Dead Space not as scary as it claimed?

[Giraffle]

I rented Dead Space, hoping to get a thrilling horror game, and while it WAS scary, and creepy, it didnt deliver as much as it claimed.

I think the reason for this really was mainly because its in third person, where it is easier to see things around you, where in first person you are limited to only your eyesite, allowing things to very easily creep on you.

What do you guys think about it?

 

[Minimike3636]

I, in fact, was frequently spooked by headcrabs jumping on me in Half-Life 2 when I could not see them. I think the whole 3rd person aspect of Dead Space may take away from its fright-appeal. And once you've seen a deformed space alien once, the fear factor disappears rather quickly. Then it's all about the shock and suspense. I think "startling" was the real tag they were going for.

 

[gigastrike]

I was underwhelmed. The only types of scares that they used were aliens jumping at you and even that was done rarely after the first level (which is something I hate about a lot of games: they use up all of their good ideas right off the bat).

 

[Flying-Emu]

Too much ammunition for me to be scared.

 

[13lackfriday]

The scary thing about third-person is that you can actually see what the bastards are doing when they're fucking you up and you're taking damage.
First-person, you're screen will just flash or some damage indicator will pop up, but you get to see the Necros slash deep into you or stick their mouth-parts into your ever-so-soft neck.
And don't forget the death scenes.

 

[Giraffle]

The scary thing about third-person is that you can actually see what the bastards are doing when they're fucking you up and you're taking damage.
First-person, you're screen will just flash or some damage indicator will pop up, but you get to see the Necros slash deep into you or stick their mouth-parts into your ever-so-soft neck.
And don't forget the death scenes.

Yeah, that is true, you get to see it and it can be pretty scary, but it doesnt beat just walking around, trying to get through the level, when BAM, just out of no where, you get hit, and even worse, maybe you hear the monster before hand, and then turn around to be looking straight into his eyes.

I dont know, for me it just makes all the tension to be limited to first person view, cause if your hear a noise and something falls over, your always scared about whats behind you, versus in 3rd person, its a lot easier to see.

 

[Soulgaunt]

[spoiler/][/spoiler]

Hahaha! That was funny, especially the music that was used.

 

[dashiz94]

I think the game would have been perfect if it did what Fallout 3 did with the change between the first and third person view. I thought it was decently scary, even after the first level. The atmosphere was what made it so freaky. Probably the fact that you couldn't relate to the character is why it wasn't so scary, but I was freaked out when any of the things slashed into Isaac.

 

[Giraffle]

I think the game would have been perfect if it did what Fallout 3 did with the change between the first and third person view. I thought it was decently scary, even after the first level. The atmosphere was what made it so freaky. Probably the fact that you couldn't relate to the character is why it wasn't so scary, but I was freaked out when any of the things slashed into Isaac.

Yeah, thats what ive been thinking wouldve made it a lot better, because when I play horror games, I love being in first person, it brings out the suspense, it may scare the hell out of me, but its so much more fun.

But yeah, Dead Space made up for its lack of 1st person encounters, by making a generally scary environment, but really the only scary thing about it it was things popping up at you, and eventually you get pretty used to it.

 

[BolognaBaloney]

I didn't find it scary at all, the only game I ever found to be truly frightening was Condemned 1

 

[Blindrooster]

It wasn't scary. Games seem to have lost a sense of how to be scary anymore. "Oh no! zombie things! They are so scary, amybe i should do something with the freakin warehouse worth of weapons this game supplied me with" Resident evil 5 had the same issue. take away all the ammo. give us a flashlight and a bible, and nothing else.

 

[MortisLegio]

scary? not really
I was less scared of the enemies than I was of the enviroment
Death by enemies: 2
Death by enviroment: about 8
Death by stupid Turret level: 5

 

[Mr. PIP Boy]

I thot the beggining was scary just because its the whole first impressions thing, the atmoshere made it creepy but by around level three is turns into a third person shooter.

 

[Nigh Invulnerable]

Most games fail at being scary because they give you the ability to just spray the monsters with bullets or some other crazy power/weapon. Games like Clocktower and Silent Hill make you pretty ineffective against the baddies, so the best course of action is running. That's way scarier. If I died because I didn't turn around in time to shoot the monster's face off with a few quick shotgun rounds I'm not likely to be very scared. If I died because the monster cornered me in a dark hall and I couldn't fight back, then I'll be a little more scared.

 

[Vrex360]

The scary thing about third-person is that you can actually see what the bastards are doing when they're fucking you up and you're taking damage.
First-person, you're screen will just flash or some damage indicator will pop up, but you get to see the Necros slash deep into you or stick their mouth-parts into your ever-so-soft neck.
And don't forget the death scenes.

Gee that poor bastard's having a bad day. I don't know what kind of grudge the gods of fate have against poor little Isaac Clarke but it's a big one.

Anyway, I think Dead Space could have been scary with a nice level of subtletly and stillness where you are alone and feel very vulnerable and killable and are in serious danger waiting for something to come out at you. But because there is almost never a moment's rest and because the pace is broken by puzzle sections, there runs the risk of no horror present. Also when you have a high powered cutting tool that can carve through the crust of a planet digging through flesh you can guess who will win.
The other thing is I just ended up having more fun dismembering enemy limbs, even though Dead Space failed at scaring me it succeeded in entertaining me so that's something.

 

[manaman]

I didn't find it scary at all, the only game I ever found to be truly frightening was Condemned 1

Really? I mean the game had atmosphere out the ying yang, but scary? Hmm. Not really. The only thing that threw me off about it was the length. I beat it the same session I popped the disk in. I thought: Good, I mean great even in parts, but what the heck was with the ending?

 

[axia777]

Too much ammunition for me to be scared.

While I loved the game I too felt the same way. I also felt that there were way to many save points to feel real suspense. In the old school days of Resident Evil it was not the actual Zombies that freaked me out. It was the fact that I only had a knife, two shot gun shells, four bullets in my pistol and the next save point was a real long way off. That was fear.

 

[megapenguinx]

I don't think 3rd person is that scary actually. The only time I've been scared in 3rd person is in RE4, but that's just because the camera is so close to Leon's back that you cannot see much beyond that.

Actually I did not know Dead Space was a TPS.

 

[Acaroid]

Spoiler

You know what, the only time I jumped in that game was the last scene, I knew it was comming, but I still jumped.

Mind you this game was so much fun playing with my GF watching, she would freak out (at the horrible creatures) and jump all over the place and she was only watching it... SO i guess it takes a certain type of person to be scared of the game.