'Part of the motive was making the player feel immersed in the experience and exposed' Rebellion says '90s cassette futurism' inspired Alien Deathstorm with an engineer protagonist who 'felt like a natural fit'

Date:
Sat, 12 Sep 2026 02:00:00 +0000

Description:
Rebellion has revealed the influences behind Alien Deathstorm and explained why it chose an engineer protagonist for its first-person survival horror game.

FULL STORY ======================================================================Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Threads Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter Subscribe to our newsletter Alien Deathstorm head of design Ben Fisher says the game's engineer protagonist "felt like a natural fit" in the game's environment and narrative He says Rebellion wanted to match an interesting character with "interesting mechanics" and landed on an engineer Producer Martin Willingham says "the motive was making the player feel immersed in the experience and exposed" Rebellion has revealed the influences behind Alien Deathstorm and explained why it chose an engineer protagonist
for its first-person survival horror game.

In an interview with TechRadar Gaming at Gamescom, producer Martin Willingham and head of design Ben Fisher shared that the team was, of course, inspired
by the iconic Alien movies, but also looked at the broader influence of "90s cassette futurism" to create "that gritty, grounded sci-fi atmosphere." "A
lot of the tone came from our own 2008 comic series as well," Fisher said. "That kind of broad, pulpy, accessible sci-fi storytelling." Latest Videos From TechRadar Watch full video here:

When discussing the intention behind having Deathstorm 's protagonist be a protagonist instead of a typical soldier, Willingham explained that the
studio wanted to find an interesting character that matched "interesting mechanics," and an engineer "felt like a natural fit."

The perspective also enabled Rebellion to "explore the elements of the
sandbox gameplay," and an engineer working to diagnose the problems within a dangerous environment surrounded by monsters worked well. You may like Rebellion says Alien Deathstorm is a 'dynamically generated' survival horror game with sandbox elements and 'not another corridor shooter' 'It's a rare beast' 'If we stuck with the silent protagonist method, we wouldn't be able
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"So part of the motive was making the player feel immersed in the experience and exposed," Fisher said, "because if you're an engineer trying to survive
in that situation, you're less trained than a space marine or something like that [or] some kind of future soldier.

"You're going to feel more at threat. So it amplifies that feeling of being isolated, doing the best in a difficult situation." Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over.

While that's one aspect, the developer also said that the other is the added "moments of anticipation" that come with the engineer role, like the build-up you get in a horror experience while trying to complete your objective.

"You've got to slow down and observe the space, so you're not just rushing to the next objective," he added. "You're actually getting immersed in the experience, and that means that when you start hearing the roar of a distant alien, that split of attention builds up a whole load of anticipation and a load of fear."

Alien Deathstorm launches in Spring 2027 for PlayStation 5 , Xbox Series X , Series S , and PC. Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button! The best gaming consoles All the best consoles of this generation

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Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/gaming/part-of-the-motive-was-making-the-player-feel -immersed-in-the-experience-and-exposed-rebellion-says-90s-cassette-futurism-i nspired-alien-deathstorm-with-an-engineer-protagonist-who-felt-like-a-natural- fit


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