EA: Dead Space Too Scary to Handle Alone

[Avalanche91]

Hey EA, Avalanche here.

Remember that flick called 'Amnesia the Dark Descent?' Boy that was a scary fucking game, wasn't it? Remember how even despite it's dated graphics engine, players posted their freak-outs on youtube, which made the game go viral purely because it was such a incredibly scary game? And how players were allowed to mess around with the engine, making their very own horror scenario's to ensure people can play new stuff even today?

Man did that game generate hype. I doubt it even had any significant marketing behind it. People just heard about it from friends and the internet, because the whole psychological horror aspect made people talk about it. And for the price of 20 bucks at launch? That's just crazy.

Wouldn't it be great if you could save a little on the graphics and simply cut the whole marketing division and co-op as well? Imagine the money you could save, by focussing on making the game genuinly scary?

See? It's good for you, and it's good for the actual horror fans. Everyone wins.

 

[Antari]

Is it just me or does the connection of Electronic Arts and Dead Space explain way too much. And I'm not refering to the game.

 

[Scorpid]

I remember approximately 2 scary moments from the Dead Space series.

The first was the first big jump scare in the first game.

Spoiler: the second one

was the bit in 2 where you go back on the Ishimura and you go through half the level with nothing happening and just wondering when they're going to drop the hammer on you and still nothing's happening and the the lights have dimmed down and you just know something bad is-ohshitwhatwasthatinthedistanceFUCKITSAPAIROFBRUTES!

.

And that's... really it.

Well I played Dead Space 1 and 2 but I don't remember Dead Space 1 that well since it was long time ago. I do remember 2 better though and I can only think of one situation where I was legitimately scared... though that might not be the right word maybe. Anyway it was near the end of the game after that idiotic scene where you have to navigate the needle into your own eye for a even more absurd reason. (something about extracting a memory) And you get up and go into the next room and out pops a boss, that hasn't ever been mentioned, hinted at or would be used later that chases you for the rest of level. You can cripple him but he keeps coming no matter what but your also going against a tide of enemies to get on past. WELL the feeling of being hunted really got to me and it was the first and only time where i had legitimate feeling of 'OH SHIT! I want out of this situation now!'. I should mention that I'm a huge sissy for horror games. I've never once finished any Silent Hill game and when I played Amnesia I never even saw the monster before I gave up and was like "This is too scawee for mee... ='("

 

[EHKOS]

Sure was a nice horror game we had once....

Still, I like the setting, and I liked 2 based on mechanics and environment. So I'll enjoy 3 no matter what, it's just a shame this killed the franchise for a lot of people.

 

[johnnnny guitar]

holy shit that is some of the stupidest marketing spiel I've heard in a long time I glad I not a fan of the dead space series I own the first one just never got around to playing it though

 

[gunny1993]

1. Dead space isn't that scary, it's jumpy but only slightly scary (try playing nightmare house EA, you'll proly have a heart attack)
2. As soon as you add 2 people to a game (even talking on skype but not paying together)fear factor dcreases by huge amounts. (look at fear 3)
3. I bough the original dead space to scare me, i want to be scared, making the game less scary is just pointless.



This shows what a terrible thing market reaserch is when you don't have a clue about your market (look at valve owned by nerds and makes brilliant game) .... I'm with Douglas Adams we should send all market reaserchers off our planet on a giant space ship.

 

[GamingAwesome1]

That's the worst and most outright patronising reason they could've possibly come up with to derail their own franchise to dumb down into pap for the masses.

I mean, I get it you want your games to have more mass market appeal and disregarding whether I think that's a good idea (Hint: I don't.), can you at least dumb it down without insulting your fucking customers by implying they can't *sarcasm* handle the sheer fear factor? *sarcasm*

Seriously EA, eat a dick.

 

[Teh Jammah]

I remember approximately 2 scary moments from the Dead Space series.

The first was the first big jump scare in the first game.

