It’s time for a change; normally I use this segment as a vehicle to evoke some lost nostalgia, a dormant memory of some great game finally coming back to life after ‘x’ number of years. But not this time. This article will be devoted to something more current; an encounter I had with a game a few years ago that struck a chord and will probably continue to stay with me until the next release in the series. This is a title I would define as stone cold brilliant; a recent triumph that every gamer should play no matter what the format; the epitome of modern day survival horror. This game is Dead Space.

To start off with I would like to admit something; I was late coming to this. As is the norm my life generally consists of waking up, going to work, chasing women around bars (that’s figurative) and squeezing in some gaming over the weekend if I’m lucky. Things weren’t and aren’t always this way but you get the gist. My affinity with the computer/video game has changed over the last fifteen years. I constantly hanker for the old days; the feeling I used to get when buying a new piece of software, the giddy sensation that built throughout the week leading up to the purchase and the joy of getting it home and finally placing it in the disk tray. Somehow over time that’s diminished. Hopefully that’s because I’m becoming less materialistic, but most likely it’s due to the fact that as we age priorities inevitably change. It takes a lot to get me excited these days; something has got to be really special to make me want to spend forty quid right out of the gate.

Dead Space didn’t start this way. I’d heard rumblings of it around 2008: EA’s take on 3^rd-person survival horror; quality production values mingling with intuitive gameplay. It sounded positive, but for some reason I wasn’t prepared to believe the hype (a mentality born after being burned by several Electronic Arts games over the past decade – ‘FIFA ’06: Road to the World Cup’ anyone?). On a random Saturday afternoon’s shopping I was in a town centre (which coincidently housed not one but two ‘Game’ stores) and whilst diligently perusing the pre-owned section happen to chance upon a copy of said game for £12 (a healthy price I think you’ll agree). Fumbling for several minutes with my wallet I eventually produced the money, and lo and behold my copy of Dead Space was in the bag (literally). Arriving home half an hour later I shot straight to the DVD tower (which at that point contained roughly sixty games) and gently placed it into the designated space near the top. And that’s where Dead Space would stay…for about two years. It just sat there in the rack, slightly above Project Gotham Racing 4, starring at me for about twenty four months, before finally, on a drunken night last summer, I decided to free it from its captivity. I’m not overstating this. It was one of the best gaming decisions I have ever made.

Dead Space plays beautifully; a delicate balancing act of horror, action and light RPG, all wrapped in a pseudo Event Horizon/Aliens spin-off. If ever a game came close to a genuine interactive movie this is it. From the opening sequences to the final curtain the immersion is never broken; you are Isaac Clarke, you are trapped on that spaceship and by God you will want to complete the game. Whilst I want to wax lyrical about how great it looks and sounds (and will do later on) the real pleasure you get from Dead Space is noticing all the little details the developers have brought to the table. Unsure of where to go next? Click the right analogue stick to be shown the way. Hate the way menu screens interrupt things and snatch you out of the action? Press the Y button to bring up Isaac’s in-game personal inventory. The game challenges you but never at your own expense, rewarding thoughtful play and always treating the gamer with respect. I genuinely found it difficult to play any other action game at the time as half the mechanics Dead Space used would be missing. Why aren’t more games made like this?

That’s not to say every inch of it was revolutionary. Things like telekinesis had been done countless times before but never with such grace or polish. As my best friend eloquently stated at the time, EA’s killer app is undeniably ‘clever’. Of course the first thing anyone notices about a video game is the presentation and Dead Space has this covered in spades. Atmospheric lighting, moody art direction and heart stopping sound effects; it’s the total package in terms of look and feel. If you were having a friend over who had never played an Xbox 360/PS3/PC and you only had time so show one game this would be it. (Seeing things run on a high end PC for the first time is awe-inspiring- your jaw will literally not leave the ground). Pound for pound even Batman: Arkham Asylum and its sequel can’t hold a candle to the value for money this represents. And that’s the real icing on the cake; DS blows the competition right out of the water. There’s so much quality crammed into one disk you can’t help but fall in love with it (or wet yourself uncontrollably in fear and excitement). If I was reviewing it today it would be difficult not to give it something ridiculous like 98%.

How then to sum up such a masterstroke? Dead Space is a feat of engineering. A fully-realized, genuinely scary campaign that puts nearly everything else to shame. It’s the game Resident Evil wishes it was. It’s up there with Metal Gear Sold, Mario and The Legend of Zelda. Hell, for some at least, it may even be better than The Legend of Zelda…