So, I've completely missed out on deep space so for but, with the prices being quite low now, I'm think about getting into it. But I'm not sure whether to pick up the first or second game

You start at Dead Space, then stop after Dead Space.

If you're only going to get one, get the first, as it's better in pretty much every way. Both are quality games though.

Play Dead Space.

Play Dead Space 2 for the boot stomp. It's the best thing in video games ever.

So satisfying.

Redacted Dead Space... Redacted

They are both fantastic games but in different ways. Just start at Dead Space.

Dead Space 1

Frankly the spam bot threads are better than this. You start with the first game.

Start with the first one. If you enjoy it but want some more action with a little less horror get Dead Space 2.

If for some reason you want nothing but action, and bad action at that; Get Dead Space 3.

Ignore the side games.

Thaaaaaaat's ouuuuur Haaaaamst33333r! We'll be right back after this.

No but seriously, as everybody else is saying start with the first, it still holds up, is rather scary, has great atmosphere and is still a nice looking game. No reason to skip ahead to the others first. And then I guess if you like it keep going? DS2 is super pretty, a bit more action intensive but I still thought it had some good scares.
And I am the only human alive who liked DS3 apparently so at this point you might as well do the opposite of everything I'm saying. Skip Dead Space and go play RE4 instead!

As someone who played a good bit of the original Dead Space and played the first two hours of Dead Space 2 last night, I agree.

Play the first two. Never play 3 unless you love soul crushing disappointment.

Start with Dead Space, stop after Dead Space 2.

Dead Space 3 you could probably get some mileage out of but it does go to some pretty crazy places where if you're not at all invested in the story/world you'll probably just laugh and wonder why you paid money for it.

Why would you start anywhere but the first Dead Space?

Play Dead Space 1, then play Dead Space 1 three more times...

And then go play System Shock 2...

Start with the first, play the second after and then if you really must know what happens play 3, but I dont recommend it.

Ok cool, start with the first one. The simplest answers are always the best. I just wasn't sure whether the second game was better overall.

And I really wasn't planning on ever touching 3

Play the first one, then play the second, and then play 3. They are all fantastic games; the people who bitch about 3 are hugely exaggerating. It's not as good as the others, but it's still a lot of fun and it does semi-conclude the story arc of the first 2, even if that conclusion has some glaring flaws.

Play the first, then play the second one, then don't play the third one.

Play System Shock 2, then play System Shock 3, then, if you liked System Shock 3, play Dead Space 2.

Play DS then DS2. Both are great and I thought the second game was better than the first in a number of ways. I liked it the best of the trilogy. DS3 isn't near as bad as people are saying. If you like the series and the gameplay you'll like 3 also. Great stuff all around. Enjoy.

Pretty much.

Yeah. Dead Space and Dead Space 2 are both fantastic games, though a bit different in gameplay tone. The first is more RE4, the second is more RE5, if that makes any sense to you. Dead Space 3 is... okay? I paid $20 for it and I finished it but it wasn't memorable at all outside of the stupid bullshit they pulled with the plot.

You start at Dead Space. Then you don't play any more Dead Space. Oh, I guess I'm just copying @hamst3r.

Nah, maybe that's too harsh. At the time I really hated 2 but it's a pretty cool game all told. Just tonally different from the first in some major ways. I also heard that Wii light gun game was pretty good. I got 3 in that Origin Humble Bundle but haven't played it. I'm a little apprehensive, honestly.

Dead Space and Dead Space 2 are the video game equivalent of Alien and Aliens. Both games are awesome but also kind of different experiences.

EDIT: Dead Space 3 is also like Alien 3 in that its a disappointment compared to the first two but its a totally fine game in its own right.

The first Dead Space is my favorite. Dead space 2 was pretty good, but I remember it being more action-y and less moody/intense. I never played 3, and I don't intend to.

So yea, start with the first one. No reason not to.

I have 3 from that bundle, and haven't played the first two. Despite all the negativity towards it, I think I'll at least start playing 3 as a do-I-like-this-universe thing, and if I do, go back to the first one.

Start at the beginning of Dead Space and stop at the end of Dead Space.

Start with 3 because I am totally being sarcastic and you should start at 1 like a normal person.

Dead Space Extraction is a prequel that came out after the original Dead Space. It's a light gun game or guided experience that can be found on the Wii and PS3. It's pretty good too.

Enjoyed the 1st one way more. 2nd is alright but found the gameplay to be quite frustrating at times and the story to be mind-numbingly dumb (not that the original's story was particularly good). 2 just tries way to hard to tell one but fails so miserably. Showing and letting Isaac speak was a terrible decision. No clue about the 3rd.

Start with Dead Space, then play Dead Space 2, then play Dead Space 3. They're all great games that you should form your own opinion of.

Personally, I rank the series Dead Space > Dead Space 3 > Dead Space 2. But obviously I'm a crazy person and a terrible human being for liking that giant piece of garbage Dead Space 3. It has human enemies and cleavage, so it must be shit. The internet says it is, so it's probably best not to play it yourself and form your own opinion.

