Avoiding detection in Aliens: Dark Descent can mean the difference between success and failure, where survival is sometimes about stealth tactics over going in guns blazing. Aliens: Dark Descent is Tindalos Interactive's single-player, squad-based RTS game, where players must strategize their movements across various map locations on the planet Lethe to survive the hunting alien xenomorphs. Fortunately, some handy Aliens: Dark Descent stealth gameplay tips can help players avoid detection and beat the aliens in their cat-and-mouse game.
Enemy detection is a core feature that also links closely to Aliens: Dark Descen t's other gameplay mechanics, like Alien Aggressiveness, making it perhaps one of the most complex Aliens franchise video games. Although players may have their preferred playstyle, avoiding detection is often crucial and can help save a lot of squad patch-ups and repeat mission trips.
Aliens: Dark Descent Enemy Detection Time
Aliens: Dark Descent's enemy detection time is related to how quickly aliens detect a player's squad. The text UI on the top-right of the screen indicates whether the player is detected or undetected. Players can initially encounter an enemy while undetected. There is a short detection delay, represented by a yellow line, before the alien spots the player in its field of vision. When spotted, the line turns red and the aliens will attack. Enemy detection time adjusts according to the game difficulty level players choose when starting the game, so is much faster on harder difficulty modes.
Noise And Detection In Aliens: Dark Descent
Gunfire or other alien-killing strategies produce noise in Aliens: Dark Descent, another crucial survival consideration. Noise risks attracting more enemies to its source location, so avoiding enemy detection also becomes important after enemy encounters. The game's Alien Aggressiveness meter is also gradually rising, so encountering or avoiding enemies plays a part in how quickly it can move to the next Aggressiveness stage. Moving quickly and quietly is generally the way to go, killing enemies where necessary while taking steps to avoid detection.
Aliens Dark Descent Stealth Gameplay Tips To Avoid Detection
There are a few Aliens: Dark Descent tips players can follow to help avoid enemy detection to aid their mission success:
Weld Doors Shut
The Aliens: Dark Descent map helpfully highlights rooms with only one exit via the green shelter icon where players can make a safe zone. Not only do these make ideal rest locations for Marines to reduce stress - they can also be handy locations to avoid patrolling enemies by welding doors to stop aliens from getting through. For instance, in the Dead Hills mission, players find an incapacitated human while aliens stalk nearby. Although welding doors costs resources, it can give valuable breathing time while the squad performs other activities.
Crouch To Use Cover
The Aliens: Dark Descent prologue introduces players to crouching for cover as Administrator Hayes hides from a Xenomorph drone. This strategy can be crucial to stay out of the alien's line of sight while using the map and motion tracker to plan the next move. To crouch, press the right button on the D-pad if using an Xbox controller. However, squads can only crouch behind some environmental objects, as marked by the green squares on the floor.
Use Decoys Like Deployable Motion Trackers And Sentry Guns
Players can deploy motion trackers as one of their squad skills to help detect and track aliens. However, clicking on a deployed motion tracker on the map triggers it to overload, attracting the aliens' attention which runs straight for it. It's a helpful decoy strategy for when players need to free up parts of the map from patrolling aliens. Players can also use sentry guns to attract aliens' attention away from Marines.
Aliens: Dark Descent is available to play now on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox Series S/X, and Xbox One.