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    Dead Space

    Game » consists of 13 releases. Released Oct 14, 2008

    Engineer Isaac Clarke battles a polymorphic virus-like alien infestation that turns human corpses into grotesque undead alien monsters called "Necromorphs" while trying to survive on board an infested interstellar mining ship named the USG Ishimura.

    electricboogaloo's Dead Space (Xbox 360) review

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    You'd definitely hear me scream in space

    EA has decided to buck the trend this year; a company so used to spewing out sequels is now concentrating on starting new franchises, and EA Redwood Shores latest, Dead Space, has all the ingredients to become another big hit. With an animated comic book and animated movie already released, the markers have been firmly set; now it’s time for the game to deliver. So far, it’s on the right track. So few survival horror games throw you into space to fight aliens, that’s normally action territory; and while Dead Space is probably more action than horror, it effectively combines the two together to create something astonishing.

    You take on the role of Isaac Clarke, an engineer sent out with his crew to answer a distress call from the massive deep space mining ship, the USG Ishimura. They think they’re being sent to fix a routine mechanical failure, but it’s never that simple. Upon arriving they find the crew dead with the majority turned into alien life forms known as Necromorphs. Dead Space takes a lot of influences from classic horror movies such as John Carpenter’s The Thing, Event Horizon and Alien, and this is none more obvious than with the Necromorphs. They still maintain some of their human features, but they’re vile creatures that manage to get even more grotesque as the game goes on. The designs are outlandish and highly inventive which just makes it a lot more enjoyable to blow them up. They come in all shapes and sizes and you’ll need to adapt different strategies to defeat each one. It manages to keep you on your toes as you never know what kind of foe you’ll be dealing with next.

    The Necromorphs are also a lot harder to kill than your average enemy. They cannot be killed by conventional methods, so headshots are out of the question; instead you’ll need to resort to using Strategic Dismemberment. This is the process of incapacitating enemies by shooting off their limbs or alien tentacles. Each enemy has a different area to attack so you’ll need to differentiate your methods for each fight. The starting enemies can be taken down by shooting off their legs to drop them to the floor, and then finishing them off from there; whilst others will require a lot more thought, but I won’t spoil that here.

    Strategic Dismemberment is what separates Dead Space from other shooters and gives it an identity of its own. It’s an excellent gameplay mechanic that changes the way you’re used to playing, especially in regards to the usual headshot dynamic we’ve become accustomed to over the years with survival horrors.

    Of course it’s difficult for Isaac to get his hands on conventional weaponry anyway. Being an engineer as part of a deep space mining operation he has access to many powerful mining tools; these can cut through solid rock, so using them on flesh would be the logical thing to do. There are plenty to chose from, each coming with a secondary fire option. You’ll spend most of your time with the default weapon, but it’s perhaps the most effective. The secondary fire lets you switch between vertical and horizontal shooting, and using the two is essential for most of the enemies.

    To pack a much bigger punch you can also upgrade your weapons at one of the many work bench’s spread around the Ishimura. You’ll find power nodes around the ship and then the work bench lets you apply it to different categories such as damage, capacity and reload speed. You can also upgrade your suit and stasis and kinesis modules. Stasis lets you slowdown objects and enemies for a short amount of time, proving handy when dealing with foes or environmental puzzles and kinesis is very similar, allowing you to pick up objects instead.

    You’ll want to upgrade your suit to take less damage, but also to give Isaac more air time. There are many points in Dead Space where you’ll need to venture out onto the hull of the ship, giving Isaac a short amount of time before he suffocates. These section speed up the game, and can get pretty frantic when dealing with enemies and floating debris, although it doesn’t quite compare to the excellent zero gravity sections. Here you’ll need to jump around the environment to reach your goal, whilst the Necromorph will also float after you. It shakes the usual gameplay up a bit, and it’s amazing to look at. You’ll see drops of blood floating in the atmosphere along with decapitated heads and other human limbs. Just trying to figure out a path up along the ceiling and walls is a puzzle within itself.

    Dead Space is a stunning game to look at, the lighting and shadow effects are phenomenal, adding to the creepy and tense atmosphere aboard the ship. There are some aliasing issues with shadows on Isaac’s suit, but it’s not noticeable enough to detract from the experience, and the rest of the ship is superbly lit with ominous shadows that will keep you guessing what’s up ahead. Some sections of the Ishimura - especially those with views out into space - are simply awe inspiring, and it really catches that sense of claustrophobia even though it‘s huge. Dead Space may not get the recognition it deserves because of the vast amount of top quality games being released at the moment, but it’s definitely one of the best looking games ever seen.

    Saying that, the audio manages to surpass even the stunning visuals. Necromorphs will move around the ship via vents and the sound does a brilliant job of freaking you out as you hear them rustling all around, never knowing where they’re going to pop out; they’re shrieking cries adding to the freight. However, the stand out moments comes when you’re outside the ship, as sound becomes muffled as if you were under water. Isaac’s yells echo within his suit, and enemies are almost inaudible. It adds a new dimension as you can barely hear what’s around you until it’s right behind you ready to rip its claws into your back; now we know what Alien was on about.

    Put simply, Dead Space has production values out of this world. Everything comes together to create a cohesive experience that can match up to any of the best survival horrors of recent years.

    It does, however, have its bad points. They’re few and far between, but they are there. One of the main gripes is with the amount of backtracking you’re forced to do. It makes sense in the context of the story, but with a ship as big as the Ishimura you would expect to visit brand new locations on every mission. It doesn’t hinder the experience too much, especially when there’s a handy navigation tool to help you out, but it can get a little tiresome. And the same can be said for the combat. It’s a great system, but after a while it does get a little repetitive. New enemies keep things fresh but there aren’t too many of those either. But of course it is the beginning of a new franchise, so we can expect more and more of this universe to be explored in the future.

    And Dead Space isn’t a bad way to start a new IP. It creates a creepy, disturbing atmosphere that is often unnerving, and combines that with a deep and engaging combat system that is simply one of a kind. Dead Space may have floated under your radar, but it should be in plain sight by now; it’s one of the best survival horrors in years and looks set to become a prominent figure in video gaming in the years to come.

    Other reviews for Dead Space (Xbox 360)

      Not a revolution, but a perfection in survival horror. 0

      Distress call from a mining ship in the deep recesses of space. Everything goes haywire upon arriving. Silent protagonist. The opening moments....With these clichés, Dead Space seems to be on the track of mediocrity and will be summarily forgotten, right? Well, thankfully, no, because Dead Space does enough on its own part for it to be set apart from almost every game of 2008 as one of the best games of the year, horror or not. Playing as Isaac Clarke, a silent engineer, the player will traverse...

      12 out of 12 found this review helpful.

      Perfection in a nutshell 0

      Games can be great in a number of ways. They can push forth new ideas, ones that will manifest themselves as staples for years to come. They can strike a chord with players, generating unforgettable moments. Or they can take what has been done before, and do it better. Dead Space falls into this last category. It borrows the best ideas from some of gaming's landmark titles, and combines it all into a shooter that gets as close to perfection as any game could hope to do.Dead Space doesn't even tr...

      5 out of 5 found this review helpful.

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