It’s not much of a secret, but I’m what you might call a somewhat rabid Dead Space fan. I won’t bore you with the details, but suffice it to say I’ve played the hell out of the original game. Even through my adrenaline-fueled haze I could tell there were some faults, but that never kept me from beating it several times over. I never dabbled in the comics or novels, as my obsession is based entirely in the interactive end of the IP, but I’d still consider myself a huge Dead Space groupie.
Now Isaac Clarke is back: a mental patient in a space station hospital orbiting Saturn. A little wiser, much more talkative and steadily losing his grip on reality.
Right from the beginning it’s obvious that Dead Space 2 is determined to outshine its predecessor. There are set-piece moments to be found in practically every chapter, almost all of which will certainly get your blood pumping. We’re talking seriously amped-up events that make the showdown with the Leviathan look mundane by comparison. Thankfully, Dead Space 2 doesn’t rely on these scripted sequences to hold your interest. Trust me, you’ll be spending much more time slowly inching your way through dark corridors, desperately trying to cover every inch of the area at the same time with your puny flashlight.
One of the biggest concerns Dead Space fans had about this sequel was that it wouldn’t be as scary. There was talk of an increased focus on action, of “empowering the player” every once in a while, which made a lot of people (myself included) shudder in that special way reserved for a Capcom survival horror game. How justified your concerns are depends largely on what difficulty you decide to play on. Normal makes Dead Space 2 feel decidedly more action-y, but it still retains that tenseness and oppressive atmosphere. You’ll still get into tight spots, but more often than not there will always be just enough ammo and health to see you through. Zealot, on the other hand, is utterly nerve-wracking and terrifying. It’ll have you holding your breath as you enter each new area, jumping at every little shadow and noise, praying you don’t run into any angry corpses before you can find a little more ammo or one measly health pack. When people complain about their horror games offering up way too much ammo, they most certainly are not referring to Dead Space 2 on Zealot.
The core experience remains largely the same: Isaac has to dismember his attackers, complete various objectives and generally stay alive as much as possible. But before you start to think that this is just a retread of the same game we played back in 2008, you should also know that virtually every niggling issue people had with the first game has been addressed. Gone are the days of “This broke, go fix it!” Now your overall destinations and actions make more sense. In fact, most of the game sees you simply trying to reach a specific location or character rather than running all over creation in order to flip a couple switches. Both can be considered “go here and do this” kind of tasks, but given the circumstances it fits quite neatly into Dead Space 2‘s pacing.
Another major complaint was the fact that Isaac wasn’t so much a character as he was a sort of grunting meat-puppet. This is no longer the case. Isaac has finally found his voice, and while he won’t be spouting off dialogue like a futuristic Nathan Drake, the addition of an actual personality makes him a much more interesting protagonist. A protagonist that could have easily devolved into a macho man space marine badass, but has instead been finely tuned into a more believable and relatable everyman, just doing whatever he can to survive. It also allows for much more character interaction, letting Isaac carry on an honest-to-goodness conversation for once, with a stellar cast of supporting characters no less. Seriously, the script and voice acting is great. Exactly what you’d expect of a AAA title.
Diversity was yet another issue many had with the first game that has certainly been addressed. There are more tools at Isaac’s disposal this time, and virtually all of them are genuinely useful under different circumstances. Sure, the Plasma Cutter is still the default go-to, but even the flamethrower has its uses now. And pinning a necromorph to the wall with a Javelin, then using the alt-fire to fry any others that wander past is always a good time. The necromorph hordes have also seen more than a few additions, with newcomers like The Pack (groups of individually weak but vicious monster-children) and Pukers (ugly SOBs that vomit movement-impeding bile) getting the bulk of the media attention, pre-release. There are other new necromorph types as well, but those are best left a surprise. Even the environments have been given some much needed visual variety, as The Sprawl is an orbiting city rather than a derelict mining vessel.
