Alien: Isolation gets free tools for entirely new levels, and modders can build them from scratch
Alien: Isolation modders can now build entirely new levels for the survival-horror game using OpenCAGE 1.0, a free community-made toolkit that has reached its first full release after years of development.
The release adds tools for creating custom environments, importing animations and sounds, and testing changes in the running game. It also includes a mod manager for packaging creations and installing those made by other players.
OpenCAGE is free to download on Steam, but there is a catch: you need to own and install Alien: Isolation separately. The toolkit is a hobby project by Matt Filer and is not affiliated with developer Creative Assembly or publisher Sega.
The toolkit includes tools for working with character animations. Image: Matt Filer / OpenCAGE
The toolkit goes beyond changing existing rooms
Announcing version 1.0, Filer said the tools now support building custom levels from scratch. Creators can also work with the game's scripts, models, textures and character behaviour, which opens the door to more ambitious changes than swapping individual assets.
A 3D viewport lets creators navigate a level and manipulate objects, while script flowgraphs expose the logic behind events. The new Live Link feature can show supported changes in the running game, helping modders test their work without treating every edit as a finished release.
There is a lot here for people interested in the Alien's behaviour too. The toolkit includes editors for behaviour trees and configuration settings, though using those tools still requires a creator to understand and test the changes they make.
OpenCAGE 1.0 includes a 3D viewport and live editing tools. Image: Matt Filer / OpenCAGE
Installing and sharing creations
The new mod manager can import packages, handle conflicts across installed mods and revert changes to the original game files, according to the project's changelog. Creators can choose which changes go into a package before distributing it.
Live Link works with the Steam, GOG and Epic Games Store versions of Alien: Isolation, the changelog says. The OpenCAGE documentation offers guides for making and installing mods, so the tools are useful both for creators and for players who eventually want to try their work.
This release is a set of tools rather than a promise that new campaigns are already available. New levels and other mods still need to be built and shared by their creators. For players who want another reason to return to Sevastopol, the important change is that the community now has a broader set of ways to make those projects.
