FoxNext Making New ‘Alien’ Shooter Game With Cold Iron Studios

It’s been more than three years since the last time a video game based on the “Alien” film franchise was released but it looks like a new one is on its way. FoxNext, a division of 21st Century Fox, has acquired Cold Iron Studios to develop a new “Alien” game.

“Cold Iron Studios has amazing design, craftsmanship and development talent that we are excited to welcome at FoxNext Games as we pursue our goal to build a multi-platform, multi-genre portfolio of great games,” president of studios at FoxNext Games Aaron Loeb said in the press release, as per Dual Shockers.

“I am a personal fan of Cold Iron’s previous work and all of us at FoxNext Games are thrilled to be working with them as they create an action-packed persistent world, steeped in the mysteries of this beloved ‘Alien’ universe.”

FoxNext said that its acquisition of Cold Iron Studios represents its commitment to deliver new AAA games moving forward. The company didn’t share any major information about the new “Alien” game, but it did describe the new AAA title as a shooter for consoles and the PC.

Cold Iron Studios was founded back in 2015 by former Cryptic Studios developers, including Craig Zinkievich, Shannon Posniewski and Matt Highison, according to Polygon. Cryptic Studios is mostly known for “Neverwinter,” “Star Trek Online” and “City of Heroes,” which were all massive multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPG).

“We believe in FoxNext’s vision and we are thrilled about the opportunity to explore an amazing and rich universe,” Zinkievich said. “Our background in building online worlds and taking established franchises to the next level in interactive entertainment is a precise fit with our product roadmap ahead; we can’t wait to share more information soon.”

The new “Alien” game was only described as a shooter, but it wasn’t specifically stated that it would feature online multiplayer. However, seeing that Cold Iron Studios specializes in MMORPG, there’s a possibility that the new “Alien” game might feature elements from this type of gameplay. The studio did say that the new game will “explore areas of the universe fans haven’t got to experience.”

The studio has already hired talents from the teams behind “Borderlands,” “BioShock Infinite,” “Doom” and “Metroid Prime 3.” Even if the new “Alien” game isn’t an MMORPG, the studio is certainly now capable of making a shooter based on the film franchise.

“FoxNext Games seeks to make games as important a part of Fox's business as movies and television,” Loeb told GamesIndustry.biz. “Games will be the defining entertainment medium of this century, in our view.”

The last game released based on the film franchise was 2014’s “Alien: Isolation,” which was developed by Creative Assembly and published by Sega. Although the game had disappointing sales, it was lauded for being an immersive survival horror game that embraced the original “Alien” film’s atmosphere.