Dead Space 2 Product Details

Released on 27/01/2011

• Dead Space 2 multiplayer takes shape

  Dead Space 2 multiplayer takes shape

  EA's sci-fi survival horror Dead Space 2 is getting multiplayer on this outing, by the looks of it. According to Gamernode (thanks for the spot, Eurogamer), the developers at Visceral games have been getting all deathmatchy with the sequel, and what they're planning sounds great.

  For the moment, all that's known is that EA has revealed that you'll be able to play as the Necromorphs - the horrible, mutated alien scum of the Dead Space universe - in Dead Space 2 in battles which pitch the grisly beasts against regular ?soldiers?. It sounds like there's going to have to be some pretty interesting balancing taking place to match melee-heavy nasties against more traditional squaddies, but if anybody can do it, it's probably Visceral Games.

  More multiplayer characters - and possibly some additional modes - will be unveiled in the near future. For the time being, however, it's worth remembering that the core of the game is still a brilliantly-paced survival horror as you explore a huge sci-fi city, taking on huge bosses and generally getting scared out of your wits.

  Dead Space 2 erupts on the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 on 28th January. We're already quaking.
  

• Dead Space 2 Scuttles Towards January 2011

  Poor old Isaac Clarke. In true Hollywood fashion, the sole survivor of the unpleasant necromorph infestation on the USG Ishimura is about to go through it all again, this time in a sprawling abandoned colony rather appropriately called The Sprawl.

  Odds of Isaac having time to do some shopping and meet up with friends for a latte? Slim, since those shambling, rotting meatsack alien entities are back again, forcing Isaac to clamp himself into his pressurised survival suit, slap on that tasteful bucket helmet and start carving the monsters up piece by piece all over again.

  We're promised new weapons but those sly foxes at Visceral Games, the studio responsible for Isaac's first bloodcurdling adventure and this sequel, aren't giving too much away just yet. A glimpse at the demo version running at E3 confirms some new creatures - including one that vomits caustic slime - as well as more gravity-free floaty combat and gigantic boss beasties.

  The story expands on the role of the sinister Church of Unitology, which lingered around the edges of the first game, and if you can't wait until Dead Space 2's newly announced January 2011 release date, you could always tide yourself over with the first spin-off novel, Dead Space: Martyr, which comes out in July.

  "Expect plot twists that will surprise you and a huge cast of twisted, disgusting monsters that are sure to scare the daylights out of you" says Executive Producer Steve Papoutsis. Sounds good to us.

• Dead Space 2 gets multiplayer

  Dead Space 2 gets multiplayer

  Everyone enjoyed Dead Space - if you can say that you enjoyed a game about racing around in the dark on a spooky, derelict space ship while monsters erupted from vents to give your face a good chewing on a regular basis. With a sequel - handily called Dead Space 2 - on the way, EA's just dropped some big news: the game's getting multiplayer. Good multiplayer.

  Dead Space 2's online component will allow you to play as either human security forces or the game's villainous alien Necromorphs, and you'll be battling it out across five maps which all have an objective for the humans to achieve - resetting a solar array, perhaps, or putting together an explosive. The Necromorphs have an objective, too - to stop the humans in their tracks and eat their brains. Fun.

  Playing as the aliens, you'll have four types of baddie to play as, ranging from the Lurker, who can climb walls, to the Pack - those hideous alien babies we don't like to think about too much. You can choose where to spawn on the map, and you'll be able to use your alien ways to ruin humanity's day. As a human, meanwhile, you'll have all the nasty weapons Isaac Clarke has at his disposal in the main game.

  Dead Space 2 hits the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360 next January.
  

• Dead Space 2 Review

  Isaac's alive and kicking

  The first Dead Space should, by rights have been a miserable failure. Designed by a studio known principally for licensed action games, yearly sports updates and uninspired sequels to workmanlike franchises, even the synopsis sounded tired.

  
  

  Wearing its influences not so much on its sleeve as slap bang in the middle of its forehead, here was a space horror game that owed its premise and ambiance to movies such as Alien and Event Horizon, and its mechanics to games such as Doom 3 and Resident Evil 4.

  
  

  And yet somehow the developer, in selecting the finest ingredients from its influences and introducing a clutch of fine ideas of its own, happened upon a space survival horror game that was both mesmerising and terrifying.

