So did anyone else kinda get upset that Patrick said that the Alien in the new Alien Isolation game isn't around for the first 90 minutes, and that they just keep building tension?

Though it may seem trivial for me to say, upon me playing it I will never get that opportunity to feel that "When's it gonna happen?" tension due to this. It's kind of a spoiler to me. I mean, I could just be complaining a taaaaad too much, but I like the element of surprise, and as a game I looked forward to, a bit of it was taken away from me without so much as even a warning.

For the record, I love Patrick. He is insightful and a charming personality in the Giantbomb universe. I just feel that sometimes he gets so excitable at these things, he forgets that we like to experience the mystery of discovery as well.

Thanks for reading duders.

You make a fair point, and have also just done to me what Patrick did to you.

You should maybe give a spoiler warning, since that's what you're complaining about.

In a way I agree, but a bunch of the reviews I read mentioned this.

Actually, it didn't even register in my mind as something to fixate on until you mentioned it. Like all spoilers, it isn't a spoiler until its given context by someone who considers it a spoiler.

Seconded about the spoiler warning. I hadn't heard that yet, so now it was you that I heard it from. So yes, it is very frustrating, and I will agree with you about that because I am kinda upset like you, but at you.

@vegetashonor: Dude please edit your post and use the spoiler function in your original post.

You just totally spoiled the game for me too :(

This thread is a worse spoiler than the reviews since it's not even tagged with the game =( please add a spoiler warning.

Edit: I also had the same problem with Amnesia, actually. It was scary at first until someone told me that the first few encounters are scripted / mostly on a fixed path, and then the beginning isn't as scary anymore. =(

He lied about it to create false expectations that are going to be subverted.

There, I fixed the problem.

Man, I haven't and probably won't play this game, but this thread is hilarious. How many times has it been mentioned by Jeff et al that something isn't really a spoiler till somebody yells spoiler?

Maybe it's just me, but it seems like a lot of people are way too sensitive about spoilers. Its getting kind of ridiculous how often the definition of a spoiler changes. It started out as avoiding critical plot details, and now it's something like this.

As someone who is pretty sensitive to spoilers, and likes to play older games, I definitely feel your pain in this thread (even though Alien: Isolation is most definitely not my bag.)

I think the GB crew, and games writers in general, are too loose with the spoilers for a couple reasons. 1) They have time to play the new stuff when it comes out, at least if they're interested in it (and rarely play older stuff.) 2) They play so much stuff that even if one game has a little bit spoiled its no big deal. A videogame session is not a treat for them. And many of their friends/colleagues are the same.

They just don't get what it's like to have limited gaming time and really be looking forward to a game, only to have a big chunk of the surprise/tension spoiled for you.

Like when I found out that at the end of Mass Effect 3 you learn that the Reapers are just an elaborate prank played on Shepard to get him/her to come to a surprise party. I would never have seen that coming if it hadn't been spoiled for me.

Ditto...

@vegetashonor: I edited your thread title - vague titles like the one you had "I've been stewing about this all weekend" or something similar to that are so unclear that they force the reader to click on your topic just to find out what they're about. I also put this in the Alien: Isolation forum.

I also put a spoiler block in your original post because not only did you do exactly the same thing that you're complaining Patrick did, but you also put this topic in freaking General Discussion and didn't mark it as having anything to do with Alien: Isolation whatsoever, so all of your readers were greeted with a nice big Isolation spoiler right in the first line of your post.

Feel free to edit your topic title again, but please at least make it descriptive of the thread's contents. Thanks.

I've seen people say they've finished the game in just north of 10 hours and some who say they took upwards of 25. What he said probably doesn't mean as much as you're thinking it does.

I sympathize with the OP, but I do feel if a person is going on a video game site to listen to people discuss a game, they need to keep in mind that everyone has their own definition of spoilers. At least it's not Brad "Hey, can I just say this one little thing that happened at the end of the game?" Shoemaker (luv ya Brad).

Personally, I don't care, because like Drew with Metal Gear, I'm not going to remember these things when I actually play the game. I don't have a PS4/Xbox One yet, so I'm knee-deep in last-gen backlog.

@rongalaxy: This seems way worse to me than some random plot spoilers. Tension is one of the core elements of horror games that people enjoy, and according to Patrick this is one of the best parts of the game for that. But the spoiler that he gives essentially negates the entire experience. It's sort of a unique situation for the genre. It's like if a spoiler for DMC3 could make it so that for the first 90 minutes of the game, the only thing you could do is mash on one attack button.

@vegetashonor: I'm with you on this. The fact that reviewers besides him and spilling that out as well is just infuriating. It ruins the tension and it shouldn't be up to the reviewer to make that decision to just spoil the first hour and a half of a game for people. Especially one whose sole element is the tension.

I just wanted to apologize about not including my potential spoiler in my post. It didn't even cross my mind to put a block on it until after the fact. My fault guys.

I understand your pain, but don't people who are sensitive to spoilers actively attempt to avoid them?

