Boo! That’s basically the core of Dead Space 2: exploring a decrepit space-city while having monsters jump out at you. And it’s great.

Now I’ve heard the complaints of self-proclaimed survival horror fans: action games, such as Resident Evil 4 and Dead Space aren’t scary. And I totally disagree. The amount of times I found my heart in my throat was only matched by the amount of times I had to change pants. Basically, if you find Dead Space or Resident Evil 4 scary, expect to be frightened; if not, then you have nothing to fear.

 

The game picks up a few years after the first left off, with Isacc waking up in the city of Sprawl, located on one of Saturn’s moon. Unfortunately, all is not well. For you see, following the discovery of the Marker in the first Dead Space, Isaac has gone a little bit insane, which has caused him to be sent to a rehabilitation center. Upon awakening, Isaac finds himself being freed of his shackles by a friendly fellow. Unfortunately, he doesn’t have enough time to finish the job before your friend meets a devastating fate at the hands--or claws--of the Necromorphs. And thus begins one of the scariest introductions I’ve ever played: being forced to escape while confined to a straitjacket, completely helpless. Let me be clear, you’re trying to avoid being killed by several necromorphs while having no means in which to fight back. It’s terrifying, and brilliant.

 

Mercifully, you’re not left unequipped for the entire game, with many weapons eventually at your disposal. Some have been seen before, such as the most-excellent ripsaw, while others are brand new, such as the javelin. The weapons all feel rather pretty diverse, forcing you to think strategically about which to use in what situations, particularly as ammo conservation is critical.

In addition to weapons, Isaac also has two special powers at his command: Stasis and Telekinesis. Stasis temporarly slows down targeted enemies, while telekinesis can be used to pick up almost any object (including the limbs of your foes!) and hurl them as weapons. Both can be useful, though it’s often more difficult than it should be to grab the object you want with telekinesis, especially when it matters most: during battle.

Throughout your adventure, you’re able to upgrade your weapons, powers, and suit by using “Nodes” you find hidden about. You can these use these nodes and insert them within an upgrade tree for your item of choice, forcing you to think about what order to place them in, which can greatly impact when certain upgrades become available. It’s an enjoyable meta-game when compared to the standard “yes” or “no” upgrade options of most games.

 

One improvement made in Dead Space 2 is the manner in which enemies appear. While most are still trigger-based (that is, they appear right after interacting with something), the triggers are much less obvious than in Dead Space 1, where it felt like some monster would pop out every time you picked up a health pack. Everything feels a little more unpredictable now, and just that much scarier since you really never do know when something might happen.

Perhaps the most noticeable change since the first Dead Space is how zero-G functions. Instead of jumping across zero-gravity rooms in a straight line, Isaac is now equipped with a jetpack, allowing for complete freedom of movement. In this case, I don’t believe it’s for the better. Jumping in zero-gravity felt incredibly unique in Dead Space 1, forcing you to think carefully before you leapt, lest you be greeted by an ugly monster if you aim wrong. But now, not only has the jetpack thing been played out in myriad games before, but the fear is also reduced since you’re many times more maneuverable than in the past. And perhaps the biggest problem is how disorientating flying around can feel, particularly since Isaac often rotates so that the floor is up and visa-versa. Although there is a button that’ll orientate Issac to the ground, it’s only temporary and feels cumbersome.

Ratcheting up the terror are some fantastic visuals that truly convey the horrific environment you’re trapped within. The art design is really top-notch. With that said, the very setting of the game also restricts the amount of diversity within the environments. Don’t get me wrong, there are copious settings to explore, but they all kind of blur together into a mesh of dark and drab, lacking the creativity and variety found in the most recent Resident Evil games. A change of scenery really wouldn’t be such a bad thing.

 

Equally important is the excellent sound design. Although there isn’t much music to speak of, the sound effects serve as a constant reminder of the horrible situation Isaac is in. Arguably, the sound is the most frightening part of Dead Space--nothing is worse than hearing an enemy, but not seeing it. It’s terrifying to think that he could jump out at any moment, and when he finally does, rest assured it will also be accompanied by an even more jarring sound effect.

Dead Space 2 is a sequel that holds very true to the original, neither tampering with the core experience, nor offering anything drastically new. But what it does, it does very well. The game is just about as frightening as the first time we were introduced to the Necromorphs--a good thing, considering this is really the game’s primary draw. Marred by only a few flaws, this game is definitely worthy of a look from any fan of survival horror.




Dead Space stood out for being one of the few games to abstain from the unwritten rule that every shooter must include a multiplayer mode--a gutsy decision that EA is apparently regretting, as Dead Space 2 is no exception.

Thankfully, the multiplayer doesn’t feel entirely tacked-on and would actually feel pretty unique if it weren’t for the existence of Left4Dead, which uses a similar premise, but  only much expanded. Here, rounds consist of 8 people being split between two teams: One of humans, the other necromorphs. The humans goal is to complete a series of objectives (which change with the map) before time expires, while it’s the necromorphs goal to stop them. These objectives are generally limited to activating computer consoles (by helplessly standing in front of them for several seconds), or carrying something (which limits you to walking only) to a drop-off location. They’re not extremly varied, but they work.

To help complete their objectives, humans have access to a couple of weapons, stasis, telekinesis, and whatever health items they can find scattered about. Players on the necromorph side however, while having no inventory and limited attacks, can select from one of four types: Pack, Lurker, Puker, and Spitter. Each type feels very distinct, with the exception of the Puker and Spitter, which behave similarly.

 

I found both sides enjoyable to play as, with a slight preference for the necromorphs (especially the Pack and Lurker) since you can be a little more free-form in your attack, whereas the humans, by design, should be focused on completing their objectives. However, both sides featured some minor camera issues. If you’re being face-raped by a necromorph as a human, for example, the camera would switch to an angle in which the lifebar on your back can not be seen. This makes it impossible to tell whether you should waste a first aid kit to restore health until a second or two after you’ve flung the enemy off--which is still plenty of time in which to die. As for Necromorphs, I found the position of the camera sometimes too close which makes navigating the level a little more annoying than it should be, particularly in the case of the Lurker.

Speaking of the camera, one rather neat feature is the Necromorph’s ability to select a vent from which to spawn. Here’s how it works: after you choose your class, you’ll be given complete control of the camera, in which you can fly around and highlight the vent from which you spawn--even ones separated by walls! It’s a really cool idea and does add some strategy to the proceedings, as where you spawn is often a live or die decision.

One thing that Dead Space 2 multiplayer isn’t is frightening. While it retains the game’s excellent art and sound design, there’s just something about playing with other people--even if over the web--that removes all the fright and most of the tension. The sole exception is when you’re helplessly standing at a computer terminal trying to complete an objective, desperately glancing side to side, ever hopeful that no enemies attack. Lack of fear isn’t necessarily a negative--and to be fair, I’m not sure what EA could have done to avoid this--but it is something to note considering this is the basis of the game’s campaign mode.

All in all, Dead Space 2’s multiplayer is an offensive, and in fact, welcomed addition. While it lacks the depth of Left4Dead, and likely offers somewhat limited re-playability, it’s a well done--if limited--addition. While I wouldn’t recommend buying the game for the multiplayer alone, it’s certainly something that’ll provide a few extra hours of entrainment after completing the main game.