[Contains plot spoilers. Like really fucking big ones. Either don't read this, or read the article but don't bitch how I spoiled the story for you]

With the announcement of Dead Space 2, I thought I'd post some thoughts about the original game. Which is handy as I've been playing the original all week after buying it on the PC during the Steam sale. I did have the game for the 360 originally, but I never completed it and it sat on my shelf with my other late 2008 releases that I never finished (Fable 2 and Far Cry 2 still there folks). So with the purchase of Dead Space on the PC for a really good price and some momentum to play it, I ploughed through the game this week finishing it on Sunday night. Here's what I thought of the game.

Is it survival horror?

When Dead Space was released, I remember a lot of angry Internet folk dismissing the game as not being "proper survival horror".... probably because protagonist Issac Clarke can move and shoot at the same time. Well move very slowly and shoot but..... move and shoot yes. At the time I remember thinking that this wasn't a problem with the game, rather people's narrow views of what survival horror games were. I mean, we're talking of a genre of game that really consists of a handful of franchises and some spin offs. I feel Dead Space was unfairly maligned for not being "survival horror" enough for some people, which is a shame as that game scared thebeejesus out of me on more than one occasion. Mainly due to the sound design; the ambient sound in the ship was brilliantly orchestrated. Machinery and steel groaned and clanked without the presence of any enemies. One time I went into a corridor where machinery was griding nosily away; it was such a contradiction from what I'd heard in the previous room that I just ran from one end to the other even though there was no threat. At the opposite end of the spectrum, the vacuum sections were wonderful; exiting onto the outside of the ship only to hear Issac's breathing and the reverb from his boots on the ships hull was genuinely unnerving. Seeing his air meter go down and hearing his breathing becoming more and more strained was almost as scary as theNercomorphs.



Is Dead Space survival horror? I'd call it that; it may have none of the Silent Hill series psychological bent or Resident Evils' limited player limitations, but it still puts you as one man in a scary place and leaves you to fend on your own. Plus you get to drop kicknecromorph babies....

Weapons and HUD

After getting used to the slightly strange over the shoulder viewpoint, I quickly became used to Dead Space's HUD and presentation. The angle didn't make shooting difficult, but turning whilst aiming was really hard. The actual HUD was brilliant; I love that the inventory was up in front of Issac's face, meaning there was no break in the action if he wanted a health pack. It was wonderfully executed I though. The "breadcrumbs GPS" was really handy, but that's because the mini-map was too small to be of much use. It also made sense, syncing up an in-built guidance system to Issac's HUD, rather than Fable 2's magical glowing dust trail.



The weapons were interesting too as they tried to be based on engineering tools you could see a guy in space using. The Plasma cutter was obviously the best as it excelled in the strategic dismemberment the game boasted. With it's alternate fire mode, you could use the horizontal cut for enemies' legs and the vertical one for cutting arms off at the shoulder. Be patient and steady and you'll be slicing necromorphs with ease. What was also great was the fact you didn't necessarily have to ditch the plasma cutter for better weapons. Using power nodes to upgraded the plasma cutter meant it fared just as well in situations as the pulse rifle or flame thrower. The onyl thing that was a let down was the alternate fire modes in the other weapons which seemed either superfluous or useless.

Originality?

The idea of a guy almost completely alone on a space ship being hunted by alien monsters isn't very original. It's an idea that's been around for a while, even if only a handful of examples come to mind. Alien is the most obvious, especially with the idea of a mining ship bringing on board an alien menace that proceeds to kill almost all the crew. Dead Space manages to feel different to me thanks to the surprises it offered and the various cast members that show up. For starters, when you show up on the ship you don't know what's going on; you're just as in the dark as Issac, Hammond and Kendra. The religious angle is interesting too; Unitology is an interesting idea that's fleshed out really well in the game and gives more of an idea of the motivations behind what transpired before you arrived. The tie in comic and movie (both of which are worth getting a hold of) both fleshed out some of the details that happened before Issac Clarke's ill-fated arrival on the Ishimura. The characters were well fleshed out and I like how they change towards the end; Hammond, the strict mission-orientated, calm head becoming panicky and "fuck the mission" on you; Kendra the pessimist and cynic becoming the cold and calculated manipulator (until her quite grisly smeared end). I never bought into Nicole being alive, here video messages were too weird and freaky for it to be anything other than the Marker reaching out to Issac (wanting itself put back onto the planet to contain the alien hive mind?). Also the chapters spelling out NICOLE IS DEAD was a bit of a giveaway.



So Dead Space's plot elements aren't original, but the execution is where the game shines for me. I'm surprised it didn't get compared to System Shock 2 more than it did; I suppose that everyone burnt out that comparison withBioshock the year before.

Overall

I remember Dead Space being considered a poor seller at the time, but later figures said the game pulled in a not to shabby 1.4 million copies, so of course the sequel was guaranteed. I'm totally interested in seeing what Dead Space 2 can come up with. A new setting would be the thing I want to see. Put Issac on an more open space but see how thenecromorph threat will adapt to that challenge.