Dead Space (2023)

The Dead Space series has a special place in my heart. It's such an obvious ripoff of things like Alien, Halo, and 2001: A Space Odyssey, but it takes those things, blends them together, and really makes something kind of interesting out of it. The emphasis on improvised weapons took what would could have just been a normal space survival horror game, and made it something with a really unique art direction. The Rig, plasma cutter, and the Marker are unmistakably Dead Space. I think the originality of the original game is exactly why this remake felt a little unimpressive to me.

To start off, this game is by no means bad. It's quite good, honesty. If you like survival horror and haven't played Dead Space (either version), you should. It could stand up with Resident Evil and Silent Hill as a pinnacle of the genre if EA weren't such psychopaths. My main problem with the remake though, it kinda just feels like a new coat of paint slapped onto a game from 2008. There was another high-profile survival horror remake that came out in 2023: Resident Evil 4 remake. Some people lamented the changes in that game, like that you don't run away from Robo-Salazar, or have the U3 fight even though that's present in the Separate Ways DLC, but I think I liked that game so much because of what they DID change. There are new enemy types, new story beats, characters get expanded on, new weapons, entirely new combat systems, and the original game came out a few years before Dead Space.

Comparatively, Dead Space 2023 really falls back on the same types of encounters that it did in the original. Any time you solve a puzzle, a horde of enemies are sure to attack. Big vents on the walls are just there so enemies can jump out from them. I'm not sure the few story beats that were changed are especially interesting, either. Though they don't hurt the game necessarily. I am a little torn on Isaac being voiced in this game, though. I love Isaac in Dead Space 2, but giving him a voice in DS1 kind of further emphasizes how ridiculous everything is. I always thought it was funny in the original how everyone depends on him to do basically everything, and he never voices concern, about the absurd weight put on his shoulders. In remake, though, he's always raring to do whatever needs to be done, except in one scene involving a nuclear bomb, which I did find very funny.

Giving Isaac a voice and face in Dead Space 2 seemed more appropriate since that story is more about Isaac, in a way that the first game isn't.

Let's move on to stuff that I did like.

I'm glad power node doors are gone, replaced by security clearance. The way the node doors worked in the old games seemed very poorly thought out. They almost always had another node in them, making the doors just a straight net gain of resources. And this way you can focus on upgrading weapons and your Rig.

Isaac now has his little jet boosters from DS2 in this. No more of that slow zero g jumping from the original.

The graphics are excellent. I was kind of stunned the first time I got inside from a space walk and found Isaac covered in frost, and then even moreso when the frost melted inside the ship, and Isaac had a nice misty sheen all over his Rig. The flesh physics on the Necromporphs are also superb. The way parts of them fall off, or when most of their flesh is gone, and they keep attacking as an animate skeleton. That stuff is very impressive.

Speaking of the Necromporphs, the enemy variety in these games was always great, and that keeps the encounters from getting boring. I never felt absolutely confident with my load out, which I think is good. The Plasma Cutter is probably the best weapon generally, but dealing with those little globby guys, it's nice to have the flame thrower or the Force Gun.

In summation: I'm very glad this franchise still has some life in it, ironic as that may seem. I really hope we can get more from it in the future and we will be made whole.

The end of my 2023 October Horrorthon couldn’t have ended on a better note.

With the original Dead Space being one of my absolute all-time horror favourites, I was skeptical. I’m almost always a firm believer in the ‘if it ain’t broke don’t fix it’ adage for games I like, and unless they are visibly dated in visuals or gameplay, I think remakes are largely unnecessary. Having played it again recently and written about it here, 2008 Dead Space didn’t noticeably suffer from any of these problems, so I didn’t see neither the need for a remake, nor why a studio like Motive should be given the reins to handle such an important horror IP.

I was unequivocally wrong on both fronts, and I’m super glad I was. Beyond being a fantastic remake, 2023 Dead Space is a homage to the original in every sense, comprehensively respectful of the source material. And right off the bat, my main worry, a fully voiced Isaac, not only did not bother me one bit, it was actually appreciated. They did a phenomenal job of reigning it in, threading a perfect line between vocal reactivity and silence, which kept it believable and contained. It was a sign of great things to come, and sure enough, the game just kept getting better and better: the visuals and atmosphere are on point: the soundscape is as visceral as ever; the music, at times almost Hitchcock-like, is pitch-perfect; the sense of claustrophobia is as intense as I remembered; the crisp cleanliness and interactive nature of the UI (something Dead Space has done better than most games to this day) is, once again, marvellous; the way they entangle level design with player movement, having you organically and relevantly go back to previous areas in order to unlock previously locked places, is as enjoyable as ever; and the story, twists and ending, true to the original material, hit almost all the right notes.

But beyond that, it’s what this remake actively improves upon that makes it seriously impressive. And above all else here stand the changes they made to the Zero G sections. These are significantly better control and navigation wise, to the point of, for the first time in a game, I actually enjoyed making my way through zero gravity. Incredible job. But there’s more: enemies are more menacing and incisive; loading screens are gone, making mission transition completely seamless; consumable item balance is perfectly tuned, and at higher difficulty levels, not once did I feel fully comfortable with the amount of ammo and health packs I had. Then, there are other things that add something without ruining or interfering with what was already there, and that at times even enhance it - a new crew member, slight changes in objectives, a couple of improvements to segments in some missions, extra content added for NG+, and a few side missions. This last aspect, along with a couple of main story moments, can sometimes make you feel like you’re doing a bit of busy work, but they are completely optional and, in my opinion, add more than what they may take away in terms of flow.

