PSP World

Dead Space: Extraction Preview

Last year, Dead Space blew away what fans expected from an EA product -- EA, a publisher known for sequelitis. Along with Mirror's Edge, here were two original intellectual properties (IP) that took a bold direction with their story-telling and visuals. It was a risky move that is now paying off in spades.

True to its name, Dead Space was space horror action presented in glorious cinematic fashion, fully representing the movies that inspired it. Playing the game invoked memories of the cold sweat running down my back when I first watched the early Alien movies. The tension, the desperation, the isolation -- it was perfect. In space, no one can hear you scream; but people in my apartment complex were not so lucky. What is fortunate is that the little-IP-that-could warmed enough cockles of fans and critics alike to warrant a bevy of new projects -- one of which is a prequel called Dead Space: Extraction, and it's coming exclusively to the Wii.

The game will come to life in late September. It is being co-developed by Visceral Games and Eurcom. Fans of Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles will feel right at home with the on-rails first-person adventure style of gameplay. In the original Dead Space, you played as engineer Isaac Clarke investigating the aftermath of an alien infestation aboard the interstellar mining ship, the USG Ishimura. In this prequel story, you experience first-hand the horror and catastrophe of that infestation.

Dead Space: Extraction once again pushes the graphical capabilities of the console it's being developed on. It may be one of the best-looking game on the Wii, with parts rivalling even the Xbox and PS3 versions.

With Wii-Mote and nunchuk support making its debut in the Dead Space franchise, gamers will also get to enjoy two player co-op fun. There are a few different control schemes available: a pair of Wii-Motes and nunchuks, or a mix Wii-Mote/nunchuk, or Wii-Mote only mode, or a two Wii-Zapper configuration.

So far, there's no holographic heads-up display like in the first game. There will be plenty of story though and even more bosses to splatter. And for those of us with too much pent-up rage -- yes, you can shoot things up during the cutscenes.

The on-rails description of the gameplay can be extended to describe the game itself. So don't expect Dead Space: Extraction to veer too far off the formula, nor will it revolutionize the on-rails shooter genre. What you can expect is a visually stunning game that returns fans to a dark and scary place -- aboard the Ishimura, fighting to keep your limbs intact from the horde of alien-infested crew members who have no concept of personal space.

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