Dead Space Remake Review (2023) – Xbox Series X
The Dead Space Remake is here 14 years after the original game released, and just a short amount of time after its creator launched its spiritual successor, The Callisto Protocol.
We’ve spent time playing the new Dead Space remake to determine if the game as a whole still holds up, what the remake does to try and improve on that formula and also to gauge if they were actually successful in achieving those goals.
What is it? Isaac Clarke is an engineer who is literally on a mission to determine why a giant planet mining ship called The Ishimura has gone radio silent, also because his own girlfriend was stationed on the ship. He makes some gruesome discoveries and is forced to navigate the ship using a variety of mining tools for weapons so that he can survive, uncover the mystery of the ship and also find a way to escape.
+ Gorgeous graphics
+ Quality sound design
+ Updated puzzles / gameplay
+ New Game Plus / Secret ending
⊗ Still very similar to original
⊗ Sound is a little tame
⊗ Iffy physics at times
⊗ 4K mode stutters
Watch our video reviews now (2 min edit or full review available) or read the written review below.
2008: A Space Odyssey
The original Dead Space is a game that was created out of a passion for horror, a love for movies like Event Horizon and games like Resident Evil. It’s become an instant classic that horror fans have come to appreciate even more since its launch in 2008.
Despite the game still being good and running in backwards compatibility mode on Xbox, the Dead Space Remake tries to make it better.
The game is set in the 26th century, where the player takes on the role of Isaac Clarke, a systems engineer on a search and rescue crew sent to investigate the Ishimura, a planet mining ship that has gone radio silent. The game becomes terrifying when the crew realizes that everything has gone horribly wrong and they end up running around a giant, scary ship armed with mining tools, while trying to avoid getting killed.
In Space, No One Can Hear You Scream
One of the most impactful and scary features of Dead Space was the excellent and intrusively uncomfortable sound design. The remake seems to have toned this element down, losing some of the tension from the original, but it still sounds great. The graphics aim high and want to knock players’ space boots off with stunning lighting, a detailed world, and super gory violence.
However, the game suffers from a stuttery frame rate that is often all over the place, bouncing between high smooth frame rates and slow jitters.
The gameplay feels very familiar to anyone who’s played the original series, although some changes have been made. The controls have seen some updates to bring them up to modern standards, weapons have had some extra modes added, and some gameplay sections in the game have been overhauled. Areas that used to have players leaping from wall to wall now let them fly around similar to the later Dead Space games, and some new puzzle-solving elements have been added.
Puts The “Gross” in Engrossing
The Dead Space Remake, as its own video game, is great. It’s engrossing, fun, and impressive. However, it’s a remake, so it’s a little more complicated.
If you’re someone has played the original and it’s still fresh in their mind, they’ll get an improved experience, but if they’re choosing between this and a brand new game they’ve never played before, they might want the new one.
If someone has never played a Dead Space game before and they’re thinking about picking up the remake, they’re about to play one of the best horror games in existence, and in a brand spanking new package.
