This Week In Cheap Gaming: Dead Space

In hopes of starting a new little featured weekly article, I am introducing the first in GamerFront’s “This Week In Cheap Gaming” series of articles for those who like to play great games, and spend little money. This week’s choice: Dead Space from Visceral Games on the Xbox 360 and PS3.

I’ve long since been a fan of the survival horror and sci-fi genres of gaming. When I found out about Dead Space needless to say I was consumed. The idea of a survival horror game in space was like stumbling on a gaming epiphany for me. I loved the storyline of the game, and the more screenshots and gameplay I saw, the more I knew I had to get my hands on the game. As soon as I was able, I grabbed the game and sat down to play. Little did I know I shouldn’t have tried playing it in the dark.

Dead Space follows the story of an engineer named Isaac Clarke who is part of a repair team that responds to a distress signal sent out by a space vessel known as the USG Ishimura. The team’s mission is to set foot on the Ishimura, determine the reason for the distress call, and repair the ship if needed. Isaac, however, has a bit more of a personal stake in the mission, as his girlfriend Nicole was assigned to the Ishimura as an operating medical officer.

Once aboard the ship, the team runs across a swarm of alien-infested beings known as Necromorphs that have completely consumed the entire crew. The Necromorphs seek out the flesh of the living, thus making them a very dangerous foe. Isaac then takes on the responsibility of getting the Ishimura up and running, all while looking for Nicole and battling the Necromorphs. The storyline is a well-written one that explains itself through dialogue, text entries that Isaac stumbles across, and audio logs that he finds while on the ship.

The gameplay follows your normal survival horror shooter. Isaac finds weapons on the Ishimura that he must learn to use in order to survive, including a plasma cutter, buzz saw launcher, and an assault rifle. Players can pick up credits scattered among the remains of the ship and its crew, and use them in stores located throughout the ship to purchase suit upgrades, med packs, ammo, and much more.

With a unique upgrade system that uses “power nodes” to unlock features of Isaac’s suit and weaponry, Dead Space provides players with a unique way to play the game, making for a different run every time. Players can upgrade Isaac’s abilities (such as time-slowing stasis, or the ability to breathe longer in zero-gravity areas), as well as the abilities of weaponry (such as bigger clips, and higher damage rates).

Dead Space has a great way of keeping players on their toes with the scare factor. Enemies will break out of seemingly nowhere, and chase Isaac mercilessly. The game is not for the faint-hearted, I will admit. For about the first month I was playing the game I couldn’t play in complete darkness like I usually am able to. Dead Space did a great job of keeping me on my toes.

With a price tag of about $18, Dead Space is a great game under $20 to own. With the release of Dead Space 2 on the way later this month, it’s a great time to try out the series to see if it fits your gaming style. I recommend this game to any of you out there who like interesting, unique games, survival horror, and/or sci-fi games. It’s a great buy that I strongly believe you won’t regret.

Until next week my fellow money-saving gamers!