Before I say anything else, let me say that Dead Space is one the most enjoyable single player experiences of 2008. From the scares, action, and atmosphere, Dead Space is one of 2008’s top games. Here is the Review.

Storyline:

You play as Isaac Clarke, engineer for the C.E.C, who with his team go to check out a stranded mining ship by the name of the USG Ishimura. A ship of 1000 passengers, which hasn’t been responding to attempted contacts. Isaac and CO go to investigate on the situation which from the beginning goes from bad to worse.

Graphics:

Dead Space to put in simple terms, is visually stunning. As I said in my impressions of the game, Dead Space’s atmosphere is the best I’ve seen since Bioshock. The USG Ishimura is a complete nightmare which our hero (Isaac Clarke) must endure. Lighting effects play tricks on your mind as you could have sworn you just saw something in that corner over there. The character detail on Isaac is very good as well. His health meter is located on the spine of his outfit with four bars at max health, and one bar meaning low health.

Enemies (Necromorphs) are designed to shock you as the development team at EA made these characters as grotesque as they possbibly could. Enemies have acid spewing out of them, others have tentacles sprouting out of their head, and others regenerate which leaves with you with only one option… RUN!. Dead Space does have boss fights, and without spoiling it, one of them is definitely of the best I’ve seen on the Xbox 360.

Kudos to the Dead Space art team at Electronic Arts for the art direction in this game. From the characters to the environments, it all looks very stunning. To avoid repetition with Dead Space’s environments, you will travel to furnace rooms, morgue’s, labs, and zero gravity sections. I never got tired of the scenery as Dead Space kept switching it up, which I’m grateful for.

Sound:

How can a game be scary if the sound is abysmal? Games which fit the survival horror mold need to have effective sound effects/music which will put some fear in your heart. The sound in Dead Space is top notch. Necromorphs are relentless creatures which will growl at you viciously when chasing after you. Moans of Necromorphs can be heard echoing through the ship’s ventilation system and whispers of voices put you a little more on guard. At a certain chapter, a haunting rendition of “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” suddenly plays which will send shivers down your spine. When Necromorphs do appear to attack you, a drama filled, fast paced, backdrop plays which add to the panic and dread of the moment. All of Dead Space’s guns sound amazing and the ambient noises give Dead Space that little extra kick. Overall, the sound is amazing and really helps Dead Space shine.

Gameplay:

Controlling Isaac Clarke is a breeze. One of my friend’s first comments when he tried the game was praising just how natural it feels to control Isaac. Holding “left trigger” brings up aim, “right trigger” is to fire, holding “left bumper” and pushing forward on the “left stick” is to run. When your gun is not aimed, “right trigger” will swing your weapon in a melee attack and “right bumper” delivers a devastating curb stomp. Your map is just one click away on the “select button” and of my favorite features is pushing down on the “right stick” which displays a navigation trail on the floor which leads you to your next objective. Put it this way, it is impossible to get lost on the USG Ishimura.

The weapons in Dead Space are just simply brutal. The “Plasma Cutter” fires an energy blast, the “Line Gun” fires an energy blast with timed mines as a secondary attack. The “Pulse Rifle” fires energy blasts with a overhead 360-degree sweep as the secondary attack. “The Ripper” splits your enemies with it’s saws, while the “Contact Beam” delivers very damaging blasts. The “Force Gun” knocks your opponents back, with a secondary timed/proximity grenade, while the “Flamethrower”  turns your average Necromorph into a crispy delight.

Two of the main game play features of Dead Space is Stasis and Kinesis. Stasis is fired from your gun to slow down enemies/objects for a few seconds. For example, you may see a door going completely haywire slamming open and closed very rapidly. Just use Stasis on the door (Aim and press “X”) and the door will be slowed down so you can pass right through it. When a pack(yes, they attack in packs) of Necromorphs is hot on your tail, fire Stasis and this will slow them down to a crawl, so you can precisely aim you gun and take off their limbs.

Using Kinesis (aim and press “B”) will pick up objects which then can then be thrown at enemies or placed into certain spots to solve puzzles. Think of it as the gravity gun from the Half-Life series. Kinesis comes in handy when for instance, you see an item box out of reach. Flammable tanks (colored in red) can be picked up with Kinesis which then can be used to burn up some Necromorph scum.

Did you think that Dead Space just had you simply going from hallway to hallway, shooting enemies, and that’s it? Nope.

Dead Space throws you a curve when it introduces Zero Gravity game play. Certain spots on the USG Ishimura have Zero Gravity which you must go through. Enter aim mode (LT) and then press “Y” to fly across the room like a bird. Enemies are in Zero Gravity sections as well. Nothing beats looking behind you and seeing three or four Necromorphs flying right on top of you with their mouths open. The controls of Zero Gravity game play do take getting used to, but it will come natural to you soon enough. Dead Space also features sections of the USG Ishimura which has no oxygen. Isaac in these environments will have his air rapidly deplete which must be refilled with an air can (purchasable at a store) or from an oxygen refill station.

Dead Space also features ways to upgrade your weapons. Throughout the USG Ishimura you will find these items called “Power Nodes” which when used at a “Bench” will upgrade your weapon of choice. “Power Nodes” can also be used to unlock rooms which include items which will help you along the way such as med packs, ammo, etc. Dead Space also features stores throughout the USG Ishimura which let you buy weapons, med kits, ammo, air cans, and suit upgrades. You can even sell items in your inventory to make a quick buck. Is your inventory filled to capacity? the store has a section which let’s you store away your items.

Negatives:

Dead Space is a game which excels in most of it’s categories, but it does have it’s problems. One of the problems which I had with Dead Space is sometimes your character will be left with low health and ammo and between you and your objective is many enemies. It can get overwhelmingly frustrating which at times will make you want to quit the game. There were times I felt like it was impossible to complete a certain spot because of the odds at hand. My best advice for this type of situation is to RUN!. Certain spots will have you locked into a lab or room with enemies and I hope to God you have been conserving your ammunition.

I could nitpick at how certain enemies are too easy to kill, but Dead Space switches it up with new types of species at the right times.  Certain puzzles can be frustrating at times as well and my tip is, don’t over complicate it. The only positive to these frustration problems is the relief when you overcome a puzzle or enemy filled section. Oh, and I played the game on Medium difficulty FYI.

Dead Space does include a fairly lenient checkpoint/saving system. Save centers (that’s what I call them) are placed in multiple spots throughout a chapter, so you can keep on saving. Checkpoints are fair as well, which in most cases after a really tough spot, a checkpoint will be triggered… thankfully!

Re-playability, Game Length:

According to my save file, it took me 11 hours and 16 minutes to complete Dead Space on Medium difficulty. The game consists of 12 chapters which take you to different locations throughout the USG Ishimura. Did it feel like the game went by too fast? Nope.

When you complete Dead Space on your first time around you will receive special bonuses for completing the game which adds to the re-playability. For instance, I received 50,000 credits, 10 power nodes, new suit, and a new difficulty called “Impossible”. Receiving these goodies makes me want to jump right back intoDead Space.

As for Multiplayer, Dead Space has no competitive play or Coop. And just like Bioshock, it doesn’t need it.

Overall:

Dead Space is a real treat. If you love story lines which include alien’s mixed with some horror, this game is for you. Dead Space ranks up there as one of the best single player experiences this year and must be played by every fan of the action/horror survival genre.

9.5/10= Excellent!

-Michael “Thrills Killa” Pacheco-