Dead Space (stylized as DEAD SPACE) is
a survival horror third-person shooter video game, developed by EA
Redwood Shores (now known as Visceral Games) for Microsoft Windows,
PlayStation 3, Blackberry Playbook and Xbox 360. The game was made
available on Steam on October 20, 2008. The player takes on the role of
engineer Isaac Clarke, who battles a parasitic alien infestation which
turns humans into grotesque monsters called "Necromorphs", aboard an
interstellar mining ship, the USG Ishimura.
The game was met with positive critical reception, and has sold over 2 million copies. A sequel, Dead Space 2, was released on January 25, 2011.
Gameplay:
The player controls Isaac Clarke (named after science fiction writers Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke),
an engineer who must fight his way through a mining starship infested
with hostile, grotesque monstrosities called Necromorphs, which are
reanimated human corpses. The game is played from an "over the shoulder"
third-person perspective.
Dead
Space does not feature a traditional heads-up display. Instead, all
information is relayed to the player via holographic projections from
Isaac's "RIG" (Resource Integration Gear) spacesuit and the weapons
themselves. For example, a small holographic display on the weapon
shows the ammunition count; also, the "health meter" that indicates
Isaac's condition is integrated into the suit spine.
Via floating holograms projected in front of Isaac, the player can
check the current objectives and the 3D map, or access the inventory
screen to manage items. However, the game still progresses in real time,
so the player is in danger of being attacked while doing this.
Combat
involves a mechanism called "strategic dismemberment", in which the
player must cut off limbs or sections of the Necromorphs to defeat
them. For example, shooting certain Necromorphs in the head will have
little effect, and they will continue attacking the player unless their
limbs are removed instead.Depending
on how they are wounded, Necromorphs can adopt new stances and
tactics, even sprouting new limbs or giving birth to new enemies in the
process.Every
Necromorph is also programmed with at least one unique way of killing
Isaac himself, should the player fail to defeat them.
In keeping with Isaac's profession as an engineer rather than a soldier, the weapons in Dead Space are mostly improvised from mining tools,
such as a plasma cutter, rotary saw, a hydrazine torch used as a
flamethrower, a high-power energy beam called the contact beam, and a
force cannon that emits powerful shock waves. A military-grade automatic
rifle is also available. All weapons feature a secondary-fire mode;
for example, the plasma cutter can be rotated 90 degrees for an optimal
angle for more effective dismemberment of vertical limbs (such as legs
on a normal bipedal humanoid).The
player must scavenge for ammunition and other various items, which are
found throughout the ship or dropped by Necromorphs when killed.
Automated stores throughout the ship can be accessed to buy and sell
items or store them for later use. Also, the player can use work benches
and use "power nodes" to upgrade Isaac's suit and weapons.
Other
than weapons, Isaac is also equipped with other tools to help him
survive, solve puzzles, and combat enemies more effectively. Isaac's
Stasis ability can be used to slow down enemies and objects
temporarily, and a Kinesis module allows Isaac to pick up and throw
items, which also allows him to impale Necromorphs.
Dead Space also features vacuum and zero gravity environments, and
Isaac can navigate through them using his pressurized suit and magnetic
boots. Isaac will
eventually suffocate while in a vacuum or a toxic environment as his
suit can only contain a limited amount of air, so the player is forced
to proceed quickly when in these situations. Also, Isaac can jump from
platform to platform in weightless environments. Some levels even lead
out onto the surface of the ship's hull, where the player must watch
out for floating debris that may cause Isaac to lose his footing.
Characters:
Isaac Clarke
– The main character and silent protagonist of the game. Isaac is a
ship system specialist and an engineer traveling aboard the shuttle USG
Kellion to investigate and repair the USG Ishimura. Clarke is also
trying to find his girlfriend, Nicole, a medical specialist assigned to
the ship, whose fate is unknown at the start of the game. Throughout
the game, Isaac stumbles across a conspiracy involving the Church of
Unitology and the Earth government.
Kendra Daniels – Kendra
is a technologist and part of the team sent aboard the Ishimura to
repair communication systems. She is one of the game's main
protagonists and later the main human antagonist. She helps the player
through the Ishimura in many ways, giving directions and assisting
through areas of the ship that would otherwise be inaccessible.
Tonantzin Carmelo provides her likeness and voice.
Zach Hammond – The
senior security officer on board the Kellion who travels with Isaac and
Kendra to the Ishimura. Hammond's initial desire to complete the
original mission and not immediately abort puts him at odds with
Kendra, who finds this suspicious. Throughout the game, he works to
fulfill the original mission, but as time goes on, he becomes more
disillusioned and focuses instead on getting himself and the rest of
the team off the ship. Peter Mensah provides his likeness and voice.
Dr. Challus Mercer - A
doctor aboard the USG Ishimura, a devout Unitologist and one of the main
antagonists of Dead Space. In the wake of the calamity that has gripped
the Ishimura, Mercer has become a religious fanatic, attempting to
convince the crew to commit mass suicide. Navid Negahban provides his
likeness and voice.
Doctor Terrence Kyne –
The Chief Science Officer of the Ishimura who appears later in the game
and asks for help from the surviving members of the Kellion team. It is
later discovered that he is responsible for the sabotage of most of
the ship systems that Isaac repairs. He is suffering from dementia but
offers to aid Isaac in stopping the nightmare that has gripped the
Aegis system and the Ishimura. Kyne attempted to relieve Captain
Matthius of duty during the crisis on the ship, but instead seems to
have been complicit in the captain's death. He regularly interacts with
his dead wife, an apparition caused by the Red Marker that cannot be
seen by the player. Keith Szarabajka provides his likeness and voice in
the video game and the animated film Dead Space: Downfall.
Nicole Brennan – A
medical officer assigned to the Ishimura who has a deep relationship
with Isaac. The game starts with a video from Nicole, asking for help
after the ship's infestation, establishing one of Clarke's reasons for
coming to the Ishimura. He meets and receives messages from Nicole
several times as he moves through the ship. Iyari Limon provides her
likeness and voice.
Trailer:
System Requirement:
Windows XP/Vista
Processor Pentium 4 @ 2.8 GHz
Memory: 1 Gb
Hard Drive: 8 Gb free
File Size: 15,761 kb