Perhaps even more noteworthy than all of the tweaks to the original’s issues are all the little details. Things like the haunting wails of a presumably orphaned (and doomed) infant from behind an apartment door. Or the intricate way Isaac’s helmet unfolds around his head, revealing his face during certain cutscenes. Slashers also have a larger variety of models, which goes a long way to making it seem as though each one was once an individual person, as opposed to yet-another faceless corpse. They’re all small touches, but they go a long way to making the world seem much more solid. A personal favorite of mine is how Isaac will swear as he repeatedly stomps on a necromorph. It’s both satisfying and a little empowering to hear him scream “FUCK YOU!!” as you jam on a button and smash a tenacious Leaper into jelly.
In short, the single player campaign is phenomenal. The roughly 8 to 10 hour story is leaps and bounds more interesting this time around, with most of the exposition given through actual dialogue as opposed to reading and listening to scattered journal entries. All those audio and text logs are still present, but they exist to offer up more insight into the backstory. A few of them give some interesting insights on different characters, give nods to other Dead Space storylines and even answer a few questions about what the Marker is and why it affects people the way it does.
So yes, as a single player game Dead Space 2 is an exceptional experience. But as you’re probably aware, there’s also a multiplayer component. I’ll tell you right now, the multiplayer does not detracted from the single player game in the slightest, so no worries m’kay? The really odd thing is, it’s actually fun. Quite a lot of fun, even. Each match consists of two teams of up to four players each; one team as the human security forces who have to complete objective-based tasks in order to win, and the other as the necromorphs who simply try to keep the humans from succeeding. By slaughtering them like pigs. Pigs wrapped in space armor. At the end of every match players are awarded with experience that will increase their level, unlocking bonuses for the necromorphs, or new armor designs and secondary weapons for the security forces. It’s not super deep, but it does give you a sense of progression.
Controlling the humans can be a tense affair, especially if you end up being the “ball carrier” so to speak, as it impedes your movement and you’ll have to rely on your teammates to keep you alive. That teamwork is vital to your success. Playing it like a team deathmatch will only see you lose as your success is dependent upon completing your objectives, not racking up a big kill count. Conversely acting as the necromorphs is complete bloody chaos. You can’t heal and you aren’t very durable, but you can spawn from any of the multitude of vents found throughout a level and can usually see your targets from anywhere on the map, even through walls. There are no objectives to complete save one: prevent the humans from completing their mission. How do you do that? By mauling the shit out of them. There’s also a time-based tier of Necromorph classes to choose from with The Pack being the fastest to spawn, followed by Lurkers, Pukers and finally Spitters (Slashers that can spit, too). It’s a surprisingly effective simplification that has you making your choice based on the urgency of each situation.
Of course it’s obviously not going to garner as much online attention as those super-popular Eff-Pee-Ess games, but Dead Space 2‘s multiplayer is still a lot of fun. It’s hard not to get pulled in as you’re desperately willing a terminal to download faster while you hear your teammates screaming “Contact left!” and gunfire and explosions ring out around you. Or waiting for a hapless human to run around the corner so you can leap out and grab them, slowing them down long enough for your necro-siblings to catch up, while yelling “Eat his face!” into your headset microphone. Good times. Good times indeed.
Whether or not Dead Space 2 eclipses the original largely depends on the individual. There are certainly a wealth of improvements to be found, but some may find the emphasis on action off-putting. Also, as diverse as The Sprawl is, it isn’t quite as eerie and oppressive as the Ishimura was. Still, it’s a fantastic game. One that I’m completely comfortable calling my Favorite. Like, ever.
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Things We Liked: Virtually better everything. More enemy, suit and tool variety. Some seriously crazy moments. Isaac isn’t just an actual person this time, he’s a rather likable protagonist. Freedom in zero gravity areas is nifty. Chapter 10. Actually, Chapters 1 through 15.
Things We Disliked: A distinct “corridor shooter” feel at times. Zealot is brutally hard, which is even more noticeable during the unexpected difficulty spikes. Hardcore just seems unfair.
Target Audience: Fans of the original Dead Space for sure. Survival Horror enthusiasts will probably also find a lot to like here. Not your mom.
(Dead Space 2 – Developer: Visceral Games. Publisher: Electronic Arts. Available for PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 – 360 version reviewed. Unfamiliar with CFD!’s review system? Read our newly revised explanation here.)