Hmm yeah I can totally understand where you are coming from. Its still more vague than a confirmation of the exact moment in which the Alien reveals itself and also whose to say how accurate an approximation that time really is. Different people will undoubtedly reach that moment at different paces. Still it would have been better to keep even rough approximations more vague to keep from spoiling people's expectations.

Did Patrick come round your house and shout this through a window? Or did you hear it on something you shouldn't be listening to if you're so sensitive?

Kiddo back in my day spoilers actually meant somethin'. Playing as Raiden, Snape kills Dumbledore, the Titanic sinks, etc. This barely qualifies

On the one hand, the video did say it would contains discussions about the game so perhaps you should have considered the possibility of spoilers being unveiled.

However, on the other hand, there was no warning and seeing as the game has just been released you would think Patrick would keep the conversation spoiler free.

The bigger question is whether he considered what he said to be a spoiler or was just giving open criticism. Either way, I side with the OP. This game is all about tension and suspense. It could be an honest mistake so I won't slate the guy. He has been known to do this before (I believe on the GOTY podcasts) so perhaps he needs to understand the sensitivity of his audience.

Anyways, hope you still enjoy the game!

At some point you need to be able to talk about the game and that means revealing some information.

If you're spoiled by anything on the GOTY podcasts then that is on you considering the warning they give on it.

Sure, I see where you're coming from with that. In a horror game you can totally ruin the fun by giving away all the scares (or lack thereof, killing any tension instead).

But you gotta expect someone discussing a scary game to actually talk about the scary parts. If you want a short "it was good" or "it was bad", just look at review scores until you play the game for yourself.

In any case, at least now you know what to look out for (or avoid, as the case may be) when reading/listening about scary games.

@mechakirby: The Titanic sank 102 years ago. You must be super old.

In what Giant Bomb feature did the spoiler occur? Atleast I can avoid that video or podcast like the plague until I have actually played the game myself.

Fuck, really? Pre-order canceled.

I dont care about this game and i generally think all the whine about spoilers all the time is stupid. In this podcast however Patrick specificly talks a long time about why this matters so much for the game experience and at the same time he spoils it without a warning. This uncensored thread on top of it is just hilarious :D

@castiel in the scoops and wolf podcast.

@vegetashonor: Honestly, you just shot yourself in the foot. You can hardly blame Patrick for something like this when you did the EXACT SAME THING.

@sethphotopoulos: in that case I stand corrected. I was thinking of another occasion clearly.

How can you people come into a thread called "Patrick spoiled the game for me" without expecting to be spoiled? Or was the thread title altered?

@abendlaender:

@abendlaender: The thread title was altered and the OPs text was altered with a spoiler tag by @mb so that the OP didn't do that thing he's complaining about to everyone who comes into the thread.

That's the kind of thing I would be upset to hear if I was so excited for a game that I really wanted to experience it pure, but then I would have avoided reading/watching anything about it. I'd maybe just look at the scores it's gotten. If I was that excited I'd probably be buying it anyway!

I would expect to hear about something like this from a review so I wouldn't complain about it and that's why I'd avoid them if I wanted that purity.

This thread is hilarious.

Everything is a spoiler to someone.

I just wish people who discuss games on podcasts would just give a heads up and discuss games in depth. I hate handicapped discussions for fear of spoiling it to someone, specially since most games aren't revisited for more in depth discussions.

The onus is on the listener to avoid spoilers.

Meh. If you don't want spoilers on games you should avoid coverage on it (like first 30 mins/quick looks etc)

I actualy chuckled after realizing the op just did the same thing he was complaining about to other users a few hours ago.

kinda a obvious spoiler too, extremely common method for building tension that's been done similarly in other GOOD aliens games

agreed ... if you are that sensitive about "spoilers" don't listen to discussions about any game.

How do you put spoiler tags in on mobile? I've been trying and trying to figure it out.

"At some point" - does that mean before the game is even out?

I'd been avoiding this thread in fear of being reminded of the spoiler in question, but it's really not that bad. It's a staple of both the Alien series and horror films in general to have nothing happen in the opening act.

I guess absolutely no information on what you're purchasing to determine wether or not it's for you is the preferred method.

Yep, it's either spoil the game for me or don't tell me a single word of what you think of it, nothing inbetween... genius.

What is a good amount of non-spoilery information for this game then?

I think it's a very individual matter for everyone. For me personally, what Patrick revealed isn't really a huge deal. At the same time I can understand some people like to go into games knowing relatively little and wanting to experience every last detail for themselves. I can completely respect that point of view as there have been times when I've had to stop myself from watching trailers so that all the cool moments wouldn't be spoiled for me in-game. All I can say is, if you're one of these detail sensitive people it's probably a good idea to tune out during any conversation about a game you're really interested in playing. It's not a perfect solution but it's not a perfect world. Some folk don't mind a bit of spoilers and in fact want to hear a lot of details pertaining to the game in order to make up their mind whether they'll buy it or not - and you won't be able to please both groups at the same time.