Motive’s Dead Space remake is completely putrid in each method, and its tackle gory horror recreation carnage is entrance and centre from the get-go. Yet, whereas the blood-splattered partitions of the USG Ishimura set the stage for a revamped sequel, I’m itching to play a Dead Space prequel and discover the mining vessel earlier than the proverbial hits the fan.
Before I dive into why now’s the proper time for a Dead Space prequel, it’s solely proper to acknowledge EA’s spin-off from 2009. By rights, Dead Space: Extraction is a precursor to the unique, and provides us a motion-controlled glimpse at occasions earlier than Isaac Clarke’s actually dangerous day at work. The identical applies to the animated movie, Dead Space: Downfall, however Motive arguably now has an opportunity to current a prelude from a recent perspective utilizing its refined mechanics and gorgeous visuals.
Again, there’s nothing inherently unsuitable with earlier Dead Space prequels, however they’re not what I crave from the sequence as a horror fan. Sure, the backdrop journey to Aegis VII to retrieve the mysterious marker feels so much like the primary act in Ridley Scott’s Alien, and all hell breaks free later similarly. I nonetheless need that affect to stay, however Motive might accomplish that far more with the best way the sport arrives at its chest-burster scene equal.
Naturally, the Dead Space remake is functionally completely different below the hood, and its new peeling system provides substance to the gory glow-up. The mechanic utterly uplifts the unique recreation’s glorious tackle physique horror, but it surely’s laborious to understand how grotesque it’s through the chaos of survival fight. Letting the participant expertise life on an untainted model of the Ishimura first might assist create the proper build-up to an iconic inciting incident, one which influences the very best horror video games of tomorrow.
Even with out its blood-soaked partitions, the Ishimura is a sci-fi capitalist hellhole, including gore solely serves to distance any emotions of consolation or security. Facilitating each in a Dead Space prequel is admittedly a tough job, however Bioshock Infinite’s ‘Burial at Sea’ proves you possibly can take away the surface-level horror from a disturbing recreation world. Life nearly feels too regular throughout the DLC’s tackle Rapture, a vibe that in the end provides spice to the eventual environmental U-turn.
That’s precisely what I need from an unscathed USG Ishimura – a functioning ship that looks like a standard office, albeit with worrying undertones. Working lights? Check. Living co-workers? Check. Dead Space not often provides gamers an opportunity to breathe, even whereas dwelling inside “protected” areas. However, if Motive was to provide the aforementioned Alien-inspired incident the punch it deserves in a prequel, initially slowing issues down to supply a false sense of safety would function an eerie catalyst.
Slowing right down to “take pleasure in” the view gained’t be to everybody’s tastes, even when EA’s Frostbite Engine is visually scrumptious. While I don’t suppose gameplay ought to remotely take a backseat inside a Dead Space prequel, slowing gamers down will present them with an excuse to understand Motive’s meticulous consideration to element and construct stress. There’s nothing creepier than catching a silent glimpse of one thing out of the nook of your eye, and creating that sense of participant doubt and dread will solely bolster its personal grotesque flip of occasions.
I’m not saying Dead Space wants its personal John Hurt, nor am I implying I need that very same stunning setup. Instead, I’d wish to see one thing that recognises why Ridley Scott’s scene makes an impression, because it’s as a lot about context as it’s about creepy little puppets creating physique cavities. Simply put, I wish to really feel like my protagonist is protected and sound within the firm of their colleagues, solely to inevitably watch helplessly as that aforementioned peeling mechanic rips by means of the flesh of on-screen mates, remodelling their malformed our bodies into one thing incomprehensible.
I gained’t delve into which particular characters I’d wish to see in a Dead Space prequel, however giving a ragtag band of blue-collar staff we will fall heartbreakingly in love with would assist hammer dwelling the above targets. In a kind of Star Wars: Rogue One vogue, I don’t suppose anybody /ought to/ survive Ishinmura’s outbreak, however I wish to discover myself egging on each helpless crewmate proper right down to the necessary remaining woman, solely to have hope slowly snatched away by mutating flesh and bone.
If you want a visible help for the above, you must look no additional than Dead Space 2. Visceral Games’ authentic sequel teases us with the prospect of a companion within the opening act, solely to power us to look at as tentacles rip out of their as soon as pleasant brow. Emulating this kind of supply in a prequel would hit a lot more durable because of Motive’s peeling system, and giving us a doomed solid to dote over would make it much more heart-wrenching.
Of course, you would apply the above to the following chapter, and the remake’s composer says EA ought to “skip forward” to Dead Space 4. Still, it looks like now’s the fitting time to delve into prequel territory, and it’d give the sequence an opportunity to color its gnarly narrative, physique horror, and world-building onto a brand-new canvas.
