Dead Space 2 feels like a completely natural expansion of the first game. The original Dead Space had a huge impact on the action-horror genre and the sequel builds nicely upon the concept of first. After having just recently played the first Dead Space everything pretty much looks and feels just like it did in that first game. The gun play is still top-notch, the scares are around every corner, and the story is just as engaging. Although there may not had been any big leap in technology between the two games this new game is a fair bit longer. If you played Dead Space you should know what your getting into and if you haven't hopefully hearing about this great sequel will encourage you to start there.
When the game starts Issac wakes up in a hospital lab right when things are starting to go terribly wrong. Turns out after the events of the first game Issac's rescuers have infiltrated his conscious for information on the Marker. The Marker is the ominous alien object that appears to have a detrimental effect on lifeforms that get anywhere near its vicinity. The people in this organization believe that the Marker will lead them to a better life but turns out they couldn't keep it's power under their control. It falls up to Issac to undo some of the damage that has been done from the information harvested from his head. On his journey he'll meet another person who has been affect by the marker as well as another survivor looking to escape to safety. He needs to fight off the power of the marker which takes the form of his deceased lover.
The unique gun play is a definite highlight of the experience. Unlike many other shooters that focus on head shots or bullet sponges the monsters in Dead Space 2 require a more tactical approach. The only fast and efficient way to take down a threat is to shoot off its limbs. Usually this means you'll need to shot off the arms, legs, or occasionally tentacles. Some bosses and enemies have a orange or red areas to clearly indicate where to aim. Once an enemy is down you can stomp on it to get some much needed supplies. Over time you'll have a large variety of weapons at your disposal yet you can only carry four on you at a time. You can purchase new weapons, ammo, and health packs at various stores with credits you find.
As you navigate around this rather large space station you'll have plenty of challenges to keep you on your toes. Often you'll come across little lock puzzles that require you to speedily find three blue nodes. Issac can sprint if he is in danger but move through levels too fast you may miss supplies or trigger trap monsters. If you find valuable power nodes you can upgrade your weapons, suits, or powers. Issac can use telekinesis to bring objects to him and then he can throw them towards enemies. He can also freeze threats and objects using a stasis ability giving him time to aim his shots or avoid deadly obstacles. Power nodes are fairly limited so concentrating on upgrading a couple favorite weapons is probably a good strategy.
Dead Space 2 felt like a straight up continuation of the first game and honestly it works just fine that way. The game looks and plays just like the original game that so many players fell in love with. That said this game was surprisingly long clocking in at about 10 hours which I feel is quite good for a triple-A shooter campaign. The combat is chaotic but feels reasonable thanks to weapon and power upgrades. I really enjoyed the story line; I found Issac's internal struggles interesting and I enjoyed the people he meets along the way. So if you want to enjoy some more thrilling third-person exploration than Dead Space 2 will be right up your alley.