[Aptorian]

Bought Dead Space 1 recently when it came on sale on Steam in connection with the release of Dead Space 2.

I actually originally bought it a year ago and dropped it because I loathed the over the shoulder view but on account of the hype surrounding the sequel I decided I should give it another try despite me being an absolute pussy when it comes to horror games.

Having played through the first two chapters, I can't decide if I enjoy or hate this game. The style and atmosphere is cool and eerie, I love the design of the weaponry and abilities all though the weapons seem grossly under powered. But the thing that is really getting on my nerves is the point of view. It's this over the shoulder type thing that Resident Evil 5 and Mass Effect also utilise. I accepted it in Mass Effect but it made me drop Resident Evil 30 minutes in, well that and the lousy console controls on a PC.The view is not third person, it's not first person, it's Second person. Like I am an annoying camera man hanging over the shoulder of the character and it really sucks for a horror game.

I am jumpy enough with Necromorphs jumping out of every air duct and nook and cranny, but playing with this view is like a handicap. I can't see what is going on on 1/3 of the screen and I have to make sudden spin around moves all the time to make sure I am not missing stuff. The view combined with the clunky controls makes this very frustrating when you are trying to fight off a horde of monsters trying to gang bang you.

The gaming experience sort of reminds me of playing Doom 3. I am thoroughly uncomfortable and I feel like doing something else, but yet I can't stop playing because I want to know where the hell the story is going.

Any one else played these games?

This post has been edited by Roger Ramjet: 06 February 2011 - 03:35 PM

[Illuyankas]

I was playing Dead Space 1 on my new computer until my graphics card became borked, and got just as far as you. One of the problems you might have is the PC port fucked up the mouse aiming while Vsync is active, so go disable that and see if that helps. Remember, dismembering both arms kills them instantly, but taking out a leg makes it easier to not get murderated while you aim. Whirling the mouse around and reaiming spins you too, which is the fast turning you'll get. Oh, and STOMP EVERY HUMAN CORPSE YOU SEE

EVERY ONE

WITHOUT FAIL

You'll thank me later.

[Aptorian]

Illuyankas, on 06 February 2011 - 04:12 PM, said:

One of the problems you might have is the PC port fucked up the mouse aiming while Vsync is active, so go disable that and see if that helps.

I will look into that. Might be the reason why my aiming seems so irratic. Here I thought it was because of the adrenaline and me screaming and shaking the mouse like a little girl.

Illuyankas, on 06 February 2011 - 04:12 PM, said:

Remember, dismembering both arms kills them instantly, but taking out a leg makes it easier to not get murderated while you aim.

I try, I really do. But I am horrible at aiming and the bastards weave and scuttle around like a crab on steroids. I usually manage to get one limb severed and then I just end up unloading 4 rounds in their torso until the bastards stay down.

I appreciate that the dismemberment mechanic makes combat more challenging but there is nothing as frustrating as deperately trying align the laser dots with their wildly flailing spikey limbs and them ducking just as you squeeze the trigger. Fucking bastards!

Illuyankas, on 06 February 2011 - 04:12 PM, said:

Oh, and STOMP EVERY HUMAN CORPSE YOU SEE

EVERY ONE

WITHOUT FAIL

You'll thank me later.

This has more or less been my approach so far. At first I just stomped their heads off, but after shooting off a couple of monsters heads without slowing them down, I just began stomping off the corpses legs for good measure.

How ever now that I have the telekinesis ability I am just going to mind grab every corpse from a distance to see if they are alive or not. Much safer.

This post has been edited by Roger Ramjet: 06 February 2011 - 05:58 PM

[Illuyankas]

Destroying the heads just frenzies them, so try to avoid that. You get enough plasma ammo to allow you to leg-arm-arm them safely, and it's a lot easier to hit legs than arms, and a lot easier to take out arms when they're crawling. And don't forget stasis when you're in trouble. Oh, and you need to stomp off at least three limbs from human bodies to be safe, though I do all four to relieve tension. AT LEAST THREE. If you're wondering why, remember the Captain? And what happened to him? That's why.

[Aptorian]

Oh yeah, after fighting that corpse transforming flesh bat thingy I became really meticulous with every corpse I encountered. All though I figured just stomping off the legs would be fine.

[Illuyankas]

AT LEAST THREE.

[Stalker]

AT LEAST THREE.

That's my policy too. You never know when a reanimator will run through an area. Also if there is a dead necromorph on the ground that you did not kill yourself, play the game like it is not dead. Cause chances are good that it is just playing dead.

I am a big fan of the games. I'm about 2/3s through the sequel and the missions that I played through last night made the game so awesome. Also had my first "oh, shit" moment when I got jumped, definitely scared me. At first the over the shoulder mode bothered me, but I've gotten used to it.

