Dead Space
The player takes the role of Isaac Clarke (named after science fiction writers Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke), an engineer who must fight his way through a stricken mining ship infested with hostile, grotesque monstrosities called Necromorphs, which are human corpses transformed and reanimated by an unknown alien species. He also must battle a religious and a government conspiracy that will destroy the entire universe. The game features an 'over the shoulder' third-person perspective, similar to the gameplay in Resident Evil 4 and Gears of Wars.
The interface of Dead Space is unique in that it does not feature a traditional head-up display. Instead, all information is relayed to the player via holographic projections and the features on the suit and the weapons themselves. For example, a small display on the weapon shows the ammo count; also, the 'health meter' that indicates Isaac's condition is integrated into the spine of Isaac's armor and ranges from red (low/critical), yellow (half), to blue (full or near-full). Via floating holograms projected in front of Isaac, the player can check the current objectives and the 3D map, or access the inventory screen to manage items. Meanwhile, however, the game still progresses through time, and the player is always in danger of being attacked. The only menu in which the game is not still in progress is the pause menu and the save console menu.
Combat in Dead Space becomes complicated when Necromorphs do not simply "die" after receiving a certain number of gun rounds. In fact, depending on how they are wounded, Necromorphs can adopt new stances and tactics, even sprouting new limbs or giving birth in the process. To defeat the Necromorphs, Isaac must use "strategic dismemberment," the methodical severance of specific limbs or sections of the Necromorphs. A prime example of this is when fighting the Necromorph nicknamed "Pregnant". Shooting this Necromorph in the stomach will release a swarm of small parasite-like aliens or other forms of Necromorphs, but it is less cumbersome to carefully shoot off its large arms and killing it while leaving its stomach intact.
In keeping with Isaac's profession as an engineer rather than a soldier, the weapons in Dead Space are mostly improvised from mining tools such as a plasma cutter, a hydrazine torch used as a flamethrower, and a force cannon emitting powerful shock waves. However, a triple-barreled automatic military rifle is also available. All weapons feature a unique secondary-fire mode; for example, the plasma cutter can be rotated 90 degrees for an optimal angle, and the flamethrower can set fire traps. Like in many survival-horror video games, the player must scavenge for ammunition and other various items, which are found throughout the ship or dropped by Necromorphs when killed. Automated stores throughout the ship can be accessed to buy and sell items or store them for later use. Also, the player can use work benches and spend "power nodes" to upgrade Isaac's suit and weapons.
Other than weapons, Isaac is also equipped with other tools to help him survive, solve puzzles, and combat enemies more effectively. Stasis can be used in the game to slow down enemies and objects temporarily, and a kinesis module allows Isaac to pick up and throw items. Dead Space also features Zero gravity and decompressed environments, and Isaac can navigate through them using his pressurized suit and magnetic boots. Isaac will eventually suffocate while in a vacuum or a toxic environment as his suit can only contain a limited amount of air, so the player is forced to move faster when in these situations. Also, Isaac can jump from platform to platform in weightless enviroments. Some levels even lead out onto the surface of the ship's hull. Floating debris presents a hazard, however, and Isaac can lose his footing and simply float off into space.The USG Ishimura "Planet Cracker" ship, during the process of mining the planet of Aegis VII, sends out a distress signal to the Concordance Extraction Corporation (CEC). The CEC dispatches the USG Kellion to investigate. As the Kellion attempts to dock with the Ishimura, a malfunction occurs and the Kellion is badly damaged, and the crew begins to seek a means of return. As the crew explores the apparently abandoned Ishimura, they are attacked by Necromorphs, killing off all but Clarke, Hammond, and Daniels. Hammond recognizes that many of the Ishimura's systems are failing, threatening the ship due to a nearby asteroid belt, and sends Clarke around the ship to fix the core systems to keep them alive.
During these treks, Clarke discovers various text and audio logs scattered throughout the ship and pieces together the events that transpired on the ship before his arrival. He learns that there was a conspiracy about the mining operation, the Ishimura and the (CEC) were doing an illegal operation and the Captain of the Ishimura tried to cover it up, preventing any of the crew from calling for help, the crew began to suffer mental problems shortly after they brought a strange artifact called the Marker from Aegis VII on board the ship; shortly afterward, the Necromorphs appeared and began to kill or convert the rest of the crew. The Captain of the Ishimura went insane and tried to abandon the crew and bring the Marker to Earth, but was accidentally killed by Dr. Kyne. Though Hammond states he is unaware of what the Marker is, Daniels confides to Clarke that she believes Hammond is lying. Clarke also meets the insane Dr. Mercer, who believes humanity, under the Church of Unitology, should give in to the Necromorphs and desires to bring the Marker to Earth. Clarke encounters his girlfriend Nicole, one of the Ishimura's crew, though they are unable to meet.
