Dead Space (@deadspace)
Developed by: EA Redwood Shores (shut down now)
Published by: Electronic Arts (@EA)
Dead Space is an incredibly atmospheric, gruesome, sci-fi horror adventure game.
The player controls Isaac Clark, an engineer who is sent to fix the communications array on a mining ship known as the USG Ishimura. Things quickly go off the rails and from the moment Isaac boards the Ishimura it’s clear that something has gone terribly wrong. In classic video game story telling Isaac upon boarding the Ishimura is quickly isolated from his team. He encounters the former crew of the Ishimura who are no longer human, but monsters that the called Necromorphs. Isaac is thrown into the battle of his life as he struggles to complete his mission and survive. He improvises weapons from mining equipment and his current environment throughout his journey. Plasma welding guns, buzz saws, flamethrowers etc. Dead Space is a gruesome game. The player can target and dismember enemies bodies piece by piece targeting their legs, their arms, and even their heads. There is no shortage of blood and gore in Dead Space. If you’re squeamish this is NOT the game for you.
The story in Dead Space isn’t told through elaborate cut scenes. It’s told through audio logs and encounters with other characters throughout the Ishimura. This makes Dead Space incredibly immersive in my opinion. The player is constantly in control of Isaac, never truly being taking out of the experience to watch a dramatic, cinematic pre rendered cutscene.
It’s evident that for its time Dead Space was a revolutionary game in terms of its sound design, atmosphere and combat. Playing this game in 2022 I found aspects of the game frustrating. They are multiple times throughout Dead Space where the player is thrown into a situation where they have to do something to free themselves and the controls are definitely frustrating. They don’t really make sense and personally speaking they ruined my immersion of the game at times because I struggled to do what was required causing me to have to replay a portion of the game over and over gain. In a modern game the situation I’m talking about would most likely be a QTE instead. I’m keeping it vague for spoiler reasons! Sorry if you find that frustrating.
Dead Space overall is a great game. It’s unique, it leans into being sci fi horror and it accomplishes what it sets out to do and that’s create an incredibly dark, atmospheric, intense sci fi horror experience for the player. With the remake coming I highly recommend that people either play the original (it’s on Game Pass via EA Play) or buy the remake. Dead Space is one of the best horror games of all time.
Pros:
The narrative/story
The atmosphere
The enemy design
The sound design
Cons:
Out dated gameplay at times
Played on: Xbox Series X via Xbox Game Pass
Review score: 4.5/5
Developed by: EA Redwood Shores (shut down now)
Published by: Electronic Arts (@EA)
Dead Space is an incredibly atmospheric, gruesome, sci-fi horror adventure game.
The player controls Isaac Clark, an engineer who is sent to fix the communications array on a mining ship known as the USG Ishimura. Things quickly go off the rails and from the moment Isaac boards the Ishimura it’s clear that something has gone terribly wrong. In classic video game story telling Isaac upon boarding the Ishimura is quickly isolated from his team. He encounters the former crew of the Ishimura who are no longer human, but monsters that the called Necromorphs. Isaac is thrown into the battle of his life as he struggles to complete his mission and survive. He improvises weapons from mining equipment and his current environment throughout his journey. Plasma welding guns, buzz saws, flamethrowers etc. Dead Space is a gruesome game. The player can target and dismember enemies bodies piece by piece targeting their legs, their arms, and even their heads. There is no shortage of blood and gore in Dead Space. If you’re squeamish this is NOT the game for you.
The story in Dead Space isn’t told through elaborate cut scenes. It’s told through audio logs and encounters with other characters throughout the Ishimura. This makes Dead Space incredibly immersive in my opinion. The player is constantly in control of Isaac, never truly being taking out of the experience to watch a dramatic, cinematic pre rendered cutscene.
It’s evident that for its time Dead Space was a revolutionary game in terms of its sound design, atmosphere and combat. Playing this game in 2022 I found aspects of the game frustrating. They are multiple times throughout Dead Space where the player is thrown into a situation where they have to do something to free themselves and the controls are definitely frustrating. They don’t really make sense and personally speaking they ruined my immersion of the game at times because I struggled to do what was required causing me to have to replay a portion of the game over and over gain. In a modern game the situation I’m talking about would most likely be a QTE instead. I’m keeping it vague for spoiler reasons! Sorry if you find that frustrating.
Dead Space overall is a great game. It’s unique, it leans into being sci fi horror and it accomplishes what it sets out to do and that’s create an incredibly dark, atmospheric, intense sci fi horror experience for the player. With the remake coming I highly recommend that people either play the original (it’s on Game Pass via EA Play) or buy the remake. Dead Space is one of the best horror games of all time.
Pros:
The narrative/story
The atmosphere
The enemy design
The sound design
Cons:
Out dated gameplay at times
Played on: Xbox Series X via Xbox Game Pass
Review score: 4.5/5