a monumental build-up compared to the first game and arguably a complete improvement. dead space 2 or ds2, not to be confused with dark souls 2 or the upcoming death stranding 2 or even future's album 'dirty sprite 2,' is a return to stomping on corpses in a floating steel box. it's still claustrophobic, darker than a dungeon, feverishly paranoiac, and somehow even more violent than its predecessor. you've got more options for impaling and severing necromorphs, from the electrifying spike gun to a trip mine launcher that i only used to help me from being so worried about what could be behind me. the increased weapon roster is fun but not wholly necessary, you'll stick to a few weapons once you find your groove and some feel redundant. the pulse rifle is fun to mess with but id rather stick to the plasma cutter since it's not only iconic but beyond versatile. the new enemies are also welcomed, considerably adding to the overwhelming odds with how large and diverse the hordes can get. but asides from that, the combat is virtually the same as the first game. shoot limbs, slow down a necro thats too close, stomp at the ones biting your ankles, run away, repeat. the new enemies and weapons do spice up the combat from the original though, i found myself running around more than the first and strategizing with my whole arsenal. now ammo is still a bit abundant, though playing on survivalist made me feel that i was almost always teetering on the edge of running out. the weird thing is, i dont mind the high number of ammo spawns in this as much as the first since the action's ramped up by a lot. it's similar to how silent hill has a lot of ammo to not detract from the atmosphere, but in this case it's not to detract from the gameplay's tense action when dealing with seemingly endless hordes.

artistically the game holds up better than ds1. sure some of it's outdated with some of the textures being low res, models noticeably being pointy at times, and skyboxes being crunchier than a foleyist's celery. wow, what a surprise!!! but god damn the lighting is consistently amazing. seriously, these games are some of the best lighting in not just horror games but in the entirety of the medium. to make things better, the game's environments are much more diverse and interesting. from sci-fi cathedrals to decrepit mines to the corporate government sector, the game stands out in memory as more than just rusted hallways and dark engine rooms. sure it still captures that feeling but it expands by bringing the horror into new venues, making use of new locations to amp up the horror with new soundscapes. ds2 is still a bunch of hallways though. you tread from one area to the next, essentially following orders with the bare minimum of exploration. a bit disappointing, but honestly its a game that doesnt want its anxiety or action to die down so the minimization of exploration is more of a benefit. the devs understood this to the point of removing the map entirely, giving you only the objective tracking ability but with the quality of life additions of also optionally leading to the nearest shop or save point.

the writing's also an improvement. although it isn't subtle, it's actually a story and not a plotline. overcoming trauma and grief by going through hell is a trope i havent gotten tired of yet. the story's made better by isaac being an all-around likable dude that i wanted to keep pushing forward. i kid you not i was fucking fuming when isaac regressed for a moment. lots of the side characters are one-sided, but for when it came to isaac and ellie they did great. simon is alright too. he was really just doing his job for the plot but is a welcomed freak for a horror themed game. i briefly mentioned it but my biggest issue is with how unsubtle it can be. like the mystery is pretty great with finding out how isaac wound up on the sprawl, but when it came to the psychological aspect it sometimes felt like the game couldnt trust me with thinking. i know gamers tend to have poor media literacy and that AAA games tend to do a lot of handholding, but did the ghost of nicole really have to come out and say that isaac was struggling at getting over his grief? like really? i couldnt ascertain that from all the times he said he didnt want to let her go and felt that he couldnt save her? thanks ea, im glad you cleared up this squeaky clean window of a theme. also worth talking about since i brought up ea is how annoying it was to open the shop and see like a billion pay to win items pop when when i shouldnt have access to that stuff. like why flood the store with that shit when im trying to play the game it was originally designed to be played?

anywho ds2 bangs. it racks up the tensity from the first game by considerably turning up the action. more enemies, more bullets, more heart attacks about how im surrounded. even then the atmosphere is impeccable and overall the game is a tight package of horror action fun. it's like a refinement of the first game in not just the core mechanics but in the gestalt of its direction. it feels more concise. more extravagant. more whole. if ds1 was akin to doom 3, this is like a pseudo doom 64. not sure when ill play ds3 since i need to get a friend for that (refusing to play it by myself lol) but also because the remake for the first game is beyond enticing. fuck man, i need more industrial sci-fi cosmic horror in my life. i should probably rewatch alien or replay this soon.