Last time I saw Dead Space 2, Executive Producer Steve Papoutsis hinted about the game’s “epic moments.” He wouldn’t go into detail at the time, but he hoped that players would go “HOLY SHIT!” when experiencing these sections.
Well, Steve, I definitely had a few “HOLY SHIT!” moments when I got my very first hands-on with Dead Space 2 yesterday. Like, I almost ruined my pants from the demo. That’s how good it was. God I wish I was kidding.
Get a taste of one of the epic moments and to see how flawless zero-g controls are after the break.
Dead Space 2 (Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC)
Developer: Visceral Games
Publisher: Electronic Arts
To be released: January 25, 2011
Think of these epic moments like the mind-blowing QTE sequences from God of War III, but without the timed button presses. Isaac is up against the humongous creature seen at the end of the above trailer where the fight is seamlessly jumping back and forth between being playable and presented as an in-game cutscene.
The sequence begins with the creature grabbing and slamming Isaac against the ground all while the player needs to shoot the Necromorph’s weak point. Once successful, Isaac is tossed away and the player has to scramble out of the room as fast as possible. You’ll first need to slow it down by throwing a stasis field blast — which will now recharge after use — in order to make it to a nearby room.
Once at the end of the hall though, the airship that was chasing you earlier has found you and shoots out the windows. This time, Isaac — and the creature — are both sucked out into space. Both are hanging on to the outside walls of the colony for dear life and Isaac has a limited time to shoot some explosive canisters. Succeed, and Isaac blows up the Necromorph. Fail and the monster will rip you apart and in a nice homage to the first game’s box art, you’ll see Isaac’s dismembered hand float across the screen.
Describing this sequence just doesn’t do it justice. You’re going to have to take my word for it and believe me when I say it really was an epic moment.
I also got to experience a zero-g section and it was a personal epic moment for me. You have total control of where Isaac can float about thanks to the mini-boosters on his suit now and, at first, I was afraid that the controls would suck. I’ve grown up with free floating levels (i.e. water levels) being horrid for the most part but my fears were completely unwarranted.
Simply press in on the left stick and Isaac will float in the air just above the ground. To move, you just need to move the analog stick as you would if you were walking. It’s just that easy. I had no trouble navigating around the rooms and I really wouldn’t mind playing the entire game in zero-g. Simply put, zero-g controls are absolutely flawless.
The graphics are amazing, the controls are better, the Necromorphs are more varied than before — Everything about Dead Space 2 is just beautiful. I seriously cannot wait until early next year for this to be released. Dead Space fans are in for a real treat.
Be sure to check out Conrad’s preview of this same demo for a more detailed look.