  
  

  This sequel picks up where the first game left off, following the tortured journey of Isaac Clark, a space engineer hero. In the first game Clark answered the distress call of a stranded spaceship, the USG Ishimura, to find its belly overrun by Necromorphs, reanimated human corpses with flailing limbs and dislocated, snapping jaws.

  
  

  Three years on from the events of Dead Space, and Isaac wakes in a psychiatric ward on a space station known only as The Sprawl. Now, instead of chasing after the promise of his lost girlfriend as in the first game, he is haunted by her, his decaying mind invaded by hellish visions.

  
  

  Aliens

  
  

  But not all of the hellish visions are of Isaac’s imagination. The Sprawl has also been overrun by Necromorphs and as soon as you break from the leather straps of your strait jacket, you’re right back into the action, working your way through dark corridors and eerie rooms as you search for a way out of both the situation and your own madness.

  
  Much of the emphasis is placed on combat. Isaac has access to various weapons, up to four of which can be equipped at any one time. In contrast to most shooting games, the weak spot on all Necromorphs is their limbs, and the quickest way to kill an enemy is to incapacitate them by shooting off their arms and legs and stomping on their head with a heavy boot.

  
  

  Additionally, Isaac can use telekinesis powers to lift objects in the environment up and fire them into enemies. Finally, a ‘statis’ shot, when accurately fired at an enemy, will stop them dead in their tracks for a few seconds, especially useful for taking down the Stalkers, mangy wolf-like creatures that sprint for your neck the moment you let your guard down.

  
  

  It’s not all tense shooting on The Sprawl, however, as numerous puzzles block your progress through the game. At times you’ll need to use your ‘Statis’ shots to, for example, slow the shuttering of a malfunctioning door while, at others, you’ll need to replace broken batteries with your telekinesis powers.

  The combination of combat, puzzles and, of course, those set pieces battles the first game executed so successfully make for a fresh, intriguing mix of play.

  
  

  Sounds of Silence

  
  

  Nevertheless, it's developer Visceral’s unrivalled ability to deliver an audio-visual treat wherein the game’s greatest appeal lies. The sound design is exemplary, rendering the muffled silence of floating through zero gravity space with just as much effectiveness as the stifled groans of unseen enemies.

  
  

  Likewise, Dead Space 2’s environment artists deliver a smorgasbord of interesting environments within The Sprawl, from tall ceilinged churches with intricate strained glass windows, to horror clichés such a nurseries.

  
  

  Best played at its hardest difficulty level with the lights turned off, Dead Space 2 is a ghost train ride of a experience, a tense horror game that plays games with your mind through sights and sounds, before trying to eat it out with a Necromorph bursting through a wall. Survival horror rarely epitomized its terms so well.

  
  

  Our Rating: 9

  
  

  Sheer Class

  + Unrivalled atmosphere.
  + AI design.
  + Exemplary sound design.

  
  

  Fear Class

  - Linear design.
  - Relies heavily on horror cliché.
  - Story is of mixed quality.

• Dead Space headed to cinemas?

  Dead Space 2 has just hit the PC, PS3 and Xbox 360, which is reason enough for rejoicing, but now there are hints flying about that the brilliant sci-fi horror series might make the leap to the silver screen.

  According to Eurogamer, Ian Milham, the series' art director over at Visceral Games has said the team would love to see Isaac Clarke's horrible battles against the mutated alien Necromorphs turning up at cinemas.

  "We would love to have a live action film and we've had a lot of discussion," Milham told the BBC, going on to add that any film would have to match the game's high standards. "One of the reasons Dead Space still exists and is popular is because we've made sure to do everything right, so we're doing the same with the film, not just a cheap cash-in but to do something really worthwhile, so we'll see."

  While we all wait for Hollywood's wheels to start turning, we've got the games themselves to play, of course, and Dead Space 2 has been racking up some stellar reviews. The horror sequel features a new environment to explore, plenty of fresh scares, and great online multiplayer.

• Test Drive Unlimited 2 zooms into pole position

  Eden Software's open-world racer Test Drive Unlimited 2 has left Dead Space 2 choking in its dust in its cruise to the top of the all-format charts.
  
  The game, which allows players to drive around the islands of Ibiza and Oahu, glided past EA's survival horror, which had to settle for second place after a two-week reign at the top. FIFA 11 also fell one place to third.
  