Spoiler: the second one

was the bit in 2 where you go back on the Ishimura and you go through half the level with nothing happening and just wondering when they're going to drop the hammer on you and still nothing's happening and the the lights have dimmed down and you just know something bad is-ohshitwhatwasthatinthedistanceFUCKITSAPAIROFBRUTES!

.

And that's... really it.

Well I played Dead Space 1 and 2 but I don't remember Dead Space 1 that well since it was long time ago. I do remember 2 better though and I can only think of one situation where I was legitimately scared... though that might not be the right word maybe. Anyway it was near the end of the game after that idiotic scene where you have to navigate the needle into your own eye for a even more absurd reason. (something about extracting a memory) And you get up and go into the next room and out pops a boss, that hasn't ever been mentioned, hinted at or would be used later that chases you for the rest of level. You can cripple him but he keeps coming no matter what but your also going against a tide of enemies to get on past. WELL the feeling of being hunted really got to me and it was the first and only time where i had legitimate feeling of 'OH SHIT! I want out of this situation now!'. I should mention that I'm a huge sissy for horror games. I've never once finished any Silent Hill game and when I played Amnesia I never even saw the monster before I gave up and was like "This is too scawee for mee... ='("

I remember that. Its a rehash of the Hunter from the first game. Which wasn't really that scary because by that point you probably have the Ripper, and once you have a telekinetic buzzsaw gun the game turns into a case of 'aim at knee hight, shoot ripper on primary fire, limb harvest all necromorpks, rinse repeat.' Sure they both get up but you have stasis. and TK. And a telekinetic buzzsaw gun.

Seriously Ripper+Plasma cutter= all you need to beat the game (save maybe on insanity). In fact i almost beat 2 1st time round with JUST the plasma cutter (did in fact beat 1 1st time round that way) altho I had to knuckle and use the ripper for the final boss though. Fuck that BS teleport spam and the pack. Kept on running out of PK ammo.

 

[Doneeee]

Eh I still find comfort knowing that you can play the game completely solo without that gruff red fellow following you as a retarded bot "cough" sheva "cough".

 

[zombiesinc]

What a load of shit. Dead Space was a phenomenal game, which not only sold well but did horror well. In a time where most series have shifted from survival horror to action horror, it was refreshing and even exciting to play Dead Space. Saying that it was "too scary" as some sort of reasoning to shift its focus is irritating. I'd much rather they simply say "Hey, we want to appeal to a wider audience."

Personally, I'm always happy to play some co-op, but I can understand the overall negative reaction to this addition. I'd prefer a sequel more along the lines of the original but I think we all know that's unlikely to happen at this point.

 

[Vausch]

"We were hearing feedback that they love the thriller game," Miele continued, "but it was pretty scary..."

Yes, this is what a "horror game" is supposed to be. Scary. Which it came close to being.

-"and the obvious next step was that they wanted to play with someone. So we introduced co-op into the game."

Do you have any concept of the term "horror" or "scary"? Being with someone you trust that is armed isn't scary, having guns lessens the amount of scary and knowing someone is there with a gun is also NOT SCARY. RE4 had some moments I would call scary, the villagers all surrounding the house and coming to kill you when you're running low on ammo? That's scary! RE5 was not scary because I had a co-op partner and it heavily reduced the tension!

"Miele said that despite the company of a co-op buddy, the game is "still true to its roots and no less scary.""

I said this person has apparently never actually played a good horror game and is talking out of their arse.

 

[Ninjafire72]

I think I remember reading somewhere that Carver (co-op character) only shows up at certain points if you play single player, which makes him more of a side character you meet than a co-op AI partner. So I'm DESPERATELY hoping that the co-op thing is completely optional and you can still have a lonely walk through Hell in single-player. If that's the case I'll still buy it, at least to see what happens to Ellie.