Play the first and second then grab a buddy and play the third. The weapon system in that game is great, it's good fun.

@panelhopper: First one is still the truest to movies like Alien or Event Horizon. Second one is great too. The third game is not as terrible as everyone makes it out to be but it's not as good as the first two.

You could play Dead Space Extraction, which is an ok prequel light gun game, that takes place before the first Dead space game. After that it should be fairly obvious where to go from there.

But necromorph planet.

You're definitely going to want to play the first one. The second one has some high points too, I like it quite it bit. I haven't actually played Dead Space the Third. I've heard it's silly. I'll play it eventually.

The first two were both great. The second had a bit more action to it, but the people who act like it was a different experience clearly hadn't played the two closely enough together to remember them properly. Truth is, they're both kind of action oriented horror games. There's just as many rooms that lock all the doors and make you fight a couple waves of monsters in the first game as there is in the second.

And if you want a comparable experience to playing Dead Space 3, I suggest getting a shoe box filling it with razor blades, soaking it with lemon juice, and then fucking it.

The story is kind of silly, but it takes itself seriously and that's totally fine. I was willing to look past that it was basically the same arc that had happened in DS2 (guess what? These marker folks are fucking nuts!), and that they just manufactured a villain out of nowhere for the sake of conflict. And that any happenstance stumble toward interesting narrative development was quickly fucked off with a cheap death or a really unsatisfying conclusion - including the major through-line of the entire game. And that the environmental shift means nothing after a hour because you just end up walking about corridors that might as well be on space ships - some of which somehow even have zero gravity areas. And that EA had dollar signs in their eyes and forced in a way to attempt to snatch change from the player's pockets during a single player experience (hint: it's really easy to exploit their own terrible checkpoint system to completely dismantle the game economy). Willing to overlook all of that, the game, when it comes down to it, is miserable to play. The combat is so dreadfully fucking terrible, that each time I entered one of its profoundly predictable arenas I asked myself "how badly do I really want to finish this game?" It wasn't worth it. I wish for all that is good and holy in this world that I could have that time back. Or, I would gladly give up double that amount of my life to return to my naivety before playing Dead Space 3, thinking that this could possibly be one of few great science fiction trilogies of our day.

@hatking: When people mention the "actiony- ness" of the dead space sequels I think their more referring to the atmosphere.

I agree, Dead Space 2 is similar in combat (although to be fair it handles weapon systems better and does give you more reason to use other weapons than the plasma cutter). I don't know, though. I mean... I thought the atmosphere was pretty similar in 2 as well. The only real difference was Isaac has a voice now. It worked fine for me.

Dead Space 3 doesn't exist, though (in truth I have played part of Dead Space 3 but it crashes a lot so I haven't been able to finish it. Also... its been awful from what I have played of it. Even the boot stomp feels wrong).

There is a tonal shift in the first two. But I don't think they play differently. And I don't think the tonal shift is jarring or out of place either. Similar to the shift in the Alien series from Alien to Aliens, though not exactly in the same way. You're still relatively isolated and alone throughout Dead Space 2. It's just that it was an inhabited environment, at one time. Anyway, I love the first two games. They'd probably tie somewhere on my top ten list for favorite games of this past console cycle.

Yeah, the boot stomp is different. Not nearly as effective. The guns are also weaker, or the enemies are just sponges. Whatever it is, everything is really unsatisfying. It's not difficult either. The enemies basically have two tactics, run at you and flail or hide on a wall and shoot shit at you. Neither are particularly effective at what they do. And it just ends up being ten minutes of back peddling and shooting legs over and over again. They also throw way more things at you during any one encounter. By the end of the game I was actually relieved any time I was just fighting the humans. At least with them I can count on headshots to expedite the horrible gameplay.

Edit: It also doesn't help they're using the same tricks they've been using since the first game. I'm wise to your elevator vent bullshit and fake corpse ruse you seem so fond of, Dead Space.

Just start at DS1 and go from there. They're all awesome.

Dead Space 1. Just prepare for it to go downhill with 3. Actually don't play 3. Better.

The original Dead Space is still the best in my opinion.

Dead Space 1 and 2 are both great! Can't say much about 3 because I didn't finish it but those other two are worth playing, especially if you have a good pair of headphones.

Dead Space goes downhill after the first game. The second while is pretty, it never gets as intense or claustrofobic as the first one. So as a fan of the franchise, I say the best is only playing the first and replaying it, and cherishing it, as it is the best Dead Space game.

Start with Tennis for Two, and work your way through the history of video games until you finish Dead Space 2, then reflect upon all you have experienced. After you've achieved enlightenment, play Dead Space 3 for shits and giggles.

First one, then second one, then stop.

@artelinarose: actually yeah that makes perfect sense, as I really like RE4. This series just seemed like a good place to start dipping my toes in to more horror games, a genre I generally avoid.