FoxNext Games is part of the Twentieth Century Fox Film and Fox Networks Group which owns many popular properties. Their Alien franchise has been through tremendous highs and lows over the years. While some films and games are stellar, others fall flat, or are somewhat divisive. Alien: Isolation garnered good reviews but it wasn't universally acclaimed. It's focus on pure horror was a highlight. Despite that, it's still the best Alien game out there mostly due to its focus on stealth and how it manages to build tension throughout its campaign.
The Alien films don't fare better either. The Aliens franchise started off strong, but then devolved into horrendous sequels like Alien3, Alien Resurrection, Alien vs. Predator, and Aliens vs. Predator: Requiem. Many of the concepts in these films were adapted in games but the mechanics didn't work that well. It's unclear if this was an issue with the development time or lack of expertise of the studios.
Cold Iron Studios is known for its expertise in massively multiplayer online (MMO) games, so this will be somewhat of a change for the developer. The team is comprised of industry veterans who coded for games like BioShock Infinite, Metroid Prime 3, and Neverwinter. It's unclear if the Alien game will also contain deep MMO features as the project is still in its infancy. The new "AAA" shooter is confirmed for PC and consoles so, barring any changes, gamers should expect it on an Xbox One relatively soon.
In a statement issued to the press alongside the new Alien game reveal, Aaron Loeb, President of Studios at FoxNext Games, said the following.
Cold Iron Studios has amazing design, craftsmanship and development talent that we are excited to welcome at FoxNext Games as we pursue our goal to build a multi-platform, multi-genre portfolio of great games. I am a personal fan of Cold Iron's previous work and all of us at FoxNext Games are thrilled to be working with them as they create an action-packed persistent world, steeped in the mysteries of this beloved Alien universe.
Here's hoping that the game lives up to expectations and is at least on the level of Alien: Isolation and not the panned Aliens: Colonial Marines. Aliens: Colonial Marines, to this day, is quite possibly the worst Alien game ever made, and one of the worst shooters ever made. However, only time will tell because nowadays gamers remember the Alien franchise's failures more than its triumphs. Cold Iron Studios have a daunting task ahead.
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