So with all that said, hats off to Motive. They have delivered one of the most competent remakes I have ever had the pleasure of playing, one which leads me to say something I never thought I’d say before: as much as my love for the original will never die, the Dead Space Remake is now the definitive way to play this game, and it will certainly be a horror experience I will keep coming back to, time and time again. 9.5/10

My feelings here are simple. I had a fun time, I was spooked, and playing in the dark with headphones was great. Probably closer to a 3.5 / 5

Never played the original so don't have much to compare to.

The story was a bit flat for me. It seemed obvious something was wrong with the main characters girlfriend the whole time? None of the twists surprised me.

To me the assignment here was to make game play fun and to create a spooky atmosphere which it excelled in. Everything else I could give or take.

Honestly the best part for me was the sound design. Totally creepy an enveloping.

Started the Dead Space remake and it's a total joy so far. I'm on Chapter 4 which I think is nearly the halfway point. I played through the original on PS3 a few times so I know the game decently well but it's been a very long time since then, so a lot of what might be from the original game seems new to me. For example, I don't know if the score is identical or remastered or what but it's excellent. If it's the same as the original, then I'm just in a place where I'm noticing its presence much more and appreciating it on whole new level.

I know for sure some parts are reworked or modified in some way and they're great. There's some really cool attention to detail. For example, when the ship blows up, you can boost up to the wreckage and find the charred corpse of your fellow crewmate. Grisly, but interesting. And the added dialogue, in addition to Isaac being a spoken protagonist, really fleshes out the characters and even though I know the character's fate, I'm especially fond of Hammond. He's very likable this time around.

I thought this would be a carbon copy of the original - and that would have been more than fine with me - but turns out it's actually a substantial improvement upon the original.

EA, please give us a Dead Space 2 remake, and then bless us with a miracle of a reworked Dead Space 3. Take my money and make that happen.

Well that was creepy and gross and fun. I hope this emboldens the developers to create a full-on new chapter in Dead Space that can take advantage of modern hardware and build out the world much more. I realize Callisto Protocol was a spiritual successor and even though I didn't play the game I am even more disappointed in the negative reception.

That being said, I am fairly disappointed by the ending of Dead Space. It pretty much comes out of left field and doesn't earn the plot twist. It is unfortunate because I could have seen it done well as a 6th sense style reveal wherein the clues were there the whole time. They had tons of audio and text logs and didn't focus on the main plot element enough.

However, overall I enjoyed it.

Dead Space is a really solid game in many ways. It's fun as a third-person shooter, with satisfying combat mechanics, varied enemy designs, and nice-feeling controls. Its mix of bloody sci-fi action thriller with elements of psychological horror and survival horror game design is mostly a success. The visual detail, lighting, sound design, and overall layout of the areas you explore make them really immersive. Exploring the ship flows well, and does a good job rewarding you even if you go the "wrong" way. In general, it has a nice control over the ups and downs of its intensity level that keeps things moving without ever getting truly boring or tiring.

As good as the game can be at a fundamental level, it does stumble in a few areas. The middle hours of the game blend together a bit visually and fall into some overly predictable formulas in their mission design and storytelling. The kinesis and stasis powers could have made this stuff feel more varied, but they feel underdeveloped, as you'll use them for the same basic stuff at the end of the game as you did at the start. Then by the end they're just throwing more and more of the same enemies at you, often in forced "you're locked in this room until they're dead" encounters, and even this fun combat can only stay novel for so long.

The story lays the foreshadowing on a bit too thick, keeps a lot of its intrigue separate from the main action with you as an observer via FaceTime while waiting for doors to unlock, and lacks characters that I really cared about, so as a result some of its big moments fall flat. The remake gives the formerly silent protagonist a voice, a mostly-successful conversion, but not every moment translates well and he's still a bit of a bland character for me. The game is better when it leans into feelings of isolation and mystery, so I wish it would lay off the talking for longer periods of time. Overall though, it's a decently engaging story with some unexpected extra layers, and delivers some nice big memorable setpiece moments.

Some little stuff about the game still understandably feels "Xbox 360-ish", but the majority holds up well, especially once you layer on some of the little changes from this remake. It's not a Resident Evil 2-level reimagining, nor would I say it's as good as a game like that, but I would say it justifies itself as a remake / very high-effort remaster for a game that many felt didn't need updating. Worth picking up, especially once it goes on sale down in that $35-50 range.

Wait, are the monsters supposed to be able to attack you while you're shopping because here I was just browsing the store and started to hear a screeching sound then saw a claw at the side of me, tried to get out of the store as fast as I could but the fcker got a few hits on me then I wasted ammo blasting at it in a panic.

I'm actually scared to shop now keep hearing creepy music like I'm being attacked when I go to use the store :(

Great game for people who never heard or played the original Dead Space, highly recommended. But for people who already played it (especially big DS fans like me), this game will be a great dissapointment. I replayed original Dead Space last Spring and after that remake looked and felt exactly the same, just with better graphics (which you couldnt tell about great Residen Evil 2 remake).

Dead Space remake for me is a lazy cash grab and good example of what modern gaming industry became in last few years, highly dissapointing. Although i have to say that it has some new scenes and main character learned to talk, but still it isn't worth 60$. Literally all good things this game has are all thanks to it's predecessor, original Dead Space is awesome without any remakes.

If modern game developers really wanted to revive great projects of old, they would do this with old game that dont work on modern hardware, but it would need lots of work and dedication, to build a game from nothing. Taking successful game and giving it some lights, 4k resolution and slapping 60$ price tag on it is way easier.