  Chart stalwarts Call of Duty: Black Ops and Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood rounded out the top five, while two Mario titles climbed to positions six and eight. Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Mini-Land Mayhem and Mario Sports Mix both enjoyed a second-week sales bump thanks to prominent television advertising, as they sandwiched Wii hit Just Dance 2 at seven.
  
  Grand Theft Auto IV: Complete Edition was the highest-climber in the list, rising 15 places to ninth spot, while LittleBigPlanet dropped five places to number 10. Publisher Namco-Bandai will no doubt be delighted to earn its first all-formats number one since acquiring Atari Europe. Sales of Test Drive Unlimited 2 were particularly impressive given the four year gap between the sequel and its predecessor, as it more than doubled the first-week tally of the 2006 original.
• Dead Space movie still happening, claims director

  During a promotional trip for his latest film, I Am Number Four, Hollywood director DJ Caruso claimed that the planned live-action Dead Space film was still in production.
  Speaking to AreaGames, the helmer who signed on to direct the film back in 2009 admitted ee working on the story./p>

  "We had one attempt of trying to do a prequel, but the story didn't quite work out as well as we wanted it to," Caruso continued. "But if we can capture how - I don't want to say, I guess, how scary or horrifying it would be to play that game because it's really, really fantastic - it'd be fun to make that into a movie."

  You'll find no arguments from us, here. The cinematic action featured in both Dead Space titles - not forgetting rail-shooter spin-off Extraction, of course - makes the franchise an obvious choice for a leap to the big screen. It seems the director shares the opinion of developer Visceral Games, who earlier maintained that the film would be omething really worthwhileand not ust a cheap cash-in

  Publisher Electronic Arts has partnered with producers of the Twilight series, Marty Bowen and Wyck Godfrey, on the film. Fingers crossed these story issues are sorted out and we can bring you more news on this potentially very exciting project.

• Cancelled third-person Call of Duty spin-off detailed at XP event

  Teasing details from the nameless Call of Duty spin-off, once under development at Sledgehammer, have been revealed at the Call of Duty XP event in Los Angeles.

  Talking to Gamerzines, Sledgehammer boss Glen Schofield described the aborted project as a third-person shooter, not set in the modern day. He went on to add "It had a lot of atmosphere like, I should say Dead Space a little bit because you were underground in some places. You know, war is hell, war is scary and that's what we were trying to get across. We did a tonne of research."

  The news is perhaps not particularly surprising both Schofield and fellow studio head Michael Condery set up Sledgehammer after working on Dead Space for EA at Visceral Games.

  The decision to cancel the game was theirs, he insists, and not an order from Activision's high command. The offer came through from Infinity Ward to help on Modern Warfare 3, and after talking it through with the Sledgehammer team, the changeover was made.

  Would a third-person Call of Duty have worked? We'll probably never know. What we do know is that Modern Warfare 3 is now just two months away from its November 8th release date. It'll be out on PS3, Xbox 360,and PC.

• Dead Space 2 named Xbox 360's scariest game

  The acclaimed horror game Dead Space 2 has been named the scariest title on Xbox 360 in a new study by usability studio Vertical Slice.

  Analysis featured on Gamasutra compared EA's sci-fi thriller to a number of other chilling titles - including Resident Evil 5, Alan Wake and Condemned - in order to find out how players reacted to it.

  It was found that both the hardcore and casual gamers who played the games rated Dead Space 2 as the most unsettling, with the experience eliciting various different types of fear response.

  The findings of the study showed the game's expertise in creating anticipation and tension, with periods of creeping build-up increasing the fear when the gruesome undead Necromorph attacked.

  Dead Space 2 was released earlier this year to strong sales and reviews, putting players in control of Isaac Clarke, a mentally damaged man who must flee a vast space station being plagued by an alien life form that reanimates the dead.

  It is available on PlayStation 3 and PC as well as Xbox 360.

  Published: 13/09/2011

• Dead Space 2 - Review

  
  

  

  Isaac's Alive and Kicking

  The first Dead Space should, by rights have been a miserable failure. Designed by a studio known principally for licensed action games, yearly sports updates and uninspired sequels to workmanlike franchises, even the synopsis sounded tired.

  Wearing its influences not so much on its sleeve as slap bang in the middle of its forehead, here was a space horror game that owed its premise and ambiance to movies such as Alien and Event Horizon, and its mechanics to games such as Doom 3 and Resident Evil 4.

