Ask anyone unfortunate enough to have found themselves on Sevastopol, and they'll tell you Alien: Isolation is one of the hardest, most terrifying horror games ever made. But it seems that the good folks down at Creative Assembly didn't think it was hard enough on release. In 2014, a brand new difficulty was patched in for hardcore fans to torture themselves with in the form of nightmare mode.

Players who are hardcore enough to brave this difficulty face a long and difficult journey with no maps, no HUD, and the Xenomorph constantly breathing down their neck. Enemies are tougher, smarter and Amanda Ripley has so little health she might as well be made of wet paper. It's a huge step up from hard mode, but with a few tricks and tips, you might just make it to the end in one piece.

10/10 Lockers Are Not Your Friends

Alien Isolation Screenshot Motion Tracker Inside Locker

On lower difficulties, hiding in a locker seems like the natural choice in a stressful situation: nowhere for the Alien to sneak up on you from, quick concealment, and a metal door between you and the threat. When you play on nightmare, throw those conceptions out the airlock.

If you hide in a locker on the hardest difficulty, the Xenomorphwill find you. Itwill catch your scent, and turn you into a meal. Your best friend in nightmare is movement, and if you stay still for too long you'll be a sitting duck. They may have been useful on normal mode, but here they might as well be renamed "lunch boxes" rather than lockers.

9/10 Loot More Than Ever Before

Alien Isolation Screenshot Player Holding Gun

One of the most notable changes in nightmare is item scarcity. Resources will be incredibly hard to come by on the hardest mode, and you'll need every advantage you can get. It may seem counterintuitive not to make a straight bee-line for your objective, but in nightmare difficulty, that's just a path to hardship.

Rifle through every container you come across and explore every nook and cranny. Each item you find is worth its weight in gold and just about as rare, and if you want to survive you'll need to make sure every room is cleared of goodies before moving on.

8/10 Don't Let The Alien Learn

Alien Isolation Xenomorph Stalking

Although using distractions such as noisemakers or flares may seem ideal to give yourself a breather, they aren't as helpful as you might think. On regular difficulties, the Alien is smart enough to figure out your tricks eventually. But in nightmare mode, it's a regular Harvard graduate.

Put simply, the more you use distractions, the quicker the Alien will learn to ignore them in lieu of chasing after the terrified snack throwing them down. And on the hardest difficulty, it learns fast. Don't be afraid to use them in a pinch, but they are by no means a long-term solution.

7/10 Use Your Environment

Alien Isolation Screenshot Airlock Door Environment

With little ammunition and a slim sliver of health, nightmare mode highly restricts your options when it comes to confrontation and stealth. But you can always count on the level itself to provide you with a few outs, and you'll need to be more aware of them than before. These aren't just limited to handy evasion spots like computer stations, either.

The hospital level, for instance, is chock full of explosive barrels - perfect for distracting or driving away the Xenomorph. Just about every area has some kind of feature or an environmental object that can help you out. Memorize where they are, and keep them in mind. It might just save your life.

6/10 Exploit The Food Chain

Alien Isolation Screenshot Xenomorph Jaws

If you're in an area with hostile human NPC's, dial the caution up to 11. On this difficulty, they have the accuracy of an Olympic shooting medallist and can easily take you down in one shot. Even worse, the noise they make is just as attractive to the Alien as yours is.

But if the Xenomorph is in hot pursuit, you might be in more luck than you think. If you're feeling brave enough to attract the predator to an area with human enemies, it won't hesitate to chow down on them. This not only removes hostiles without using up precious resources but it also distracts the Xenomorph with some appetizers.

5/10 Walk Your Way To Victory

Alien Isolation Screenshot Player Hiding Behind Desk

Sound management should be top of your list if you want to get to the end of nightmare mode. And whilst seemingly noisy interactions such as playing audio files might not attract attention, running definitely will. It might be faster, but the only destination is a coffin. Never run if you can help it.

Walking is your best option in nightmare mode. Crouched movement may make less noise, but it also makes you far too slow to effectively evade hostiles. Even though powerwalking your way through the space station may not exactly make Ellen Ripley proud, it's your best bet for not ending up as Xenomorph chow.

4/10 Be Fuel Efficient

Alien Isolation Screenshot Attacking With Flamethrower

Scarcity is the name of the game on the hardest difficulty, and your trusty flamethrower is at the heart of it. Not only is propane much rarer in this mode, but on nightmare the weapon eats up fuel like a 1960's muscle car. A single burst can use up more than 100 units of fuel, and it's less effective on the Xeno than usual.

Safe to say, you're no longer a one-woman fire team. With that in mind, it's best to save the flamethrower entirely for The Hive level in Sevastopol. It's pretty much mandatory to make use of it there if you want to survive, and you'll need as much propane as you can carry. Be smart - hoard that fuel.

3/10 Fear the Working Joe

Alien Isolation Screenshot Working Joe Android

Working Joe androids strike fear into the hearts of Alien: Isolation players no matter the difficulty. Having faced them on lower game modes, you might be tempted to try your luck in taking them out to try and secure an escape route. Simply put: don't.

In nightmare, getting grabbed by an android is pretty much instant death. And not only are Working Joes absolute powerhouses, but they also take a buttload of ammunition to kill. Even worse: the Xenomorph won't attack them. If you're interested in staying alive through Sevastopol, don't engage with these robotic nightmares.

2/10 Smoke Bombs Are King

Alien Isolation Screenshot Item Menu Smoke Bombs

A seldom-used item on lower difficulties, the humble smoke bomb is usually passed over for other options such as EMP's, flares, or noisemakers. But when you're on the hardest difficulty, they're an absolute lifesaver.

Need a safe place to save or craft? Throw down a smoke bomb. Need a quick escape from humans or androids? Smoke bomb. And even if the fog won't do much to stop the Xenomorph, throwing them down doesn't attract its attention anywhere near as much as other items. Get the blueprints for these little beauties as soon as you can.

1/10 Move, Move, Move

Alien Isolation Screenshot Hiding Under Desk

The biggest and most important tip for playing on nightmare difficulty is to spend as little time stationary as you can. At this level, the Xenomorph will constantly be hunting you, and staying still is a great way to get cornered.

This advice goes double when you're in a tense situation. Even though your gut reaction might be to stay still and hide whenever you hear the alien rattling around in the vents, keep your nerve. It's almost always better to make a beeline for your objective if the path seems clear.

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