Dead Space: The Animated Rollercoaster Ride

I have a very curious relationship with the Dead Space series; ever since the original game I've grown excited about it's concept, quality and execution...but I never buy one. Usually that kind of fervor always turns into a purchase; but I'm content with just renting them, enjoying the hell out of it and then summarily writing them off as a disposable experience. I think it's an age thing; I can appreciate and have a good time with something and not feel the need to own it.

Maybe disposable wasn't an appropriate term, I think everyone who owns a Wii should play Dead Space: Extraction; not just because it's an interesting evolution in what we think a light gun game is, but because it takes the term "guided experience" in a direction that doesn't make the use of quotations seem like it has a negative connotation.

What's awesome is that Extraction is a Dead Space game through and through. When you get past the fact that you can't control your character, you begin to realize that through its themes, its strategic combat and its ability to use the same visual style without losing any fidelity that this is meant to be as respected as it's graphically superior forbearer. It's a deliberate design decision that uses the type of care I wish more developers would use when making games for the Wii.

As lovingly crafted as it is, I have a hard time digging into the Dead Space mythology in the way that the developers want me to; which may be the root as to why these games are rentals and not purchases in my book. There's a whole history behind the Marker and the necromorphs, the religion behind it and the true scientific reasonings for it all; unfortunately I just see it as the videogame equivalent to a slasher flick...in space. While I can appreciate the various logs you can pick up (I especially liked the audio ones that played through the remotes speakers)...I just don't care. I know enough that I enjoy going from beginning to end and that's all that's really needed.

It's funny to write that because so much of Extraction is about the interplay between your character and the band of misfits he accrues as they try to make their escape from an overrun planetside colony to the what they think is the safety of the U.S.G. Ishimura, the iconic mining ship that's turning into the games' defining mark. Like any good slasher, each member of your entourage comes from different walks of life and social castes, each contributing in some way to the overall story arch and helping progress the game. By progress I mean helping open doors or giving you boosts into vents; you're on your own with the combat. Barring the "it's just a game" moments like that, it definitely gives off a foreboding vibe and a healthy fear of being alone. Assuming you let the game move you in that way, anyways.

The fact that I was the only one bothering to save our hides by blasting alien scum didn't bother me because the combat is so, for a lack of a better term and a undying need to add a pun in this post somewhere, visceral. When levels weren't being moved along by verbal repartee, you're gratifyingly dismembering necromorphs for fun and survival. Granted, you don't have the ability to back away or find cover in any form, but the combat from the original game has carried over verbatim. Dismembering monsters isn't particularly innovative and it's definitely not rocket science, but it is extremely satisfying to freeze them in mid-lunge with your stasis power and calculatedly remove each limb before they come back. Which, in some cases, still isn't the end for them. That's kind of why I'm loathe to call this a light gun game, because there's a lot of ways to tackle battles than the usual "shoot them in the head and ask questions later" motif they usually carry.

Further removing it from that genre is the variety of weapons in your arsenal and the fact that you can upgrade in ways that feel substantial. Granted, you only get power boosts and larger clips; but it's felt through game play and doesn't feel superficial. I wish that the majority of the guns showed up earlier; after about level 5 I didn't care about what was introduced because I was afraid that they weren't as powerful as the ones I'd been carrying since the beginning. That wasn't a deal-breaker though; I came across a similar issue with the original game, that being I tended to stick with the default armament from beginning to end. While I still think the plasma cutter is the more symbolic six shooter, Extraction decided to one-up it's mundanity by giving you a rivet gun. Although, on second thought, it would have been amazing had you been able to staple baddies to walls.

Another layer of depth comes from the fact that there's an abundance of resource management as you move through the levels. Considering the game is basically an on-rails set piece rollercoaster, it could be distracting at times. Besides ammo and health, you also track down the ubiquitous logs I mentioned earlier. While an interesting idea, it removes you from the story being told because you're too busy trying to grab things rather than look at the NPCs emotive faces. I could see the logs as being a good excuse to replay the game; but unless they were convenient, I wouldn't grab them. Which, now that I think about it, is probably the reason I stuck with the unlimited ammo rivet gun from beginning to end.

I had a great time with Dead Space: Extraction, but at the same time it makes me sad because this brilliant experience has, as of now, gone mostly unnoticed. It fell into that same trap Beyond Good & Evil did; where it gets critical acclaim and a lot of blogger buzz...but nobody buys a single copy of the damn. It's made me feel a bit guilty for having just rented it and never intending on picking it up. I may end up doing so the next time I see it; it's bound for the bargain bin, and we should all save it when we sit it sitting there, all lonely like.

Because, you know, those necromorphs heads aren't going to cut themselves off, you know.