The premise of Dead Space might seem, to some, very cliched. Big spaceship, overrun with aliens and lots of gore. Aliens, Event Horizon, Doom, etc, etc, all spring to mind when trying to explain the game.
But you'd be wrong to think this was anything else but brilliance!
This game has taken the best of the hard sci-fi horror genre and crafted it into a astonishing piece of technical mastery. Its that good.
The setting for Dead Space is a large mining ship names the USG ISHIMURA, you play as Isaac Clarke, a miner, who whilst arriving onboard realises that something is terrilbly wrong, as the vessel is crawling [quite literally] with beings known as Necromorphs. These half-alien/half-human hybrids literally want to suck the flesh off of your skull.
GRAPHICS-
After playing this on a 32" HDTV I can honestly say its one of the finest looking games I've played. It even rivals Metal Gear Solid 4 and Uncharted: Drake's Fortune in terms of sharpness and graphical detail. The lighting effects are spot on and the gore is freakishly realistic. The USG ISHIMURA feels incredibly claustrophobic as shadows of Necromorphs flicker and dart around you. The Necromorphs themselves are severely mutatated and animated superbly and disturbingly, as you blast a leg off, and it continues scuttling towards you! OVERALL 10/10
GAMEPLAY-
The 3rd person perspective works very well and the camera is surprisingly responsive. The games core mechanic is fright and dismemberment which work brilliantly. Quite often strategically shooting a certain limb after the Necromorph has jumped out at you, scaring you half to death, is very rewarding, especially playing on the harder difficulty setting. The weapons are balanced and no one weapon has a distinct advantage over the other. [The Ripper is a personal favourite of mine!] OVERALL 10/10
SOUND-
The sound effects are some of the best I've heard. Having it on loud will guarantee a swift change of underwear. Everything from the demented howls and blood curdling screams are very well done. Quite often what yo hear is scarier than what you see, and theres nothing more un-nerving than hearing scuttling in the vents above you, not knowing when or where it will ambush you. OVERALL 10/10
TROPHIES-
Thankfully, EA has included Trophies out-of-the-box. And they all seem fun and a nice reward after you've nearly given yourself a heart attack. They range from completing levels, to severing x amount of limbs, and there loads to get which adds lots of replay value.
Overall its a well made horror masterpiece, can't wait for the sequel!
*The Obsidian Suit is a must have, downloaded from the Playstation Store! Its superb.
OVERALL 10/10