In late 2005, Obsidian Entertainment was in the process of putting its final touches on Neverwinter Nights 2 when they received a call from Sega. Impressed with Obsidians work designing story-based role-playing games with a strong emphasis on player choice, Sega expressed its interested in having Obsidian develop a role playing game based on an original IP for them. Obsidian agreed to the offer, and in 2006, this title a third-person espionage-role-playing game which would become known as Alpha Protocol would begin development in rigor.
Sadly, much of Alpha Protocols development would be fraught with trouble, with Obsidians staff unable to define a clear direction for the game, and lacking experience designing stealth-based gameplay. However, in the midst of this, Obsidian would receive yet another offer from Sega. This time, Sega was interested in contracting the studios talents to develop a game based on one of the publishers more lucrative properties: the Alien franchise. While this game Aliens Crucible would ultimately end up being cancelled at Segas behest, what information that has emerged about the game in the years following its demise suggests that Obsidian Entertainment may have had something truly special on their hands. More than just an RPG in an Alien mold, Aliens Crucible would have featured a macabre return to the franchises horror roots bolstered by Obsidians expertise in crafting meaningful player choice, making for what could have been an enticing proposition for both fans of Obsidian Entertainment and the Alien franchise alike.
