Even though it was obviously a dude in a suit, the Xenomorph in the first Alien film is downright terrifying. Due in part to its limited screentime, creating an atmosphere full of tension, and its calculated violence, the titular alien made for a classic movie monster. It has retained its aura of fear across various appearances in the decades since Alien first debuted in theaters. Most recently, viewers saw a new interpretation of it tear unsuspecting soldiers to bits in FX’s Alien: Earth.
Yet, in Alien: Rogue Incursion, the Xenomorphs are not so much terrifying predators as they are minor nuisances. The bones of Rogue Incursion are enjoyable — it’s a very competent first-person shooter with shades of survival horror — but, as an Alien game, I expected more nightmares.
Alien: Rogue Incursion Evolved Edition is the PlayStation 5, Windows PC, and Xbox Series X port of a VR game that was released late in 2024 from developer Survios. As an FPS, it puts players behind the pulse rifle of Zula Hendricks, a former marine hardcore fans will recognize from other Alien properties, like Dark Horse Comics’ Aliens: Defiance series. Along with her synth companion Davis, she investigates a facility overrun by Xenomorphs. She’ll solve some puzzles along the way, and will begin to piece together exactly what went so wrong for this place to be overrun by aliens.
And, my goodness, is it flooded with Xenomorphs. Some of the scariest moments in the best Alien stories, like the original film, Alien: Romulus, and Alien: Earth, all feature a minute amount of Xenomorphs on screen, which makes sense. These are supposed to be unstoppable killing machines, and just one is capable of turning a squad of soldiers into a mess of blood and guts on its own.
Yet in Rogue Incursion, Zula has no problem shooting her way through gaggles of Xenomorphs. They’re no match for her pulse rifle, and are easily staggered in equal measure by her revolver. By the time Zula gets a shotgun and completes her arsenal, her biggest enemy is no longer the trio of Xenomorphs hanging from the ceiling above her; it’s making sure she has enough ammo to clear them out. (Which turned into a major frustration for the final boss fight, in which I ran around the arena just waiting for ammo to spawn.)
Xenomorphs climb out of vents, over walls, and on the ceilings, yet aren’t very speedy. Zula’s quick dodge is enough to avoid most swipes from a Xenomorph’s claws. And that’s if the Xenomorphs engage at all. The lacklust enemy AI means some Xenomorphs will just linger on walls or crawl around while being shot, making no effort to attack Zula.
Alien: Rogue Incursion isn’t straight-up horror like Alien: Isolation, but it can get a bit spooky. Though, when Xenomorphs catch Zula off guard, they’re less intimidating and more annoying. In fact, they’re liable to sneak up on Zula with a light shoulder tap than to tear her to shreds from behind.
During one sequence, I was solving an electrical wiring puzzle — of which there are many — and the screen flashed with darkness, indicating I had received damage. I disengaged the puzzle to see a Xenomorph next to me, shot it in the face a few times, and returned to the puzzle. A few seconds later, the same thing happened, and I downed the Xenomorph in the same spot, the first alien’s pool of acid blood barely cooled. I would have expected Zula to get violently murdered with her defenses relaxed in a situation like this, but really the Xenomorphs served as annoyances on my way to solving a rote puzzle.
It doesn’t help that the score ramps up whenever a Xenomorph spawns, whether the player has noticed it or not. Wandering the station’s dimly lit hallways, full of blood stains from the Xenomorphs’ victims, isn’t exactly unsettling if I know I’m safe as there’s no spooky score playing. And that gets at what’s dragging down Rogue Incursion: its Xenomorphs aren’t the organic threats they are in the films, stalking their prey until the right moment to strike. They’re programmed enemies who lack any bite. By making them weaklings and telegraphing the random encounters (that really should feel more random), Rogue Incursion does away with any frights that an Alien story should have.
Alien: Rogue Incursion is a fine FPS, though its lack of Alien’s signature frights hold it back from being great. Its marketing plays up how dangerous Xenomorphs are, with its launch trailer including the line, “If they reach Earth, humanity ends.” But, after about seven hours with Alien: Rogue Incursion, it seems as if humanity has one soldier with enough ammo, they’ll be all right. It’s billed as part one of a larger story, and ends on quite the cliffhanger, so perhaps those Xenomorphs will become as horrifying as they should be whenever part two lands.
Alien: Rogue Incursion Evolved Edition will be released Sept. 30 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, and Windows PC. The game was reviewed on PlayStation 5 using a prerelease download code provided by Survios. You can find additional information about Polygon’s ethics policy here.
