BioShock Review

A beautiful gorry game that will keep you on the edge of your seat,
and possibly show up in your dreams.

Available for: PS3 , Xbox 360, PC

Developed by EA Redwood Shores, Dead Space is a third-person action/horror game that was released for the Xbox 360, the PS3, and Windows PCs.  In Dead Space, players assume the role of Isaac Clark, an engineer who must face-off against the “Corruption” a virus-like alien, which can turn humans into monsters, called “Necromorphs”.  It can also reanimate dead bodies, if that wasn’t enough for you.  The entire game takes place aboard an incapacitated mining space ship in deep space.

The third-person camera view presented in Dead Space is similar to Gears of War and Resident Evil 4 in the fact that it is over-the-shoulder, but it does have its own, unique, quirks to it.  The standard HUD (Heads Up Display) has been yanked in Dead Space.  Instead, you get info about Isaac and his weapons and armor through holographic projections that hover over each item respectively.  There is also an in-game store, where weapons and armor can be bought or sold.

In Dead Space, you may find yourself in situations with zero gravity or in decompressed environments.  Isaac’s magnetic boots and pressurized suit helps you to easily overcome that challenge.  In some levels of the game, you also reach the ship’s hull.  Floating debris does pose some danger, but it isn’t the biggest one, as Isaac can easily lose his footing, and fall into deep space, being forever lost.  The pressurized suit mentioned before only has a limited amount of air supply, too, which is really realistic.  If you run out of air, Isaac will suffocate; this causes you to move faster when you are in situations where you need to rely on the suit’s air supply, which greatly increases the difficulty of the game.

Most of the weapons in Dead Space are modded mining tools, and such, which is very interesting and unique.  This keeps up with Isaac’s profession as a miner as well as the realistic setting.  It’s good to see that we don’t just have a stockpile of rifles and machine guns lying around on a mining ship.  There is one rifle available, but it does make sense for them to keep one around for security reasons.  There is also a stasis ability, which can be used to slow enemies down, and a kinetic ability, which can be used to throw items at those enemies.

Another refreshing concept seen in Dead Space is the fact the Necromorphs don’t die after a certain number of shots or hits.  To “kill” a Necromorph, one must dismember its vital parts.  This may change throughout the game, and even throughout a battle sequence, as they adapt very quickly, and can sprout new limbs, and even reproduce right in front of your eyes.  Do to the high reliance on dismembering reanimated bodies, this game does feature a whole lot of gore, which is great for people who love it, but remember it’s not for little kids, especially the ones who get nightmares.
Basically, Dead Space is a very believable game, with a pretty O.K. story line.  IT’s also a whole lot of fun, with all that blasting away at body parts and what not.  It’s also fun to play with weapons that aren’t standard rifles for a change too.  Overall, Dead Space is a great game, and we can look forward to more innovation in the future, with a sequel already in development.