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Alien: Isolation runs on a proprietary engine that was built from scratch by Creative Assembly.cite-ref-18-things-14-5[14] Previously used in Viking: Battle for Asgard,cite-ref-clive-gratton-engine-talk-22-0[22] the engine was adapted to accommodate technical aspects such as the atmospheric and lighting effects and the Alien's behavioural design.cite-ref-18-things-14-6[14] The engine's deferred rendering allowed artists to place "hundreds" of dynamic lights in a scene and achieve great geometric detail.cite-ref-amd-gaming-23-0[23] A major toolchain update occurred six months into development. Although the new tools eventually improved workflow, they initially caused major disruptions because previous work had to be discarded or ported into the new tools, taking valuable development time away from the team.cite-ref-clive-gratton-engine-talk-22-1[22] The Alien was designed to look similar to H. R. Giger's original design, including the skull underneath its semitransparent head. However, the designers did alter its humanoid legs with recurved ones to provide the Alien a walk cycle that would hold up to scrutiny during longer encounters with the player.cite-ref-craveonline-article-24-0[24] Between 70 and 80 different sets of animation for the Alien were created.cite-ref-18-things-14-7[14] The Alien's artificial intelligence was programmed with a complex set of behavioural designs that slowly unlock as it encounters the player, creating the illusion that the Alien learns from each interaction and appropriately adjusts its hunting strategy.cite-ref-18-things-14-8[14] The gameplay designer Gary Napper said, "We needed something that would be different every time you played it. You're going to die a lot, which means restarting a lot, and if the Alien was scripted, you'd see the same behaviour. That makes the Alien become predictable, and a lot less scary."cite-ref-18-things-14-9[14] The save system was inspired by a scene in the film where Captain Dallas uses a key-card to access Nostromo's computer, Mother.cite-ref-gamasutra-save-system-9-1[9]

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