. Why didn't the xeno drop when you're running around hacking this and that terminal? And why are there suddenly two now? It would've been so much better (or worse) if we had to do all that hacking with two Xenos in that room.
Anyway, now let's talk about the part for which this post was actually made.
What. Was. That. Ending ?
How did the Xeno gain entry into the Torrens? I know they're smart, but not working the airlock smart. I mean c'mon.
Why is Ripley hanging around the Torrens in her EVA suit? If she feels something is off, shouldn't she get rid of the suit first to better prepare herself for the worst? If she doesn't suspect anything, then why is she walking around in that suit like a fool? She hasn't done that before and she can't be that desperate to first see Verlaine.
Why is the xeno that has pounced on us and came screaming towards us throughout the game is suddenly walking slowly and menacingly toward us at the end? Why the cliché villian trope for such a relentless force of nature?
How come she's knocked out from ejecting herself into space? That's not her first rodeo. She did the same to escape the lab and was knocked around several times before regaining entry into Sevastapol. Also, why is she drifting away? Aren't EVA suits equipped with emergency jetpacks for situations like these?
What's with the lone facehugger on Aneisodora? How did that lil one manage to hitch a ride? That's not how the facehuggers behave. They don't hide and wait for an opportune time, unlike the xenos. They instinctly respond to chemical signals.
Anyway, as much as the ending left me feeling underwhelmed and brimming with questions, there's no doubt that the whole game was truly a product of love. The atmosphere, the archive logs, the level design, each added its own wonderful layer of immersion. It made the experience so much richer and memorable.
I know people have complained about the length and the distance between save stations. For the former I'd say, the resulting frustation might just be a feature and not a bug. You're supposed to feel frustrated and annoyed the more you face off against the xeno, instead of absolute terror. Because that's what Amanda is feeling as well. But yes, considering it's a huge station, it would've been cool to see some interesting change in sceneries.
Anyway, that's enough wall of text from me. An easy 8/10 I'd give it. Two point deduction for the ending, the human AI and other lil stuff.
TL;DR : Screw the ending, the game was hella scary and absolutely fun. It's gonna be a long time before I miss you, Steve.
I'm at the end of Mission 16 and I just can't. Saved at the top of the stairs, came down and immediately hid in the locker. A while later Steve comes down as well and takes care of humans for me. I keep waiting in the locker and see another Steve come down the stairs. Whaaaat!? I still keep waiting and then there's a third one coming down. What's happening?
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I reload my save and do the same. Just this time I come out of the locker when I hear dying screams of Seegson security. I follow Steve until he goes up in the vent. I move ahead and am...impaled from behind? How did it happen when I had Steve in front of me?
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I reload again and this time Steve has already taken care of security downstairs. How did he reach before me? Anyway, I hide in the locker. Again, another one comes downstairs and straight up attacks me while I'm hiding silently.
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Is this a bug or am I cooked with multiple Steves out for revenge?
In Mission 11, I had just saved at the save station inside the storage room before Supply Corridor A. The single patrolling Joe in this corridor spotted me and started walking towards me. I shot it twice in the head with my shotgun. Before I could discharge the third shot, he reached me and I braced for impact.
But then...nada. He walked past me and kept walking. Surprised, I started following him. He backtracked through all the doors and no matter how much I ran around him, he paid me no heed. I followed him till the staircase and then turned back because that's where the previous Joe was patrolling.
Had a fun interaction with that previous Joe as well before when I was coming through. He was camping at the top of the stairs. So I threw a noisemaker across the hall to lure it downstairs. Seeing it not respond to that, I walked up the stairs and met him a few flights up. Instead of grabbing me, he just said "Don't run!" and proceeded to walk toward the noisy distraction. I listened to him and calmly walked upstairs.
Anyway, has this glitch happened with any of you? I found it really cool. Like the two headshots messed up his circuitry and made him behave erratically. I think it would be sorta nice if it was implemented in A:I 2. Seeing the droids glitch out instead of dying would be a better sight, IMO.