The original Dead Space was a good game, although it had its share of flaws. By trying to reinsert horror into “Survival Horror”, Visceral made a game that was successful enough to guarantee a sequel. However is it any good? Does it live to the hype that was created and deliver an experience that is worthy of your time? Follow me as I go along this review and find out yourself.

In terms of plot, I found that Dead Space 2 delivers a good (although predictable) story but really shines in terms of characterization. If you’re not up to speed in terms of what happened in the original Dead Space, what you need to know going into this game is that the game revolves around engineer Isaac Clarke that, while on a routine fix-and-repair mission aboard the Ishimura, got sucked into a religious conspiracy revolving an item called the “marker”. This item drives people mad and turns them into flesh-eating monsters (think zombies).

All the while doing this, Isaac was also trying to find his girlfriend, Nicole, who worked as a medic on the ship. In the end, Isaac was the sole survivor, destroyed the marker and escaped on a small ship. Dead Space 2 takes place two years after these events and while the story is interesting, it won’t really surprise you, as you can easily predict what’s going to happen next (with the small exception of Isaac’s drama subplot) and that includes when monsters are going to strike. Besides that, the plot is good enough to keep you engaged and willing to see Isaac’s quest to an end no matter what the cost because the game does really well its part in making you hate the antagonists.

While the plot in Dead Space 2 is good, I believe what really shines in the game is the personal drama of Isaac. I can’t really remember a game in which I felt so sympathetic towards the main character and wanted to see his quest to the end. The change I believe worked better towards this end was giving Isaac an active voice. It really helped knowing what his feeling were on everything going on around him, instead of the “robot” that he was in the original game.

As it relates to gameplay, Dead Space 2 hasn’t really changed the formula from the original or other games in its genre. However you will find some welcome additions in this game such as the ability to fly when you are in Zero-G mode and can now hack terminals such as computers and locked doors.

The game has also inserted a few new enemies, necromorphs, to the collection.One of them being the infamous Stalker (which I affectionately call Ninja) that will, more often than not, drive you into rage as they attack in packs and most of the time behind your back. Dead Space 2 has also taken a more Resident Evil 4 approach on the gameplay, with ammo being plentiful during the whole game. What I didn’t like however was the overabundance and over-reliance on cheap scares. In the original game, they worked mostly because most of the time you weren’t expecting them, but in this game it starts to get a little tiresome.

In terms of sound, Dead Space 2 has really good voice-over and again, I think that Isaac Clarke voice is the one that shines and makes this game. All the other actors were still believable though, all-in-all I don’t think most gamers will have any problems with them. Just don’t expect a epic soundtrack. The game relies more on its atmosphere to shine and the few times you ear music it’s well suited for the occasion.

Multiplayer mode however, isn’t the strongest point of this game. The gameplay feels like a simple space-themed team A vs. team B scenario. There are 5 different locations to play and two teams: Sprawl Security Forces and Necromophs. Both  the Sprawl S.F. and Necromorph teams have objectives to complete in order to beat the scenarios, and there is a level up system that lets you unlock new powers/weapons. It isn’t innovative or new at all and you won’t find many reasons to keep going back to it.

Dead Space 2 is a game well worth your money and a very good experience overall that will leave you wanting more. This game’s only weaknesses are its predictable plot and weak multiplayer but still, that won’t detract your enjoyment of the game. Visceral has made an awesome comeback after the not-well-received Dante’s Inferno. Grab it when you can is my advice.

Score: 4.5/5

Review written by KezraPlanes/Nuno Sousa

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