Dead Space 3
PlayStation 3
Ever since the original Resident Evil hit the Playstation back in 1996, I have been an avid fan of horror themed video games. Basically anything that comes out in the genre, I pounce on immediately. So when I first caught wind of the original Dead Space several years back, I made a point to try it out.
Despite the critical acclaim, I was not as enamored with the game as everyone else seemed to be. Yeah, the graphics were fantastic and the game world was rich, detailed, and believable. And yeah there were some scary moments where creatures would pop out and make you jump. Yet for me, the game never quite hit the spot. Perhaps it was a little too action oriented. Perhaps to truly be enamored by a horror game like this, I have to care more about the storyline and the characters. And I didn't care enough about the story to truly become deeply involved. It was a decent game, but easily forgettable.
Dead Space 2 came along and was more of the same. Because of my lackluster attitude towards the series, I was in no rush to get Dead Space 3 when it came out. Yet I did eventually decide to give it a try. Here are my thoughts on the game.
Story:
Coming into this game, I had NO idea where the storyline had left off. In fact, I might as well get this complaint out of the way now. It has been a relatively recent trend in games such as this to tell you the story of the game while you are actually walking around and playing the game. Stories are told through audio journals or log books that you find along the way. Maybe over a communicator with a non playable character that you are interacting with. They do this in Doom, Bioshock, the Dead Space series, and several others.
The point is, you have to multitask while you are playing, or you miss key points of the plot. I have an extremely short attention span and tend to only be able to do one thing at a time. So if an audio journal starts up and I am trying to solve a puzzle, or am duking it out with a slew of monsters, I am going to miss everything that is being said. It always happens in games like this that I completely lose track of the plot and just end up playing to beat the game, with no investment in the story whatsoever.
That is what happened here. Since the very first Dead Space game, I basically have had no idea what is happening in the story, and that has caused an emotional disconnect from the games for me. Story is big in my books. Plus it has been so long between playing each iteration of the game, that what has happened is never fresh in my mind.
Despite the critical acclaim, I was not as enamored with the game as everyone else seemed to be. Yeah, the graphics were fantastic and the game world was rich, detailed, and believable. And yeah there were some scary moments where creatures would pop out and make you jump. Yet for me, the game never quite hit the spot. Perhaps it was a little too action oriented. Perhaps to truly be enamored by a horror game like this, I have to care more about the storyline and the characters. And I didn't care enough about the story to truly become deeply involved. It was a decent game, but easily forgettable.
Dead Space 2 came along and was more of the same. Because of my lackluster attitude towards the series, I was in no rush to get Dead Space 3 when it came out. Yet I did eventually decide to give it a try. Here are my thoughts on the game.
Story:
Coming into this game, I had NO idea where the storyline had left off. In fact, I might as well get this complaint out of the way now. It has been a relatively recent trend in games such as this to tell you the story of the game while you are actually walking around and playing the game. Stories are told through audio journals or log books that you find along the way. Maybe over a communicator with a non playable character that you are interacting with. They do this in Doom, Bioshock, the Dead Space series, and several others.
The point is, you have to multitask while you are playing, or you miss key points of the plot. I have an extremely short attention span and tend to only be able to do one thing at a time. So if an audio journal starts up and I am trying to solve a puzzle, or am duking it out with a slew of monsters, I am going to miss everything that is being said. It always happens in games like this that I completely lose track of the plot and just end up playing to beat the game, with no investment in the story whatsoever.
That is what happened here. Since the very first Dead Space game, I basically have had no idea what is happening in the story, and that has caused an emotional disconnect from the games for me. Story is big in my books. Plus it has been so long between playing each iteration of the game, that what has happened is never fresh in my mind.
Gameplay:
I came into Dead Space 3 with the idea in my head that I was going to give the series a fresh start. Maybe I couldn't remember what happened in the previous games, but I was going to pay attention this time around and at least enjoy the game as a solo experience. And it worked, for a while.
The first thing that stood out to me was the cinematography. This game has the looks and intensity to match any Hollywood movie out there. The action is intense, the sound effects are booming, and the graphics are flat out beautiful. I had no idea what was happening plot wise, but everything around me was so impressive in every technical aspect that it didn't matter to me.
After the introduction sequence, we finally get in to the meat of the game. Which, as it turns out, is exactly the same as the previous two games. Better get used to following a line and getting randomly ambushed by monsters. Because this happens... a lot. A lot lot. You can of course stray from the line, which indicates where you are "supposed" to go to advance the plot. You will find items, collectibles, upgrades, those blasted audio journals, among other things that attempt to give the game a little depth.
But the game quickly becomes repetitive and a bit of a chore to play. There are a lot of hallways. There are a lot of dark areas. The monsters come at you in waves, and of course in true Dead Space fashion it is always in your favor to pick off their limbs to kill or weaken them. Only a mere hour or two after starting the game, everything quickly devolves to moving from area to area, following the line and shooting monsters that come at you from all angles. And that's it for pretty much the whole game. The boss fights are pretty cool though.
Graphics:
On the plus side, the graphics in this game are simply stunning. I am hard pressed to find a better looking PS3 game. Truly, very impressive all the way around. The environments are great, both planetside and in space. Space itself was my favorite part of the game, floating around in zero G and checking shit out.
On the plus side, the graphics in this game are simply stunning. I am hard pressed to find a better looking PS3 game. Truly, very impressive all the way around. The environments are great, both planetside and in space. Space itself was my favorite part of the game, floating around in zero G and checking shit out.
So good.
Sound:
Everything sounds great as well. This is a game you need to play with headphones on. Just listen to all the small details. I love the sound of a fierce wind and the sharp crunch your feet make as you tread through the snow. The feeling the sound created when you are in zero G is amazing. Technically, this game is near flawless. Too bad it just wasn't that fun to me.
Overall:
I think I would have enjoyed this a little more if it had a great story. I did attempt to follow it at the beginning, but it quickly lost me. It didn't seem important anyway. It was up to the game play to carry this title for me, and it fell a bit short. It is just too darn repetitive. I wanted to like this game. Really. And at the beginning, I did. But the further I got, when I was looking for a video game to fire up in my free time, I would stay away from this one since it got to be such a drag. I eventually just forced myself to play it, if only to finish it off and get it out of my game rotation.
I think I would have enjoyed this a little more if it had a great story. I did attempt to follow it at the beginning, but it quickly lost me. It didn't seem important anyway. It was up to the game play to carry this title for me, and it fell a bit short. It is just too darn repetitive. I wanted to like this game. Really. And at the beginning, I did. But the further I got, when I was looking for a video game to fire up in my free time, I would stay away from this one since it got to be such a drag. I eventually just forced myself to play it, if only to finish it off and get it out of my game rotation.
If you have played the Dead Space games before, you know what you are getting here. If you like the previous games in the series, I see no reason why you wouldn't like this. Although I didn't like it much, I do realize that it isn't awful. There are redeeming features. Honestly, anyone can see how great the production values are. There is just some certain key element missing that isn't clicking with me. I don't know why, but I just wasn't enjoying myself.
If there is a Dead Space 4, I am sure I will play it. I will wait a few years after it comes out so I can play it cheap or for free. I will have completely forgotten every plot detail about the previous games. It will start up and I will say hey this isn't that bad. And then it will get repetitive and I will become disillusioned with the game and trudge through the end just to finish it off. It has happened with every game in the series so far, and seems like a cycle that is destined to not ever be broken.
Great presentation and great premise, but this one falls a bit short for me.
THE GRADE:
C-
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