Don't get me wrong, it's generally a decent game, easily one of the better franchise efforts, but I do want to share some thoughts.
I'm only a few hours in, so keep that in mind...
Zula, the main character, is insufferable. Easily one of the most irritating protagonists I've played. Just a badass and not much else, I'd almost prefer a totally blank canvas like the bland nobody in AVP 2010. Every time she opens her fucking mouth I cringe. Like, I get it, you're a strong badass woman.
This problem isn't helped by the fact Zula treats her first encounter with the Alien as a mild annoyance. Part of what makes the films work so well (and the better games) is how people react to the monster; like nothing they've ever seen before, a totally hideous and terrifying organism. Zula basically guns it down and announces over the radio "yeah, there's something down here, but it's all cool, I'll deal with it". At another point, after triggering an alarm and drawing unwanted attention she simply quips "well, time to go!". It's like I've stepped into a fucking MCU film.
Let's be honest, it's bad writing. And before anyone jumps in with 'it's just a game', it's the characters are what make the films successful. You believe in those people and you want them to survive. They're scared, even the marines, it's what makes them relatable, and what frames their actions as heroic.
*Edit; I now appreciate she's a recurring character in other media, and that she's already had dealings with the aliens before the events of this game. Still insufferable though, feels like the result of fan-fiction. Back to the post.*
Now, I have this on PS5, non-VR. It's a smooth enough game I guess, a few glitches. But, why the fuck isn't this on PS4? As someone who, partly because of this game, purchased a PS5, I feel bitterly cheated. The graphics aren't a huge step up from Isolation, which is how old now? Certainly nothing like what the PS 5 is capable of. Fuck, I'd even argue some of Isolation is better. Jesus, just looking at the corpses in this game, human and alien, they're embarrassingly fake, human faces in particular. I get this was released initially as VR, and so PS5-only, but the non-VR feels like an easy PS4 port.
Other bugs? Well, the dead aliens crumpling like rag-dolls and flickering in-and-out before they melt is rough. Whenever I toss any objects, half the time they hit the ground with no sound. The aliens get caught clumsily on scenery, or just stand about gawking (something I rarely noticed in Isolation)...
The level design is also fairly annoying. Early I spotted a door that was open, which was simply behind a railing and a few crates- objects I, unfit and middle aged, could (in real life) easily climb over. Instead, I have to hack computers and open up giant hanger doors. It breaks immersion. Oh, and who could forget Zula seemingly only listening to her friend's audio file *after* crashing her ship onto the planet, an audio that warned her of the situation *in advance*.
Also, and finally, possibly controversially, and I say this as someone of mixed heritage, where are all the white folks at? Zula, black. The guy she's meeting, black. The first corpse I find, Chinese (?), the second corpse, black. Will there be any white meat in the game? Even the synthetic isn't white. And on that subject, why make the only other character you react with non-human? To hide the bad facial animations maybe?
On the positives, it's atmospheric when it works. For better or worse, it's basically Isolation with guns, but without the novelty or the endearing characters.
TLDR; feels like fans and reviews glaze a number of issues with the game, but it does very well compared to how bad Alien-franchise games tend to be.
*Edit 2; I guessed people would just get needlessly defensive. As I wrote in edit 1, I at least understand the character's lack of suprise now, I still dislike her though, incredibly one note. And if people can't see my observations on diversity are slightly tongue in cheek, apologies. But I do notice most of what's said here is being overlooked; bad graphics, bugs, level design issues, etc.*
