Dead Space Remake: Everything We Know

Dead Space Remake was announced by EA some time ago, and people could not really figure out what it actually meant. Is it going to be a complete reboot to the original space horror series ? Or would it be a remaster of the previous game ? Star Wars: Squadrons studio provided some more information in interviews. But it was still quiet hard to conclude what remake actually meant. If we compare Dead Space some other remakes of games of the 90s era like System Shock, where designers are updating limited graphics and unfamiliar control schemes, Dead Space still feels eminently playable today.

EA, the developers of Dead Space Remake have filled some vacant spots. A livestream Twitch session was held by Motive with the creative team of the Studio, presenting extremely early footage of the game showcasing and demonstrating how the gameplay and design could look. It confirmed a few things that will surely make the game look and feel different.

Isaac Clarke and The Voice Actor

The original game had a silent protagonist, an engineer named Isaac Clarke. But in subsequent games, he’s been distinctively voiced by actor Gunner Wright. On EA’s livestream he confirmed that he’ll be there in the Dead Space Remake too.

The return of Gunner Wright to the Dead Space Remake sounds more like a sequel to the last game in the series, and not refurbishing of the franchise. EA also clarified that apparently Isaac will follow the same rules for speaking as a polite Victorian child.

The second rule presumably exists to let him swear while stomping boxes.

Complications regarding Dismemberment

The livestream mentioned some very early updates of Necromorphs (Space Zombies). They seem to be affected by weapons in more convincing manner.

Dead Space Remake also features some minor details such as ripping off of limbs as you shoot them, giving you a better idea as to how how much damage you have done to your enemies. Necromorphs in this game will also have some weak points that’ll feel more real and natural compared to than the glowing joints in the original game. Further, there will be variety of ways to kill a Necromorph in Dead Space Remake.

There were already tons of variety in the original game as far as weapons are concerned. But Dead Space Remake will have clear update.

Zero Gravity

There will be one definite change in Dead Space Remake that will allow you to float in zero gravity just like Dead space 2.

Although it is surprisingly satisfying to bounce from one surface to another, adding free motion is a pretty natural tweak for the remake.

No Microtransactions

One thing about Dead Space 3, which was pretty much hated by everyone was Microtransactions. We were not expecting it to be in the remake, and guess what, our prayers have been heard. It has been confirmed that Microtransactions will not be there in Dead Space Remake.

Long Lasting Game

Motive and EA previously hinted that they’d build out Dead Space’s story, and today, they gave more specifics about what that might mean. “We are not going to change the foundation of the story, because that story is really iconic,” said creative director Roman Campos-Oriola. “The things we want to enrich in terms of story or narrative, it’s really about the bigger universe of Dead Space. We want to have more ties with what came after, whether it’s the books, whether it’s the anime, whether it’s Dead Space 2, we want to put the original in a better way inside that broader universe.”

That can apparently be done subtly through the environment, but some additions might be “a bit more,” says Campos-Oriola. Dead Space became an extremely lore-heavy series across three main games and a host of tie-in media, and the Dead Space remake sounds like it will spend more time acknowledging that lore than changing it. The team didn’t discuss the game’s most beloved Easter egg, but after the livestream, it feels safe to say there’s always Peng.

More Detailed Side Characters

The Dead Space Remake also aims to provide more depth to the characters around Isaac, including Nicole Brennan, the girlfriend that he spends the game looking for. As Campos-Oriola puts it, “we want to give you the means to actually look for her, and more than look for her, learn what happened to her during the outbreak.” That might imply that Dead Space’s remake will involve a little more active player agency than the highly linear original, or maybe it’s just acknowledging that the original storyline does seem to periodically forget Nicole exists.

All the details above are still fairly vague. Motive showed off the remake in ways that highlighted its unfinished-ness, like putting enemies on a stage of untextured blocks, and a lot of the changes were just discussed theoretically. And it remains frustrating to see a new Dead Space game after EA unceremoniously shut down the series’ original studio Visceral Games. But for now, at least it’s becoming easier to tell what the remake’s creators are aiming at. Whether they are able to pull it off or not, time shall tell.