Dead Space 2

Dead Space 2 for PC, X360 and PS3 is the sequel to one of the biggest hits of 2008. It is a science-fiction third-person action game. The main task of the player is to fight mutants and survive. It was developed by Visceral Games, the creators of Dante’s Inferno, among other titles.

Plot

Three years have passed since the first contact with the mysterious obelisk called the Marker and the Necromorphs it controlled. After a long journey, Isaac Clarke ends up in the city of Sprawl. The story of that place reminds him of what has happened to countless little towns in the world. On Titan, one of Saturn’s moons, rich deposits of valuable minerals were discovered. In order to extract them, a mining settlement was established; soon, it grew to the size of a city.

During the exploration, we visit districts inhabited both by the richest and most prominent citizens—undoubtedly including representatives of the government and the church of Unitology — and the poor. In the course of the expedition, we traverse the public areas (shopping malls, churches, school) as well as the locations occupied by corporations and the political bodies. Contrary to what he had hoped for, even here fate caught up with Isaac. While in the original Dead Space we found ourselves on a spaceship overrun by monsters, in Sprawn, we are witnesses to how the plague starts its deadly course and how it spreads at an alarming rate, consuming further areas of the station.

In Dead Space 2, changes were introduced to Isaac himself as well as the game world’s structure which now consists of a significantly higher number of open rooms. While in the first installment of the series Issac was an undefined protagonist — he never spoke or showed emotion — in the sequel, he is a veteran and an authority who can boasts successes in fighting space mutants. Clarke also has a much larger influence on the course of the plot and, at the same time, is hardly able to tell reality from the hallucinations that haunt him.

Mechanics

Moreover, the developers decided to increase the combat dynamics and enrich the bestiary with several new enemies. These include the necrochildren that hunt in groups, Stalkers that haunt Isaac, and acid-spitting monsters. We kill Necromorphs with the weapons we already know as well as some that are completely new. The former include the Javelin Gun that can nail enemies to walls or the Seeker Rifle that is incredibly effective against monsters at a long range.

The environment interaction possibilities were greatly expanded and the controls were enhanced. Thanks to this, Isaac can now use body parts ripped from monsters as projectiles.

Game modes

Another novelty of Dead Space 2 for PC, X360 and PS3 is the multiplayer mode that allows us to assume the role of both humans and Necromorphs. In the former case, we join the security forces armed with fancy gadgets and weapons and try to fulfill the objectives of a given game mode. As the monsters, we have to stop the soldiers with varied abilities we have. Each of the four playable types of Necromorphs operates and attacks in a different way.

Last updated on 07 January 2011