Dead Space 2- review

            After much annoyance I decided to trade in DC Universe online as well as a few other games and get this one instead.  It turned out it was a smart trade in. I really enjoyed the survival horror game that was its predecessor.  One thing that made it work so well was that it worked much like Resident Evil 4…IN SPACE!

            One of the major differences is instead of a plague it involves a strange marker that was found on a distant planet that has caused an alien infection.  There is a ship called the USG Ishimura that is about as well lit as Nostromo in “Alien”.  The character Isaac Clark had to get on board in an attempt to find out what happened and hopefully find his girlfriend.  He comes out the lone survivor and quite insane.

            So what is new?  Well for one thing Dead Space 2 added on the prequel Dead Space: Extraction which normally costs money on the Playstation Network.  So it’s like getting a free extra game.  Pretty keen.  It’s also got a multiplayer option so the replay has grown quite a bit.  The game it self does raise the bar quite a bit.

            There are less stupid back and forth puzzles which make the game feel much smoother and less tedious.  But the challenge is there in much more frustrating ways.  The necromorphs attack in the dark form just flying out the walls and ammo is much scarcer in this sequel.  It makes things a lot tenser.  They also made zero gravity sections a lot more intricate.  You can now move all over rather than just jump form wall to wall. 

            The story is good but I still have no damn idea how the marker works.  It intrigues me more than annoys me though.  I’ve played the prequel now, Dead Space and now Dead Space 2 and then there is the animated movie called “Dead Space: Downfall”.  It’s ok if you enjoy the series.  But I still don’t get it. 

            Mostly I wonder if the original marker is human origin or alien.  The game really does well showing Isaac’s grip on reality is slipping. He hallucinates constantly and the entire beginning he starts in a straight jacket.  It makes avoiding the necromorphs a bitch since he can’t use his arms. 

            All in all it’s a fun game.  If you loved the first you’ll love this one.  If you are in the mood for something scary to play it’ll make you jump.  There is a lot of blood and oodles of jump scares and really great scares that come out from all just about anywhere.  The bar has certainly been raised.  It’s a great game and is like playing a really great sci-fi horror movie.