EA ventures into Dead Space

Electronic Arts has announced that its Redwood Shores development studio is working on new IP for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360--and this time, it's moving into the sci-fi horror genre. Expected to ship in the third quarter of 2008, Dead Space is a third-person survival horror game set in deep space. EA's announcement promises that the game will "deliver the ultimate in psychological thrills and gruesome action."

Players will control Isaac Clark, an engineer who sets off on what is supposed to be a routine mission to do repairs onboard a mining ship in deep space. Perhaps not unexpectedly, the trip turns out to be anything but routine when he discovers that an alien infestation has killed off the ship's crew, and he is left to fight for his life within the silence and darkness of deep space.

Executive producer Glen Schofield commented, "We are all such huge fans of the horror and sci-fi genres; we wanted to create the most terrifying game we could and keep the player on the edge of his seat the entire time."

Dead Space is being developed by EA's team at its Redwood City headquarters. The development team has previously worked on franchises, such as The Sims, The Godfather, and The Simpsons Game.