Dead Space 3 is upon us. Yes, Isaac and co. are back! And by “co.” I guess I’m referring to the dozens upon dozens of former humans who now reside somewhere in the grooves of Mr. Clarke’s stompy shoes. But this time he’s brought a friend! A friend called John ManHeroSomething. And John has stompy shoes too. Spoiler alert: in the pantheon of the greatest shooters of all time Dead Space 3 will take its place somewhere between Half-Life 2 and Daikatana.
Review by Xtal Dead Space Developer: EA Redwood Shores Publisher: Electronic Arts Released: 14 October 2008 Available for: PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 [reviewed] Time Played: Completed twice (approximately 25 hours) Verdict: 3/5 Middlin’ “Dead Space had no need to cater to an expected “mainstream shooter” audience. It had enough unique tricks that could have made it a wholly altered experience. Unfortunately it comes out bland and carbon-copied”
Of my living years, 1994 is the first I remember as An Epic Year For Gaming. Up until this point I had dabbled in a handful of computer adventure games that my parents bought and the limited pile of NES games I had: Super Mario Bros., Jeopardy!, The Empire Strikes Back and Blades of Steel to name a few. My horizons were about to expand on Christmas of 1993: I received a Sega Genesis. As …
Review by Lewis B Dead Space: Extraction Developer: Visceral Games Publisher: Electronic Arts Released: EU October 1st 2009 Available for: Nintendo Wii Time Played: Finished Verdict: 4/5 Thumbs Up A competent rail shooter, that thanks to Visceral Games’ strong IP, is arguably the best light-gun experience on the Wii . Although there are some issues and poor acting issues aside, the game is highly enjoyable. Unlike other rail shooters however, I must stress it isn’t …
SEGA’s complexly-named studio director Constantine Hantzopoulos indicated to GamaSutra and 1UP that the Wii rail shooter Dead Space: Extraction’s unbelievably poor sales since launch (fewer than 10,000 units in a month) served as a “litmus test” for whether or not SEGA – which has nothing to do with EA and had nothing to do with Dead Space: Extraction – would produce Mature-rated titles for the Nintendo Wii platform.
Given that the SEGA-published Madworld and House of the Dead: Overkill, also for the Wii platform, underperformed, and the fact that Dead Space: Extraction got its ass handed to it, Hantzopolous indicated that future Mature-rated titles for the Wii will not be forthcoming from SEGA.
Fear is our most primal, basic instincts; encouraging us to flee the unfamiliar or dangerous. In entertainment we call it horror. Fear is an emotion; horror is a genre, with clichés, conventions, and innovations.
Back in 1998, my friends introduced me to the survival horror genre in the form of Resident Evil 2. I remember the hallway, screaming when the horde of bats breaks the glass. I remember the first encounter with the Licker on the ceiling, his sightless face locking onto yours, drool slavering from his jaws. I screamed, panicked, and was promptly eviscerated. These encounters and others carved themselves into my memory, making them pinnacle horror game moments. I still remember pausing the game to wipe sweat from the controllers.
So EA’s internally-developed Dead Space comes out Wednesday, and reviews have been a mixture of pretty positive and very positive. This is one I’ve got on my GameFly list rather than down as a purchase. Why? Because scary games make me tremble, and because I’m witholding judgment on the game’s overall quality until I hear a little more about it. EA is not, after all, really what one thinks of when one thinks of innovative …