  And yet somehow the developer, in selecting the finest ingredients from its influences and introducing a clutch of fine ideas of its own, happened upon a space survival horror game that was both mesmerising and terrifying.

  Dead Space 2 picks up where the first game left off, following the tortured journey of Isaac Clark, a space engineer hero. In the first game Clark answered the distress call of a stranded spaceship, the USG Ishimura, to find its belly overrun by Necromorphs, reanimated human corpses with flailing limbs and dislocated, snapping jaws.

  Three years on from the events of Dead Space, and Isaac wakes in a psychiatric ward on a space station known only as The Sprawl. Now, instead of chasing after the promise of his lost girlfriend as in the first game, he is haunted by her, his decaying mind invaded by hellish visions.

  Aliens

  But not all of the hellish visions are of Isaac's imagination. The Sprawl has also been overrun by Necromorphs and as soon as you break from the leather straps of your strait jacket, you're right back into the action, working your way through dark corridors and eerie rooms as you search for a way out of both the situation and your own madness.

  Much of the emphasis is placed on combat. Isaac has access to various weapons, up to four of which can be equipped at any one time. In contrast to most shooting games, the weak spot on all Necromorphs is their limbs, and the quickest way to kill an enemy is to incapacitate them by shooting off their arms and legs and stomping on their head with a heavy boot.

  Additionally, Isaac can use telekinesis powers to lift objects in the environment up and fire them into enemies. Finally, a 'statis' shot, when accurately fired at an enemy, will stop them dead in their tracks for a few seconds, especially useful for taking down the Stalkers, mangy wolf-like creatures that sprint for your neck the moment you let your guard down.

  It's not all tense shooting on The Sprawl, however, as numerous puzzles block your progress through the game. At times you'll need to use your 'Statis' shots to, for example, slow the shuttering of a malfunctioning door while, at others, you'll need to replace broken batteries with your telekinesis powers.

  The combination of combat, puzzles and, of course, those set pieces battles the first game executed so successfully make for a fresh, intriguing mix of play.

  Sounds of Silence

  Nevertheless, it's developer Visceral's unrivalled ability to deliver an audio-visual treat wherein the game's greatest appeal lies. The sound design is exemplary, rendering the muffled silence of floating through zero gravity space with just as much effectiveness as the stifled groans of unseen enemies.

  Likewise, Dead Space 2's environment artists deliver a smorgasbord of interesting environments within The Sprawl, from tall ceilinged churches with intricate strained glass windows, to horror clichés such a nurseries.

  Best played at its hardest difficulty level with the lights turned off, Dead Space 2 is a ghost train ride of a experience, a tense horror game that plays games with your mind through sights and sounds, before trying to eat it out with a Necromorph bursting through a wall. Survival horror rarely epitomized its terms so well.

  GAME's Verdict

  The Good:

  • Unrivalled atmosphere.
  • Lots of game modes to keep you busy.
  • Exemplary sound design.

  The Bad:

  • Linear design.
  • Relies heavily on horror clichés.
  • Story is of mixed quality.

  Published: 27/01/2011

• Dead Space is “ready made” for a movie, says John Carpenter

  Legendary horror director and avid gamer John Carpenter has said he would love to direct a Dead Space movie. The revelation came in an interview with Game Informer magazine.

  Carpenter is best known for such iconic fear flicks as Halloween, The Thing and The Fog, and he's a big fan of EA's sci-fi horror saga. "It's great," was Carpenter's verdict on Dead Space when asked about his favourite titles. "The first game was more - I guess it was like Alien - but not quite. It was a little different than that."

  Does this mean that the horror master would get behind the camera for a film version of Isaac Clarke's battle against the Necromorphs? It certainly sounds like it. "I maintain that Dead Space would just make a great movie because you have these people coming onto an abandoned, shut-down space ship and they have to start it up and something’s on board," Carpenter explains. "It's just great stuff. I would love to make Dead Space, I'll tell you that right now. That one is ready-made."

  This February saw the release of Dead Space 3, which introduced co-operative play and relocated the action to the icy planet of Tau Volantis. EA is already getting into the movie business, with a big screen version of Need for Speed currently in production starring Breaking Bad's Aaron Paul.

  Published: 09/05/2013

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