On the 10-year anniversary of Alien: Isolation’s release, developer Creative Assembly has confirmed that a sequel is in development.
In a statement marking the survival horror classic’s 10th birthday, creative director Al Hope said the development team would share more details “when we’re ready.”
Hope returns to lead development on the sequel having done so on the first game. In his statement published to X/Twitter, Hope said: “On the 10th anniversary, it seems only fitting to let you know that we have heard your distress calls loud and clear.
“Today, I’m delighted to confirm, on behalf of the team, that a sequel to Alien: Isolation is in early development. We look forward to sharing more details with you when we’re ready.”
That’s all we have for now. We don’t have a final title for the game, a release window, or target launch platforms. Given the sequel is in early development, it will probably be some time before we find out what to expect and get our first look.
For now though, there’s genuine excitement from Alien: Isolation fans, many of whom had called on Creative Assembly and owner Sega to greenlight a sequel ever since the first game came out. But its existence does come as something of a surprise; Alien: Isolation sold one million copies within three months of going on sale, then 2.11 million after six months, which was not enough for Sega to have considered it a commercial success.
“Alien: Isolation 2 is not out of the question,” then Creative Assembly studio director Tim Heaton told GamesIndustry.biz in late 2015, “because we’re so proud of it and there’s possibly more to be said. But do we really want to be spending very significant amounts of money, and getting close to break-even or just about in the black? That’s not where Sega wants to be, when we have a brilliant portfolio of other games that do great business.”
IGN recently revisted Alien: Isolation for the 10-year anniversary, exploring why the 2014 horror game is just as impactful now as when it launched. “It’s an unforgettable feat of video game design that has successfully endured the test of time, and – like the 1979 film from which it burst forth – will undoubtedly still hold up after another decade has passed,” we said. “Today, on its 10th anniversary, Alien: Isolation remains a singular, extraordinary experience.”
It’s been a difficult time for Creative Assembly in recent years, with the cancelation of live service shooter Hyenas, Total War: Pharaoh’s failure to find an audience, and a significant round of layoffs coming hot on the heels of a studio apology for the various missteps it had made with Total War: Warhammer 3 DLC.
However, the UK studio still has plenty in the works in addition to the Alien: Isolation sequel. Creative Assembly is reportedly also working on a Total War Star Wars video game, one of three new Total War games in development. Total War fans have called on Creative Assembly to give a Star Wars game a shot for years, although there are equally vociferous calls for the studio to follow its Warhammer trilogy of Total War games with a similar effort for Warhammer 40,000.
As for Alien, the franchise is on the up after the release of ‘interquel’ Alien: Romulus, which made over $300 million at the global box office. Alien: Earth, the FX TV series that takes place just before 2012’s Prometheus, comes out in 2025.
Wesley is the UK News Editor for IGN. Find him on Twitter at @wyp100. You can reach Wesley at wesley_yinpoole@ign.com or confidentially at wyp100@proton.me.