Dead Space

Raz Review: "This is a survival horror game that got it right. It'll scare the crap out of anyone who isn't completely desensitized to horror - and even those folks will end up jumping in their seats more than once before laughing nervously and settling back into the game.

Scary factor: Dead Space nails it from the beginning. No lengthy introduction - just a short trip through hyperspace and a crash landing, and you're on board the Ishimura...along with a host of alien zombies. Zombies in space; it sounds odd but damn, it works. Not your typical slow-moving "braaains" zombies, either - these suckers are FAST. I really can't express how disturbing it is to have two blade-limbed monstrosities streaking toward you at inhuman speeds out of nowhere, only to turn around and discover an even nastier one right behind you.

It's not predictable, though; sometimes you'll pick up a seemingly innocent item only to have it trigger a lockdown and a wave of nasties, and sometimes you'll flip an obviously dangerous switch...only to sit there with your finger shaking on the trigger as absolutely nothing happens.

Innovations: To make the experience as visceral as possible, you don't have an HUD cluttering up the screen. Instead, your health, energy and air are displayed as part of your suit - just look at your back to see if a boost is needed. Your inventory, map, data logs and so forth are displayed as a holographic projection from your character IN REAL TIME. That means you can't stop in the middle of battle to browse for that energy pack - you need to find somewhere safe to pause and rummage. I like that; it brings another element of realism to the game and makes it a little more challenging without being annoying. The interface takes a little getting used to, but the learning curve is extremely fair; so don't worry.

There are also two kinds of 'special environments' - zero gravity and vacuum. Zero-grav rooms allow you to jump to pretty much any surface (wall, ceiling, floor), and the physics on this look pretty good. Vacuum will start your air counter; you'll start to choke with about 30 seconds left, but oxygen stations and Air Canisters boost the amount of time you can spend in these areas. Your suit's oxygen capacity can also be upgraded.

The coolest innovation by far is the fact that center-of-mass shots don't do very much in this game; from the beginning, the focus is on what they call 'strategic dismemberment'. That's right - gibs galore! These things are like organic Terminators; shoot their legs off and they'll pull themselves toward you with their arms. The difficulty setting, I discovered, determines how many limbs you'll have to sever before the vile critters finally die. On easy, all it takes is a couple kneecaps. Normal setting means you'll have to take at least one arm as well. Hard likely requires complete dismemberment.

With over 12 campaign levels (multiple missions in each) and three difficulty settings, there's plenty of gameplay value - you won't beat this in a night like some other games I could mention. EA really put the polish on this one. If you don't own it yet, I only have one question: what planet are you from?"

Online: No
Rated: 9/10