Chance of the calendar, Dead Space Remake is coming to an end just a few weeks after the release of The Callisto Protocol, a new license founded by the alumni of Visceral Games, the studio to which we owe the first Dead Space trilogy. It must be said that at the time, EA’s expectations were very (too?) ambitious and despite a commercial success (the third episode having sold more than five million copies, which makes it the best-selling game of the trilogy), the studio was closed and the license put aside. If The Callisto Protocol has managed to find its audience (despite a mixed critical reception) all eyes are now on the remake of the first Dead Space. For the best or for the worst ?
Once upon a time in space
Isaac Clarke, our protagonist, is arguably one of the world’s most famous and unlucky engineers. Initially left to carry out maintenance work on the USG Ishimura, a gigantic cargo ship responsible for mining asteroids, he and his crew quickly realize that the distress signal emitted by the building is not ordinary.
Death and desolation await them once there, as many parts of the ship are destroyed and corpses litter the halls of the space base. You say to yourself that we can hardly do worse? Think again, because the dead do not remain inanimate for long, the evil present (of course at the origin of the damage of the Ishimura) is of an extraterrestrial nature and capable of waking the deceased, putting us at full speed in the face of a threat horror based on decomposing flesh, tentacles and various hooks. Our hero of misfortune will have to brave many trials in order to repair the ship and find the source of this disaster.
The story does not change or changes little compared to the original version released in 2008. Some additions in the narration here and there are felt, such as a more important place given to certain secondary characters or the presence of the Monolith from this first episode, the meaning of which we will keep silent so as not to spoil the discovery. We feel a desire to link the story of the first part more closely to the rest of the trilogy, a desire that does not stop at the screenplay.
Elements taken from 2 and 3
How not to mention it directly since it is the first scene of the game. Our hero, Isaac Clarke, now has a face and a voice! Completely mute (aside from his grunts) in the original game, he was given individuality in Dead Space 2 and 3.
The studio has therefore taken on the same face and the same voice (Gunner Wright, dubber of the suites) in order to finally confer a specific personality on our favorite engineer. Communications are now in the form of dialogue, with Isaac often having a say in the situation. The whole thing makes the narration more fluid, blurring the feeling of directing a robot only capable of respecting orders.
Another addition borrowed from the following episodes, the ability to use its propellant and move freely in zero gravity areas. Historically, it was only possible to launch from wall to wall during these phases in space, here we can move wherever we want. These passages are also incredible from a visual point of view, each time offering a unique and varied spectacle.
However, we regret a slight lack of clarity in these new sections, especially when we are attacked by an enemy, the threat can come from all sides.
But the changes don’t stop there. If we can qualify this remake as a modernized vision of the original title (the game has been completely redone under Frostbite Engine), it allows itself several well-felt additions that go beyond the visual order. Our weapons benefit from an alternative fire, for example the flamethrower can now create a barrier of fire. Similarly, the submachine gun is equipped with a grenade launcher.
These secondary shots reinforce the diversity of approach of the different weapons, without breaking the balance or the difficulty of the game, thus offering other effective ways to apprehend the confrontations with the necromorphs. Especially since these are ferocious and numerous.
In my ruthless vessel
The structure of Dead Space first of the name was segmented in the form of chapters, with a clean break from one to the other. This is no longer the case. We can now easily retrace our steps thanks to the tram (which was already present at the time, but which only served as a transition from the end/beginning of the chapter).
Some accesses and passages now require a specific accreditation, which we unlock as the adventure progresses, which prohibits certain accesses during our first passage and forces us to retrace our steps if we want to explore everything. . This very light metroidvania approach offers a more organic and open to adventure progression, which is also taken into account by the enemies. Gone are the scripted encounters, necromorphs can now spawn anywhere thanks to a new AI system that takes into account our life and remaining ammo to send nice little monsters our way. This forces us to remain cautious, even when revisiting known passages.
Regarding the clashes, we take the bases that made the glory of the series, that is to say the dismemberment of our enemies. Isaac’s main weapon is a plasma cutter, which can be oriented either vertically or horizontally, allowing it to slice the legs and claws of necromorphs in order to slow them down and then trample them in close combat. The new graphics also allow us to estimate the damage suffered by enemies based on apparent muscles and bones.
Added to all this are many more impressive weapons than each other, for an arsenal that is intended to be complementary. We also very quickly have access to telekinesis powers, whether to stop time or to send objects, very practical in certain situations. Overall the gameplay is pleasantly modernized, the heaviness and rigidity of our protagonist remain present without hindering the fluidity of the game.
All this equipment, our weapons like our armor can be improved via a skill point system which has also been revised, simplified in order to go to the essentials in terms of increasing our statistics.
A rendering worthy of 2023?
We come to the most important section in the context of a remake like this, the graphics and the overall performance of the title. It’s hard to remain unmoved by the work done by Motive, the studio behind this remake, as the final rendering screams the teams’ passion for the source material. Each zone, corridor or walkway testifies to the care taken in reinterpreting this now classic.
The lighting effects are particularly impressive, the game playing with the contrast between light areas and shadow areas to create surprise, the only source of light being often that of the flashlight present on our weapon. The same goes for the many particle effects, which give a lot of relief to the graphics. The atmosphere is almost palpable in certain scenes, we stop regularly to take advantage of the graphic rendering and the claustrophobic anguish that we feel while walking through the maze of corridors of the Ishimura is always very present.
Ditto for the sound part which manages to reinforce the intensity of the scenes of suspense. Hearing horrified screams behind the doors or the monsters crawling through the air pipes literally chills our blood. We recommend (or advise against, depending on your ability to manage your fear) to play it with headphones for maximum thrills.
On the graphics side, the game offers two options: quality mode and performance mode.
If the performance option really convinced us, displaying a stable framerate at 60 while enjoying a 2K resolution, the quality mode seemed less constant. No bugs on the horizon, the version provided to us shines with its high quality finish. Only small downside, the loading times which last almost a minute, we had almost lost the habit with the current generation of consoles.
The art of a good remake?
Then comes the eternal question: can we justify the full price for a remake of this type? This question has already caused a lot of ink to flow, especially during the release of the recent The Last of Us: Part I, which charged a price similar to this remake of Dead Space, also for a narrative single-player game of around ten hours.
The debate remains the same and the answer will undoubtedly vary according to your budget, but for us yes, in this case the quality offered is sufficient to pass or return to the checkout. Because we are not only dealing with an exemplary remake, but also with one of the best survival horror available on the market. Seeing quite simply one of the best current solo experiences, as long as you like to be scared.
Test conducted on Xbox Series X.
