Harry Situation Re-Reviews: Dead Space

Dead Space is a third-person shooter science fiction survival horror game released back in 2008. It was developed by Visceral Games and published by EA. Set in the far future, you play as an engineer named Isaac Clarke (a nice homage to science fiction authors Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke) traveling to a large mining ship called the USG Ishimura to do some repairs. Unfortunately as you arrive you find that the entire crew has been killed and reanimated into monstrocities called Necromorphs. The only source of this outbreak comes a mysterious artifact known as the Red Marker, which was pulled from the planet and placed onboard the ship. You must fight your way and survive against the onslaught of necromorphs as you uncover secrets about the Red Marker and the Ishimura, as well as try and find your girlfriend Nicole, if she's still alive.

My very first experience with this game was when I first saw the trailer on TV. It is hands down the best trailer made for any video game. A lone ship (the Ishimura) is in deep space followed by creepy shots of dark corners and dead bodies with the creepiest rendition of "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" playing in the background, and once in a while it will cut to some violence. Definitely check it out when you have time.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=RYaJCmJgb9A

I know I've already talked about this game before, but truthfully that review really didn't to the game any justice. There's a lot that I wanted to talk about but didn't give myself the space to write more about it. I love the Dead Space franchise flaws and all, and I really want to talk more about it. So with the franchise's spiritual successor, The Callisto Protocol, as well as a remake to the original game coming next year, I think it's time to talk about each of the Dead Space games. Or at least the main three since I haven't played any of the spin-off titles.

A major positive towards this game is the lighting and atmosphere. Much of the ship is in darkness, creating the most eerie atmosphere in space since Ridley Scott's original Alien. You're constantly looking over your shoulder and around every corner because you know that's when the Necromorphs are hiding and they'll pop up any given moment. They'll pop out of vents, they'll pop out of the doors, they'll burst through the walls. There's no such thing as safe on the Ishimura. This is how you do horror in a video game right, aside from having a bunch of monsters run out and attack you. The first 10-15 minutes of the game (which I'm sure most are familiar with) are without a doubt one of the most terrifying moments in the games. For me, the scariest thing about the game is the audio. This is what the game strives in. There's so much ambiance and background sound going on it creeps me the fuck out. Every so often you'll hear something moving around inside either the walls or the vents. Sometimes you'll hear a metal object get knocked to the floor and echo throughout the room you're in. You'll also hear Necromorphs in the background and you're not sure if they're close or far away. It really gets me on edge.

The second positive is the game's combat. Unlike in other survival horror games, the Necromorphs are not like traditional zombies. Body shots won't do anything, nor will shooting off their heads. If you want to put them down for good you gotta take out their limbs. How that kills them isn't exactly explained but in all honesty it doesn't matter. And the weapons you use are not really weapons. They're engineer tools - save for the plasma gun. The character you play isn't some space marine or super soldier, he's an engineer, so you use what you can. The right tool for the right job, as the old saying goes. You can only carry four weapons at time, but each weapon has an alternative fire option that can do some serious damage against enemies. So in reality if feels like you're carrying eight weapons.

The graphics are another major positive. This game was made back in 2008 and the graphics hold up very well today. Everything on the ship feels and looks very real like you yourself could be apart of this universe. It makes it feel very alive, despite the fact there are shit ton of dead bodies and Necromorphs everywhere. There are two key factors that make the game work: lighting and shadow.

There's also subtle attention to detail for Isaac's breathing. It changes depending on the situation. When he's running he'll sound fatigue. When he's running out of air in the vacuum of space he starts gasping. Even when he's injured he'll sound like he's short on breathe. It's those little details in sound that make me appreciate the game more and more.

I'm also in love with so much of the backstory and lore within this game's universe. For example, you learn that the USG Ishimura is out in illegal space and their main operation is to retrieve the Red Marker for a religious group known as the Church of Unitology. Think of them as a combination of Evangelist Christians and Scientology, but act way more cult like than the aforementioned. You can actually learn more about the backstory and the Ishimura's crew through a series of diaries and audio logs that are scattered throughout the ship. I must warn you, the audio logs are one of the most eerie things I've come across. A majority of them are about how some crew members have when crazy after discovering the Red Marker (which is one of its many sinister affects) or how the crew is desperately trying to stave off and survive the Necromorph outbreak. The most disturbing audio log involves a crew member dismembering his own limbs so he doesn't hurt anyone should he turn into a Necromorph. It's pretty fucked up and it keeps you up at night.

There are also plenty leave plenty of room and quiet time to do some puzzle solving. You'll need to do these in order to progress through the game. Some are pretty, others are pretty challenging. But what I like about these puzzles is that they serve as a welcome break from all the Necromorph-slaying you'll have to do throughout the game. Trust me, after the 50th Necromorph that's tried to kill you you could use a breather because this game doesn't offer a lot. Then again it isn't much of a breather if these fuckers pop in and disrupt your progress while you're working on a puzzle.

Now this isn't a perfect game, and there's definitely stuff to nitpick about. For example, I don't like how slow Isaac Clarke moves in the came. From running to melee attacks to even walking he feels stiff and sluggish. You could make an argument that it's the suit that's making him do that but I don't think that's the case.

The zero gravity sequences are also pretty lame. What you have to do is whenever you enter a zero gravity area you have to aim your weapon at an opposite and then press a certain button which will make Isaac jump across from room to room. The issue is it feels very slow and there isn't a ton of freedom in it. Also, the camera tends to get messed up when doing so.

You don't really get much character out of Isaac Clarke or any of the other characters in this game. Granted, Isaac Clarke is a silent protagonist, but this also means he lacks personality. I get that silent protagonists are meant to be avatars for ourselves as we immerse into this universe, but Isaac Clarke isn't us. We don't know why he's here. Okay, not true. We know he's here looking for his girlfriend, but why is he personally on the ship? Why wasn't he on the Ishimuru with his girlfriend at the time? How does he feel about the situation? How does he feel about his fellow crew members? Does he trust them? Does he trust anyone? Obviously, this is improved in the second game, which I'll talk about soon.

Overall, my thoughts haven't changed much the last time I talked about it. I do consider Dead Space one of the most terrifying games I've ever played, but what may scare me may not scare others. It is definitely a fun game. So don't play for the scares, play for the fun. If you want to try the game it is available on Steam and it's backwards compatible on all systems. Be sure to play it with the lights on.

Positives:

-Lighting and atmosphere

-Pretty damn scary

-Great combat

-Amazing graphics

-Great soundtrack

-Puzzle solving

-Lore and audio logs

Negatives:

-Lack of character development

-Slow movement

-Zero gravity movement

Final Grade: B+

So those are my thoughts on Dead Space. Have you played this game before? What were your thoughts on it? Please be kind, leave a like and comment, and check out more reviews here on Prose!

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