Starting with the technical details, I can find few flaws. The graphics are gorgeous. Particularly the user interface, or lack thereof. Health is shown as a meter on your suit, as is your Stasis (slow things down) energy. Ammo is shown on the guns. There is no mini map or other details obstructing your view. Everything is handled via small pop ups that show video feeds, and points of interaction. This is all handled as if the images are being projected in front of your character, Isaac. He even turns his head to look at whatever is playing in front of him. Also, since the game is third person, you can rotate your camera around the images to see it all from the back or sides. It's a small detail, but it is incredibly cool. the lack of a persistent UI adds to the immersion.
Speaking of immersion, I'm usually not a fan of 3rd person games, because there is seldom the same sense of being there as I find in a first person game. This is definitely not the case here. Everything is cinematic in Dead Space. Isaac reacts to everything that happens around him, and when Isaac dies, there are different sequences for each enemy. After beating the game the first time, I wandered around and let enemies kill me just so I could see all of them. Again, these are small details, but they add so much to the atmosphere of the game.
Again, I am brought back to the technical details. The graphics are incredibly realistic, which adds immensely to the atmosphere. The physics are refined and, again, realistic. Things move as you would expect them to if you were interacting with them in real life. The sound is spot on, sounding utterly terrific in 5.1. And the soundtrack is, well, intense.
All of these technical things come together to make for one visceral experience. There are so few games out nowadays that truly get my adrenaline pumping, drag me to the edge of my seat, grab me by the throat, and scream play me! This is one of those games. It's been a very long time since I have jumped out of my seat when playing a video game. It's been a very long time since I've started breathing heavily because the things going on onscreen were so intense. I'd often find myself after a particularly intense fight short of breath. Yes, it's that intense. The first time you fight off a tentacle attack (or the second or third for that matter), if your pulse is normal, you might not be human.
The storyline, while not particularly deep, is not exactly predictable and has some interesting twists. It is told much like the story from Bioshock, in that there are no real cinematics, only short, in-game cutscenes. There are audio and video logs that chronicle the events leading up to the disaster Isaac and crew are trying to clean up, and if you're interested, there are comics you can download through the Live Marketplace (free, no less) that fill in many of the back story gaps. Like I said, it's not particularly deep (especially where character development is concerned), but it is interesting.
The weapons in the game are unique and fun. They are, for the most part, well-tuned to fit in with the general theme of the combat, which involves dismembering enemies. This combat mechanic adds a surprising amount of depth, because if you aren't dismembering, you aren't doing a whole lot of damage. The amount it adds to the game, strategically speaking, is absurd. Shoot the wrong parts of an enemy and suddenly you are out of ammo and/or dead. Anyway, three weapons of note - I happen to think they're the best weapons in the game and are the only weapons I use:
- Plasma Cutter - Your first weapon. Weak at first, but once you upgrade it, it's a force to be reckoned with. It shoots a projectile that is perfect for dismembering enemies. Furthermore, the secondary fire allows you to change the projectile orientation (vertical or horizontal), which makes it even more useful as the enemies you encounter grow more diverse. Ammo for the gun is plentiful, and the clips are huge, so it takes up very little room in the inventory.
- Line Gun - While the name isn't exactly catchy, the gun is beyond useful. It's primary fire shoots a long horizontal projectile that will often de-leg an enemy with one shot. that in and of itself makes the gun amazing against some of the later, faster monsters. The secondary fire is a timed mine, which is great for taking out smaller beasties and wall clinging things. Ammo for the gun is in short supply and it takes up a lot of room in your inventory.
- Ripper - This is my personal favorite just because it's so damn much fun. The primary fire shoots a saw blade that hovers in the air a few feet in front of the gun so long as you hold the trigger down. The blades only last a certain length of time (that length of time is upgradable), but the blade is absolutely ridiculous when it comes to dismembering things quickly. Run up to an enemy aiming low, and the legs are just gone. You can easily take down multiple enemies with just one blade, which makes this great for saving space in your inventory for things like Line Gun ammo. The secondary fire is a mostly useless saw blade projectile that is akin to the Plasma Cutter shot, though less powerful.
Also, there is plenty of content available in the Marketplace for purchase (different armor, etc) but the armor and weapons you find/buy in the game (using money that doesn't come from your wallet) is more effective than what you buy using real money. Don't bother with any of the pay content on the Marketplace.
All told, this was the best pure gaming experience I had on the 360 all year. I would definitely recommend it to anybody looking for a good, intense horror game experience to bide the time until RE5 hits. It sets the bar exceptionally high for a survival horror game; RE5 has some big shoes to fill.
Score: 9.7/10
