In space, no one can hear you tilt — Alien (Pro) from Heighway Pinball is a modern licensed machine that brings the terror of the Ridley Scott and James Cameron films to a sleek, LCD-equipped four-player. Designed by Dave Sanders with a David Thiel soundtrack, it’s the flagship title from the ambitious British boutique manufacturer Heighway, and it packs a Xenomorph head, a pair of facehuggers, twin magnets, and a genuinely tense, atmospheric feel that honors its horror-sci-fi source.
The strategy leans into the survival-horror theme. The launch-button shotgun counts as a hit on the Xenomorph — so the clever move is to get the Xeno multiball ready and then hold the shotgun in reserve as a ball save, a satisfying bit of resource management straight out of the movies. There’s real reward in the skill shots, too: hitting three different skill shots across your three balls banks a hefty five million, which can be huge in competition. Working the orbits is central, since those shots advance the lifecycle multiballs, build combos, and progress toward the sentry gun multiball, giving a strategic player a clear throughline to chase.
Alien is a standout of the modern boutique era, a machine that proved the smaller manufacturers could deliver genuine quality and atmosphere to rival the big houses. Its moody LCD presentation and Thiel’s unnerving sound design make it a uniquely immersive experience. For the collector who loves both the films and the plucky underdog manufacturers pushing pinball forward, it’s a real prize. Save your shotgun, work the orbits, and survive the hive. In this machine, staying alive is the whole terrifying point.