With the critical systems repaired, the three are able to launch a beacon, attracting a nearby military ship, the USM Valor. However, the Valor, having picked up an escape pod launched by Hammond containing a Necromorph, has been overrun, and crashes into the Ishimura. Clarke and Hammond attempt to retrieve the Valor's power core to use it to power another shuttle off the Ishimura, but Hammond is killed in the effort. A surviving scientist, Dr. Kyne, contacts Clarke and urges him to return the Marker to Aegis VII, believing that it was a means of restraining the hive mind that controls the Necromorphs. After assisting Clarke in loading the Marker onto the shuttle, Kyne is murdered by Daniels, who reveals she is a government operative and plans to bring the Marker back to Earth. Daniels further reveals that the Marker is a reserve-engineered copy of an artifact found on Earth, and was placed on Aegis VII by the government to monitor its effects. Daniels leaves on the shuttle without Clarke, but Nicole is able to help him recall the shuttle.
Clarke takes the shuttle with the Marker to the mining colony on the surface of Aegis VII, and replaces it there. This pacifies the hive mind, but also disrupts gravity theters holding a large continent-sized portion of the planet several miles off the surface, causing it to start to fall back onto the planet and destroy the colony. As Clarke attempts escape, Daniels appears and takes the Marker back to the shuttle; she points out to Clarke that Nicole actually committed suicide before they arrived on the Ishimura, and Clarke's visions of her were the Marker's way of attempting to bring it back to the planet. Before she can leave, Daniels is killed by the hive mind, but Clarke is able to defeat it. Leaving the Marker behind, Clarke flies off in the shuttle before the colony is destroyed. As he sets course away from Aegis VII, Clarke begins thinking about Nicole, but is seemingly attacked by a Necromorph resembling her.
Characters
- Isaac Clarke - The main character and protagonist of the game. Isaac is a system ship specialist and an engineer traveling aboard the shuttle Kellion to investigate and repair the USG Ishimura, accompanied by three security personnel and a computer specialist. Unfortunately for them, they are thrust into the middle of the nightmare that the USG Ishimura has become. Clarke is also trying to find his girlfriend, Nicole, a medical specialist assigned to the ship, whose fate is unknown at the start of the game. Throughout the game, Isaac stumbles across a conspiracy involving the Church of Unitology, the government and the realm of possibilities.
- Kendra Daniels - Kendra is a technologist and part of the team sent aboard the Ishimura to repair communication systems. She helps the player through the Ishimura in many ways, giving directions and assisting through areas of the ship that would otherwise be inaccessible. She frequently expresses distrust of Hammond, but turns out to know more about the situation than anyone previously thought. SAG Nominated Best Actress Tonantzin Carmelo is the voice and likeness of Kendra.
- Zach Hammond - The senior security officer on board the Kellion who travels with both Isaac and Kendra to the Ishimura. Hammond's initial desire to complete the original mission and not immediately abort puts him at odds with Kendra, who finds this suspicious. Throughout the game, he works to fulfill their original mission, but as time goes on, he becomes more disillusioned and focuses instead on getting himself and the rest of the surviving team off the ship. Peter Mensah is the voice and likeness of Hammond.
- Dr. Challus Mercer - A doctor aboard the USG Ishimura, a devout Unitologist and one of the main antagonists of Dead Space. In the wake of the calamity that has gripped the Ishimura, Mercer has become a religious fanatic, attempting to convince the crew of the Ishimura to commit mass suicide. Mercer often works to bar the progress of Isaac and even attempts to kill him outright, sending a "prototype" regenerating Necromorph nicknamed "Hunter" after Isaac several times throughout the course of the game. To Mercer, everything that has happened is God's will; he insists repeatedly that Isaac should die and allow their "children" to take over. Dr. Mercer eventually submits himself to Necromorph transformation, though in-game actions can stop him from completing the process with no effect on the story, merely bypassing the conflict.
- Doctor Terrence Kyne - The Chief Science Officer of the Ishimura who appears later in the game and asks for help from the surviving members of the Kellion team. He seems to be a bit eccentric, perhaps deranged, but offers to aid Isaac in stopping the nightmare that has gripped the Aegis System and the Ishimura. Kyne attempted to relieve Captain Matthius of duty during the crisis on the ship, but instead seems to have been complicit in the captain's death either in whole or in part. He regularly interacts with his dead wife, an apparition caused by the Marker that can't be seen by the player. Keith Szarabajka is both the voice and likeness of Dr. Kyne.
- Nicole Brennan - Isaac's girlfriend and a medical specialist assigned to the Ishimura. The game starts with a video from Nicole, asking for help after the ship's infestation, establishing one of Clarke's reasons for coming to the Ishimura. He both sees and hears her as he moves through the ship and she repeatedly asks Isaac to "make us whole again." For the majority of the game her presence is questioned and her true fate is hinted at several times.
Necromorphs
The major threats of Dead Space are a species of violent aliens known as "Necromorphs", most of which are human corpses that have been reanimated by a strange alien microbe. The exact origin and nature of the organisms are unknown as of the events of Dead Space, but several logs and other information throughout the game explain as to how it was created or originated.
