Konami and Capcom were among the first few to perfect the survival horror genre with the Silent Hill and Resident Evil series respectively. This time around EA has entered the survival horror genre as the ‘noob’ in the field and launched Dead Space. Will it manage to send Konami and Capcom running away in fear or will it show that the survival horror should be left to the old school veterans of the genre?
If you can’t guess it from the name, Dead Space is set in space. Yes, we have seen the space scene before but it hasn’t been told in such a way before. You will have to play as Isaac Clarke, an engineer for a mining company who has been sent to space to assist the USG Ishimura, a mining ship that has been thought to have technical problems. However, upon landing, your simple repair mission is complicated when you realize that the crew onboard has gone missing. As you try and discover the reason behind this disappearance you will discover that an alien force is at work and that your new mission is survival. The story is fairly original in Dead Space and carries a fair amount of detail as well as depth. Without any cutscenes (besides an intro and ending), the story unfolds via video clips, logs and voice logs that can be found throughout the game. This works well as it gives you the feeling that you have to work to uncover the mystery behind the events. Voice acting has also been executed quite well.
In true survival horror fashion, Deadspace is a 3rd person, over the shoulder shooter. The game is made up of twelve chapters. In your quest for survival you will be required to get the ship back into working condition by powering up certain areas and removing any threats onboard (before they remove you). The game will also require you to operate turrets, and venture outside the ship. There are certain areas that have no gravity and you will have to use Isaac’s jumping skills to navigate your way through the area. Once you do veer into the outside you will have to watch your oxygen levels. These features add some excitement to the game and keep you very immersed.
To add to your immersion, there is no heads up display (HUD) in the game. All of the necessary things that you need to see can be found on Isaac himself. Isaac’s health bar is displayed on his back and the rounds left in a gun will be displayed on the weapon as you aim it. Dead Space also boasts a vast and deadly line up of mining tools, used as weapons which can be upgrade during the game. Lastly if you need to look at your items you will have to do so quickly seeing as this wont pause the game and stop enemies from attacking. This adds to the thrill and excitement as it keeps the player on their toes.
The enemy AI is quite intelligent and will give you a challenge at times. To keep things fresh, you cannot just go for the headshot and think it’s all over. You will have to shoot the limbs of your enemies off in order to put them down. This is a great feature and very original. Who doesn’t love shooting off limbs? Random mini games also feature twice in the game. Yes, they are totally random but they bring some variety to the gameplay.
Graphically, Dead Space is a real head turner. It manages to shine in every aspect and you will have to look really hard to find any sort of imperfection. The level design is really well put together and the attention to detail is easily noticeable. One could argue that there are a few ‘repetitive’ areas, but hey, this is a ship after all and it’s highly unlikely that a ship is aiming for stylish versatility. The character modeling also appears to be top notch. Isaac and his armor suit are well made and for someone who is wearing that piece of armor, he moves really smoothly. The enemies are well put together (you will see some things you have never seen in your dreams/nightmares) and they can be quite terrifying at times. They will move in different ways as you shoot off limbs and this shows how the character modeling was given full attention.
Unfortunately there is no form of online but there are some cool trophies to be earned and other unlockables as you play through. There will also be downloadable content available so there is definitely some replay value to be found here.
If it’s a survival horror that you are looking for, then Dead Space will not disappoint. Yes it’s new at the horror scene but it will not only give you an original twisting story, it will scare the pants off of you. With interesting gameplay, solid graphics and killer audio effects, Dead Space manages to scare away the title from Capcom and Konami.
[starreviewmulti id=1 tpl=20]
