Dead Space 2

Welcome to Dead Space 2, this is a 2 disk survival horror and third person shooter please read my Dead Space review first as to make more sense of this one, which unlike the first one, takes place on a space station on one of the moons of Saturn, named Titan Station, and offers a lot more space to fight in, including space itself.

Characters

The one of the two returning character from the first Dead Space is Isaac Clarke, the main character and protagonist of the game, but unlike the original silent protagonist he talks and man does he have a lot to say about the mess he’s in once again.  The other returning character is Nicole Brennan, Isaac’s DEAD girlfriend. Haunting him in the form of a hallucination from the last game. Hans Tiedemann the antagonist of the game and director of Titan Station. Diane Le Guin, your first instance of a support character not much to say except that she assists you I escaping the first area and continues to help till a certain point. Nolan Stross a survivor of the colony where it all started and a patient in the same hospital Isaac awakens in, he is slowly breaking down to his dementia throughout the game and is constantly talking to his deceased wife and child, murdered by his own hands thanks to the original marker. Ellie Langford a heavy equipment pilot is a boon as she prove not all support characters just stand there and look pretty as Isaac meets up with her around mid-game she prove she can hold her own and has survived the outbreak by fighting instead of hiding.

Controls and gameplay

The controls of Dead Space 2 are almost identical in all respects excluding stasis and reload which was made easier with just the x button while stasis has replaced the original zero-g jump. The gameplay is pretty much the same as dead space with a few exceptions the first is surprisingly that dead space 2 is a lot less horrifying then dead space 1 don’t get me wrong the death scenes are in dead space 2 are brutal, horrifying, and mentally scarring but because of Isaac being able to talk the game lets you feel more secure and safe than if he didn’t, as well as the humor incorporated into the game itself dampens the mind-numbing terror we felt with dead space but while that is a drawback it still doesn’t take away from to  much of the fun of playing the game, Its still quite creepy and ominous, especially with those death scenes. Dead Space 2 has a multitude of differences and upgrades from the first such as improved melee, in dead space melee was so bad that you were lucky to hit and it rarely killed anything in Dead Space 2 melee is vastly improved and a very god way to end your foes. Kinesis in dead space was mostly just for puzzles and moving objects out of the way, in Dead Space 2 it can be a viable killing method of taking anything with a point from broom handles to the blade of a necromorph to impale and most likely one-shot enemies but that’s not all it can also tell you when a necromorph is faking dead because it wont move at all when you use kinesis. Another substantial change is the zero gravity in the first game it was a simple jump from one part to another in dead space 2 however they made it a flying type with full range motion. In some games they reward you after beating the final boss by allowing you to replay the game after you’ve beaten it with all your items and upgrades, well Dead Space 2 does this as well now with New Game +. If you thought the guns from Dead Space were good by themselves then you are right so the game features even more guns from a javelin gun to a seeker rifle as well as a lot of new suits. Sometimes in games reloading sucks as it is usually when you get hit the most however in this game you can actually run while reloading and avoid getting hit most of the time as long as your smart about where you can run too. For those of you who love game breaking weapons there is one only obtainable after you beat the ‘hardcore’ difficulty in which you can only save the game 3 times and will restart from your last save. While this is challenging its not impossible especially if you have beat all prior difficulty levels.

Flaws

While in my opinion the game is fun as hell and is a great game it does have its flaws. One is the final boss in the first game the final boss was amazing and a very fitting and epic end in this one the boss is a cheap instant kill jerk that you have to stay away from lest you get touched and die. The second flaw I see is that Isaac talks as I stated before that and the humor take away from the game. While these flaws are bad don’t let it discourage you from getting the game it is still a great game and you will most likely enjoy it.

Dead Space (xbox 360)

Spaced out

Welcome survival horror fans to Dead Space! This is one of the most horrifying games to ever be released. In many ways this game will surprise, startle, or just plain scare you. The game starts in space where main characters Isaac Clarke, Kendra Daniels, and Zach Hammond try to escape the nightmare known as the USG Ishimura.

Characters

Each character throughout the game has a unique mentality. Isaac’s reasons for being on the ship are to look for his girlfriend, Nicole Brennan, who was stationed on the ship. Kendra and Hammonds reasons were that it was their job yet each has different feeling once on board. Kendra’s desires once aboard are to escape as soon as possible and usually get into arguments with Hammond about how to stay alive. Hammond’s method is to try to complete the original mission of fixing the USG Ishimura.

Controls and gameplay

The controls in the game are relatively straightforward and are quite easy to adjust to, as well as a guide that appears to explain what button does what when the action becomes necessary. The gameplay itself is fairly linear and follows a straight path from start to end. It’s just how you deal with the enemies themselves that make the game an experience.  The game is a rarity for a third person shooter as it lacks a Heads Up Display.  Health and status are found on your characters back to add to most of the suspense. There is no pause when checking your inventory or in a shop as while you do this you can and most likely will be attacked. In case you lose your way the locator system is always helpful and will point you in to the next objective. The game looks quite brutal at times and the sounds and sights can really make your heart skip a beat and will stick with you long after you turn the game off. The graphics of the game are very realistic good and will keep you in a constant state of paranoia from either the eerie halls and rooms or the haunting and manipulative shadows that will cause a very unsettling feeling to take over.  A good thing to help you fight against the terrors is that in this game upgrades for weapons, status and abilities are available in the forms of a workbench for weapons, health, and abilities while shops are for newer suits for defense but be warned for as said earlier you are not completely safe even when in the shop or on the bench and can be attacked while you are preoccupied. Another easy thing to handle are the saves, which are in the form of save stations and checkpoints in case of an accidental or incidental death that will respawn you rather close to your last death, usually just a room away. Another act that makes this game epic are the individual scenes each different enemy has. Every death can be a gruesome experience with this in place.

Better luck next time

While this game is, in my opinion, fun and heart stopping, there are parts that are just not up to par. For instance  “enemy spawns” all enemies in the game will always spawn in the same place you saw them at in the first playthrough, so if you run though the game multiple times, it is easy to memorize enemy’s locations through out the game. Also, the annoying tutorials that literally freeze you in place to explain something you’ve either already figured out or didn’t really care for and if your on your second playthrough you will already now it and just be aggravated by it hoping it will go away fast.

Jacks rating of approval

The games flaws were very minimal and do not take away from the excitement that this horrifying thriller has to offer. I recommend this game to anyone who can withstand some blood and guts.  I give it a 7.5 Jack rating.