B&B Dead Space

Welcome to Brew and Breakdown. Let’s begin.

Our game featured today is Dead Space. Wikipedia states, Dead Space is a 2023 survival horror game developed by Motive Studio and published by Electronic Arts. A remake of the 2008 game of the same name developed by EA Redwood Shores, it was released for PlayStation 5, Windows, and Xbox Series X and S on January 27, 2023. It is the first release in the Dead Space series since 2013's Dead Space 3. Like the original game, it is set on a mining spaceship overrun by deadly monsters called Necromorphs following the discovery of an artifact called the Marker. The player controls engineer Isaac Clarke as he navigates the spaceship and fights the Necromorphs while struggling with growing psychosis.

EA announced a remake of Dead Space in July 2021, to be developed by EA's Motive Studios. Among lead staff include senior producer Philippe Ducharme, creative director Roman Campos-Oriola, and art director Mike Yazijian, all who had worked on titles within the Dead Space series. The remake was built in the Frostbite Engine, rebuilding all the systems from scratch for it and introducing new features such as volumetric and dynamic lighting. The game also takes advantage of the newer consoles' solid-state drive systems to create a seamless experience between levels without any loading screens. Initially, EA had no plans to introduce microtransactions into the game, a decision that had also been made during the development of Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order.

Dead Space received generally positive reviews from critics, with general praise for its improved graphics, sound design, and improvements to the original.

Dead Space features various changes from the original game. Unlike in the original game where he was a silent protagonist, Isaac now has voice lines of his own. In addition, previous voice lines and conversations remade for the game were adjusted to include Isaac, allowing him to engage with, argue, and bond with the other characters. The game also features more gore than the original, introducing a "peeling" system in which the player can tear and destroy the bodies of the Necromorphs. Various weapons are more suitable for severing limbs, while others are more suitable for completely destroying bodies. The remake also improves on the "zero gravity" element of the original, providing Isaac with thrusters to freely move across designated areas of the Ishimura.

While featuring all the same suits and weapons from the original game, weapons can now be acquired by simply progressing through the story and do not need to be purchased at the suit kiosk using blueprints. While suits and weapons can still be upgraded with Power Nodes, they can only be fully upgraded by finding different suit blueprints or weapon parts that can be found in different areas of the ship. Weapon parts add on different upgrades, such as increased magazine size or better area-of-effect.

The USG Ishimura is featured as a singular environment that can be freely explored without impacting the main story. Divided into six sections (Engineering/Mining, Hydroponics, Flight Deck/Hangar, Medical, Crew Quarters, and Bridge), players can unlock different areas of the Ishimura by proceeding through the main story. While the ship’s tram system can still be used to move to different sections, they are no longer readily available and must be unlocked by proceeding through each section on foot. A new feature added is the ability to access locked doors and containers by rerouting the ship’s power through various junction boxes or by using a security clearance instead of having to sacrifice Power Nodes.

The Decision

Xbox Intel says, “Dead Space is scary science fiction greatness. Rampant with violence and pure psycho-horror. This title is not for the faint of heart. Within the first 20 minutes we were well on our way to not being the same, which is a good thing, if that’s your bag.” 

Brew and Breakdown gives this title 4.5 out of 5, Coffee Beans.

The show is over folks but loiter as long as you want.

Thank you for tuning in to Xbox Intel. Intel next time.