Also, the plasma cutter wins. Always. Just max upgrade it and use it the entire time. For my first playthrough on both 1 and 2, it was the only weapon I used, and I was playing on the hardest available difficulty.

[Adjutant Stormy~]

With respect to the 2nd person view, I respect the choice greatly, because it's a throwback to classic survival horror. Survival horror is scary because there are monsters, but scary also because you have a degree of lack of control. Like playing Resident Evil 1, the control scheme, though tough to master, adds to the game rather than subtracts. It's a "Shit there are zombies here," fear, but also a "Shit, there are zombies here and I'm not likely capable enough to Rambo my way through them" fear.

Remember the CoD Nazi zombie bonus level? They're zombies, yes. But you're well equipped, first-person-shooter-trained, and not takin' no guff from no undead fascists. It was fun, and a challenge, but not scary.

[cerveza_fiesta]

Picked this up the other day and haven't had a lot of time for gaming lately. It is next in line as soon as I'm done HL episode 2.

Really looking forward to it. I've never minded over shoulder views in particular.

[Aptorian]

Well, I am admittedly a giant quivering vagina when it comes to horror games. I can't watch horror films alone unless there is daylight outside (because then the monsters are still sleeping, right?). Playing a horror game is ten times worse. I am an active participant in the fucked up story, I have to willingly step into the fray.

Every time I hear a sound, a hiss of steam, a clunk of metal, a door closing I become jumpy like a X-box kiddy who downed a gallon of red bull.

And yet, it is fun... I think.

[Primateus]

Dead Space 2 is a mite creepy, yes? Just a teeny bit creepy

[Tarcanus]

Haha, wait until you get to Chapter 5, I think. You'll really crap yourself, then.

I love these games, and Dead Space 2 was actually a successful sequel. The necromorphs they added are even creepier than the ones from the original, they spruced up the movement mechanics so punching and stomping becomes a useful method of combat, and it's easier to turn quickly - though never quickly enough it felt like, haha.

[Stalker]

for me, chapter 10 was the scary one.

Spoiler

running around on the Ishimura was crazy. There was nothing going on for the first 10 minutes, but you can hear weird noises, so you know something is coming. And when the big guy finally jumped out, I also jumped hehe. I think it was a really well done chapter.

[Primateus]

I just bought both of them on steam yesterday and I've been playing the first Dead Space today. It's very creepy and I'm scared.

[Messremb]

Don't buy it on Steam for £14.99, get down to Game - I picked it up a week or four ago as one game of 3 for £10.

Haven't got massively far yet due to too much else to do - Portal 2, M&BW (damn you all talking about it) and some strange thing called work.

[Primateus]

Messremb, on 08 May 2011 - 08:41 PM, said:

Don't buy it on Steam for £14.99, get down to Game - I picked it up a week or four ago as one game of 3 for £10.

Haven't got massively far yet due to too much else to do - Portal 2, M&BW (damn you all talking about it) and some strange thing called work.

Sounds like a bargain, unfortunately they're not running these kind of offers here in my town

So, Steam, for me, was the cheapest option.

And it's a friggin creepy game.

[Aptorian]

Yeah. I stopped playing around chapter 5 because I just wasn't enjoying the game. That is how fucking creepy and disgusting I thought the game was. I am a wuss.

[Gothos]

It's all in the camera and controls. You feel mostly helpless in comparison to other games like that. The 'surprise' monster spawns also get pretty predictable fast, exactly like in Doom 3.
Still, it has a nice atmosphere, I enjoyed chapter 1 very much. Halfway through chapter 2 now.

[cerveza_fiesta]

Rocking my way through the medlab level of DS1 right now.

My word, what a fucking gruesome game. The surprise spawns are still managing to scare the bajeesus out of me. I like the mechanics of the kinesis and stasis modules too. They add some interesting gameplay into something that would otherwise get old fast.

I have been getting in the habit of curb stomping every limb off every body, I'm very worried they are going to reanimate at some point...since shooting off heads doesn't really seem to kill them. I figure a swarm of limbless and headless corpses is better than ones that are at least partially mobile. I am a big fan of the sound effect for the stomp action too. Kind of a squish-blam-squirt combination.

Melee combat is fucking useless unfortunately. I've tried several times now to shoot the legs off stuff and go stomp it to death, but I can't seem to connect. Same for punch attacks. Ammo for my plasma cutter is pretty plentiful fortunately, so it's not a worry.

Also a big fan of the way the HUD, inventory, and upgrade system works. Simple and effective. Looking forward to getting into some of the scarier portions of the ship.

[Illuyankas]

Illuyankas, on 06 February 2011 - 06:51 PM, said:

AT LEAST THREE.