To be honest though, I don't even know why I still play the series. They stopped scaring me after level 2 in DS 1; "Yeah yeah, the monsters are going to jump out from that MASSIVELY obvious vent and try to bit my nipples off. I'll just lay a mine here, and keep plugging grenades into the rest until they've stopped moving."
Overall the games feel like walking through a cheap haunted house that just tries so hard to frighten you it circles back and starts being tedious.

 

[Terminate421]

EA here is how you will make Dead Space successful:

1) Save money by slashing your marketing budget in half, or even more.
2) Increase the time limit for releasing the game by a couple of months, enough for the developers to actually make and polish the game.
3) Take the shareholders and suits and market analysts and lock them out of the design process
4) Create a genuinely chilling horror game about surviving in a cramped spaceship full of Lovecraftian horrors
5) Wait for the game to go viral because of its quality, not the stupidly expensive and offensive quantity of your obnoxious advertising division.
6) Make loads of money and use it to fund on a sequel that creates an even better gaming experience using what you learned from the development of the first.

You don't need to widen your audience by pandering to the lowest common denominator. You need a better game and more sensible, less expensive marketing, and if it is a good game even you won't be able to stop it making money.

You forgot about two things:

Start the game from scratch because a Co-op Lost Planet rip off with a "marine" for a side kick sucks
Stop holding the entire franchise hostage to the point of catching up to Battlefield 3

 

[Terminate421]

I remember approximately 2 scary moments from the Dead Space series.

The first was the first big jump scare in the first game.

Spoiler: the second one

was the bit in 2 where you go back on the Ishimura and you go through half the level with nothing happening and just wondering when they're going to drop the hammer on you and still nothing's happening and the the lights have dimmed down and you just know something bad is-ohshitwhatwasthatinthedistanceFUCKITSAPAIROFBRUTES!

.

And that's... really it.

Well I played Dead Space 1 and 2 but I don't remember Dead Space 1 that well since it was long time ago. I do remember 2 better though and I can only think of one situation where I was legitimately scared... though that might not be the right word maybe. Anyway it was near the end of the game after that idiotic scene where you have to navigate the needle into your own eye for a even more absurd reason. (something about extracting a memory) And you get up and go into the next room and out pops a boss, that hasn't ever been mentioned, hinted at or would be used later that chases you for the rest of level. You can cripple him but he keeps coming no matter what but your also going against a tide of enemies to get on past. WELL the feeling of being hunted really got to me and it was the first and only time where i had legitimate feeling of 'OH SHIT! I want out of this situation now!'. I should mention that I'm a huge sissy for horror games. I've never once finished any Silent Hill game and when I played Amnesia I never even saw the monster before I gave up and was like "This is too scawee for mee... ='("

I remember that. Its a rehash of the Hunter from the first game. Which wasn't really that scary because by that point you probably have the Ripper, and once you have a telekinetic buzzsaw gun the game turns into a case of 'aim at knee hight, shoot ripper on primary fire, limb harvest all necromorpks, rinse repeat.' Sure they both get up but you have stasis. and TK. And a telekinetic buzzsaw gun.

Seriously Ripper+Plasma cutter= all you need to beat the game (save maybe on insanity). In fact i almost beat 2 1st time round with JUST the plasma cutter (did in fact beat 1 1st time round that way) altho I had to knuckle and use the ripper for the final boss though. Fuck that BS teleport spam and the pack. Kept on running out of PK ammo.

No love for Pulse Rifle?

Anyway...There was another Scary bit in Dead Space 1 where you hear the lady singing "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" and nothing actually attacks you there. Same goes for the first time entering the food processing station mostly out of the knowledge that (Jungles + Zombies = Oh shit scary)

The Ishimura part in Dead Space 2 I give props too along with the portion in the Church. When it did get action-y it was actually believable a Space Engineer with no military background was able to survive something (And it was pretty well done too). Here, its depressingly obvious, I'll give you 20$ that part of the story says "Isaac was once a sergeant in the military!" just to insult us more.

Captcha: Give or take

EA took everything I loved about this away from me.....