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Dead Space 3
The original Dead Space, despite its shortcomings, still ranks as one of my favorite games and provided me with more scares than I care to admit. While cautious about its sequel, it too eventually won me over even with its tendency to lean more to the action side of the genre. Dead Space 3 however had me worried when talk of "broadening the fan base" and co-operative multiplayer started emerging. The fact that it launched with nearly a dozen DLC packs available to purchase doesn't help either.
After a short prologue, we rejoin Isaac Clarke the engineer turned action hero who is now trying to put the whole necromorph business behind him. It's been two months since the events of the last game and apparently his romantic interest has given up on him in order to pursue the mysterious alien markers that have been causing all the fuss. It's not long before Isaac is persuaded by what's left of EarthGov to go help ex-sweetheart who has apparently discovered a marker homeworld. The Unitologists however are not fond of this idea and turn the full force of their righteous wrath on Isaac who they see as a heretic. The over the top storyline is a far cry from the "lonely traveler in the dark" but it is hardly surprising in this era of Hollywood wannabe blockbuster games. The fact that the writers even managed to work in a corny and clichéd love triangle shows just how far out of touch this game is with its roots. After taking their inspiration for the necromorphs from the 1982 science fiction horror movie, The Thing the writers have now come a full circle by setting the latter half of the game on the frozen planet of Tau Volantis. Fortunately you still get to explore a creepy, derelict space ship, the CMS Roanoke that is crawling with necromorph. Once you touch down on the planet however and start taking out Unitologist soldiers while taking cover and rolling around you might start checking the game box just to make sure that you are still playing a Dead Space game. The isolation and suspense of the original soon turns into a distant memory. If all you expect from your third person shooters is an endless supply of cannon fodder to mow down then you have come to the right place. Every vent in this game is infested with necromorphs and you are regularly locked inside rooms crawling with the things. Enemies attack in droves giving you ample opportunity to try out all the new weapon combinations that the new crafting system allows. While you can only carry two weapons, you are able to select the primary and secondary firing modes which in essence allow you to use four weapons at a time. Ammunition is also now generic so no more looking for the right bullets for whatever gun you are carrying. If you do run out of ammo the resource gathering and crafting system enables you to simple create more once you find a bench. Semiconducters, tungsten, somatic gel, scrap metal and transducers can now be shot and trampled out of enemy bodies in order to build the gun you have always wanted. If you prefer not to get your boots dirty you can use your new scavenger bot to go searching for loot which it will then return to the nearest bench for your crafting pleasure. Or if you are really lazy you can simply buy the resources straight from EA using real cash. If you are desperate enough to do that however Farmville might be a better choice of game for you. The bulk of the DLC packs also focus on upgrading the speeding and capacity of the bot so EA clearly believes that weapon and item crafting is the next cash cow. Personally I got most of my resources from stomping everything in sight and perform the optional side quests that usually led to a room full of monsters and a nice chest full of loot. Visually the game is not exactly cutting edge but looked better than what I had feared based on some comments by EA. It's a console port for sure but at least you can tweak most of the settings. I even managed to adjust the field of vision to a more comfortable level through some file editing. The action sequences and Hollywood style boss battles are fun but predictable so the campaign can feel like it is dragging on after a while. Most of your missions are fetch quests that require you to trample back and forth but at least it enables you to stock up on resources. Isaac is also separated from his group a record number of times by collapsing structures or convenient explosions. It is also quite funny how your partner mysteriously materializes at certain points if you are not playing in co-op only to bugger off again afterwards. Speaking of co-op, I didn't try out this mode for myself but did encounter a few instances where I was told that the section ahead was available in co-op only. While this is probably good news for those who like co-op games, I was less impressed. The audio is decent although the "action" music that starts up every time the necromorphs make an appearance can become a bit tedious. Since you know for a fact that a monster is going to pop out of every vent you encounter it kind of loses its suspense. It's quite funny killing all the creatures before the music even has time to start up properly and then listen as it limply cuts off. The voice acting is good although I feel sorry for the voice actors. Some of their lines, especially the forced romance sound very awkward. It was also very distracting to hear the main villain Danik being voiced by the same guy who provided Kain from the Legacy of Kain series with his vocals. The sound effects and ambient noises are pretty solid though and overall the audio is decent. The controls are also not too bad and I had no problem using a keyboard and mouse. While there were one or two jump scares in the game, the emphasis is firmly on action. Climbing up canyons, rappelling down ravines and dodging all manner of falling things are the order of the day. The less said about the final boss battle the better. While I would be lying if I said that I didn't have fun with the game, it didn't exactly grip me either and the story held very little interest. Action junkies should have a ball however but it is sad to see the franchise attempting to broaden its appeal by turning its back on its roots. 
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System Requirements
TAGS: Dead Space 3, Isaac Clark, Markers, Necromorphs, John Carver, Tau Volantis, Ellie Langford
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