2/5 ★ – Kalle_Deimos's review of Dead Space 3.

TLDR: Death of a franchise. Gameplay: Probably one of the worst intros of a game ever. It's miserable. Some games do this where they start off with high-octane action and drama to pull you in but this is too much. It's silly. Also you start by fighting...people? Honestly this could have been good, like how the human combat is better than the infected combat in Last of Us. But it's really not much more than shallow cover mechanics against enemies who just hit-scan you for no damage. And your beginner weapons feel so bad. I feel like in the beginning of a game you're meant to face easy enemies, so you can get adjusted to the combat while getting that good feedback you love so much. Your starting pistol feels wimpy and if you use that bonus plasma cutter it's even worse. Slow firing, can't sever a limb in one shot. Painfully unfun plasma cutter. How did they make these guns feel so bad to use. I actually forgot that the game ACTUALLY starts with you as some rando soldier and he's constantly screaming and there's explosions and you need to dodge the explosions!! It's so bad. Dead Space 3 definetely benefits from having a co-op partner, narratively and also gameplay wise because you are absolutely swamped with enemies constantly. Dead Space 2 has a very thoughtful system regarding your weapons and how you are targeting the enemy. There's a lot of enemies but rarely are they overwhelming in a frustrating way. Dead Space 3, especially near the end, has so many enemies spawning in front of you, next to you, behind you, above you and the encounters can last several minutes with these mobs that just rush you. The worst offenders being the "Fodder" with the two axes who beeline straight towards you. Many encounters just have an insane amount of Fodders that seek to overwhelm you while you face-tank damage to the best of your ability and it's just so messy. In the other games you might've carried a weapon for every scenario but in 3 it seems like there is little reason to do anything but a crowd clearing weapon. Because slow-firing weapons, no matter how damaging they are, are not effective when there is 20+ necromorphs in a single encounter. But enough about the bad, I'll be the first to admit. The gun crafting is really good. All the different variations and combinations you can craft is really fun. I only wish there was another weapon slot and maybe a re-done ammo system because you will never ever have an ammo issue in this game, which isn't a great incentive to experiment. Story: Opening exposition speech lets gooooo. This is written like a cheap 2000's action movie. Exposition dump, time skip showing the character fallen on hard times. Ellie has a new boyfriend who is just a terrible horribly unlikable individual that feels uncharacteristic of her to even date, let alone CONSTANTLY his bad behavior and even betrayal. The game literally begins with Isaac listening to a message on his phone of Ellie breaking up with him and then he throws a bunch of papers in a tantrum. Every character is unlikeable, even Isaac acts weird. They have moments of likeability but it's usually overshadowed quickly. There's so many instances of "They ambushed us and we are at gunpoint!" and then they all immediately get away. Danik is alright I guess. When you first meet him however you escape him by falling down like a 10 foot drop. And you're just laying there unconcious and he doesn't shoot you or anything. It's so dumb. I genuinely think the game should have started with Danik capturing you, doing that marker thing, shooting you and pushing you down that hole. Not whatever the hell they did. Tau Volantis and it's lore is pretty cool and I like the brother moon stuff. There is a good sense of isolation and loneliness, as if you are the only person in this remote section of space that can even hope to stop the markers. It gets better as it goes on, like the gameplay. But man, that opening leaves such a nasty taste in the mouth. Graphics: At the time this game felt photo-realistic and I still think it looks good. I like the use of orange when you real the alien planet. And the alien "city" is also pretty cool, especially that alien necromorph. Big fan. Sound: Extra: It seems like the best content in the game is locked behind co-op and playing as Carver. Go figure. Favorite Thing: When I first played this game I was 12 and I vividly remember sitting in true fear for about 10 minutes when you go to the basement of the cannibals. Not My Favorite Thing: ELLIE!!! ELLIEEEEEE!!!!