As the title says, this is a pretty good game on its own merits. The controls feel nice, the graphics are gorgeous, and the gameplay is fun. The problem is that its the wrong kind of gameplay for a Dead Space game.
Dead Space is supposed to be survival horror. Isolation, limited resources, you should always be on edge for the next unexpected ambush by horrible grossly mutated monsters.This game does none of those things.
Instead you have a co-op, cover-based, shooter set in the Dead Space universe. You (should, as the game makes it painfully clear) have a buddy with you, resources are rarely in short supply (not even counting some of the ridiculously overpowered weaponry), and you will never be anxious about the next ambush.
Now comes my real bug-bear: the writing.
Dead Space 2 was one of my favorite stories to play in a game. The game's seemless blending of gameplay and cutscene, its enjoyable characters, and the awesome (and scary) moments will forever be some of my favorites. This game takes all that, balls it up, and throws it in the trash.
Lets take Ellie for example. In 2, she is a badass. She gets her eye stabbed out, and in response she beats her attacker down with a lead pipe before yelling that Isaac owes her a new eye. In the end of the game, she pulls off a Big Damn Heroes moment, rescues Isaac and snaps him out of his Heroic B.S.O.D..
In 3 she is a cliche, weak, emotional, damn near helpless Damsel in Distress who seems to always be on the verge of a complete breakdown. When I first played this game, I barely even realized it was the same character as before.
Her thing in 2 was she was a pilot. She manned the controls of whatever vehicle Isaac and Ellie were using, and Isaac manned the perverbal guns. In 3, she doesn't even get to do that. When they are using the Croizer to reach Tau Volantis, Isaac mans the controls and Carver mans the guns. Isaac would have been better used in an emergency repairman, while Ellie (the best trained pilot of the group) should have been manning the controls.
To make it worse, the game has a very forced love triangle, between Isaac, Ellie, and Ellie's new boyfriend: Norton. There is no reason for this except some forced drama. There is no twist, no unexpected turn. Isaac gets pissed that Ellie replaced him so quickly, Ellie is pissed that Isaac has PTSD, and Norton gets jealous and paranoid that Ellie might go back to Isaac. Norton eventually goes completely bonkers, tries to kill Isaac, and Isaac kills him in self-defense. Ellie gets upset and doesn't understand why Norton went insane even though she KNOWS what effect the Markers have on people.
Again, are we 100% sure Ellie in 3 is the same person as Ellie from 2?
Do I still play this game? Yes, but only because I love the idea of exploring/salvaging old abandoned space ships. So I just hang around the first few chapters. After that, the game has no interest from me.
A Good Shooter, But A Horrible Dead Space Game
As the title says, this is a pretty good game on its own merits. The controls feel nice, the graphics are gorgeous, and the gameplay is fun. The problem is that its the wrong kind of gameplay for a Dead Space game.
Dead Space is supposed to be survival horror. Isolation, limited resources, you should always be on edge for the next unexpected ambush by horrible grossly mutated monsters.This game does none of those things.
Instead you have a co-op, cover-based, shooter set in the Dead Space universe. You (should, as the game makes it painfully clear) have a buddy with you, resources are rarely in short supply (not even counting some of the ridiculously overpowered weaponry), and you will never be anxious about the next ambush.
Now comes my real bug-bear: the writing.
Dead Space 2 was one of my favorite stories to play in a game. The game's seemless blending of gameplay and cutscene, its enjoyable characters, and the awesome (and scary) moments will forever be some of my favorites. This game takes all that, balls it up, and throws it in the trash.
Lets take Ellie for example. In 2, she is a badass. She gets her eye stabbed out, and in response she beats her attacker down with a lead pipe before yelling that Isaac owes her a new eye. In the end of the game, she pulls off a Big Damn Heroes moment, rescues Isaac and snaps him out of his Heroic B.S.O.D..
In 3 she is a cliche, weak, emotional, damn near helpless Damsel in Distress who seems to always be on the verge of a complete breakdown. When I first played this game, I barely even realized it was the same character as before.
Her thing in 2 was she was a pilot. She manned the controls of whatever vehicle Isaac and Ellie were using, and Isaac manned the perverbal guns. In 3, she doesn't even get to do that. When they are using the Croizer to reach Tau Volantis, Isaac mans the controls and Carver mans the guns. Isaac would have been better used in an emergency repairman, while Ellie (the best trained pilot of the group) should have been manning the controls.
To make it worse, the game has a very forced love triangle, between Isaac, Ellie, and Ellie's new boyfriend: Norton. There is no reason for this except some forced drama. There is no twist, no unexpected turn. Isaac gets pissed that Ellie replaced him so quickly, Ellie is pissed that Isaac has PTSD, and Norton gets jealous and paranoid that Ellie might go back to Isaac. Norton eventually goes completely bonkers, tries to kill Isaac, and Isaac kills him in self-defense. Ellie gets upset and doesn't understand why Norton went insane even though she KNOWS what effect the Markers have on people.
Again, are we 100% sure Ellie in 3 is the same person as Ellie from 2?
Do I still play this game? Yes, but only because I love the idea of exploring/salvaging old abandoned space ships. So I just hang around the first few chapters. After that, the game has no interest from me.