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Dead Space doesn't scare

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From the article:

"The first time I saw the Lullaby trailer for "Dead Space," I was certain that the game was going to make me crap my pants. I mean that quite literally. The combination of "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" and mangled corpses sent chills up my spine. It was the first time in my life that a song from my childhood had been used to strike fear into my heart.

Unfortunately, the retail version of the game was far less scary than its E3 2008 trailer. Though EA Redwood Shores did a tremendous job of creating tension throughout the experience, I found that there were very few moments in which I was genuinely afraid."
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JSA-Gamer - contributor
Published: 427 days ago | Article | PlayStation 3 | Xbox 360 | PC
 
 

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Liquid Dust - 427 days ago
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1 - WRONG
This game is quite scary, but you have to help put yourself in the setting required to do so. If possible, 40+ widescreen, surround sound, no lights, no one else in the room to talk to, and a pair of hightop sneakers, cause youre going to jump.
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sonarus - 426 days 23 hours ago
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1.1 -
The problem with deadspace is that they gave you too much. TOO many health drops, too many item pick ups too much ammo bla bla.

Games like silent hill and siren succeed with fear because they make you get up close and personal with the baddies. RE4 wasn't REALLY scary because it was more of a shooter than anything but even then there were quite a few moments of tension due to limited ammo you always wanted to be ready to get that quick headshot so you don't waste your ammo

In deadspace they only time i was ever slightly tensed was when i ran out of ammo which only happened once because i just went to the store and bought more ammo:)

Overall its a great game and they did a lot of things right and the lack of scare didn't really bother me too much personally.

I played with lights off and sound up and all that but i was never scared even when enemies got me from the back because i knew all i had to do was run forward, turn around and hit them with line gun
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Genesis5 - 426 days 23 hours ago
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1.2 -
I don't know how this person is playing it, but it must be with all the lights on and no sound. I have been playing in the dark and with the surround sound fairly high. It has got a quite a few jumps and a couple of squeals out of me. Then I laugh at myself for doing it.
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orakga - 426 days 22 hours ago
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1.3 - Wrong?
Hmm... well, I think I did the right thing by starting off on HARD difficulty. I have to say.. this game reminds me of the first time I played RE1; in every good way.

Enough ammo? Are you crazy? Man, I'm still at the beginning of Chapter 10 (busy work schedule, <sob>), but I never once thought there was enough ammo. In fact, there are quite a few places where I re-do the whole fight because I was afraid I had wasted too much ammo to get much farther in the game.

Play it on hard, and see if you agree (BTW, I think they let you keep your upgrades on the second playthrough, so if you really want the challenge, play on hard off of a FRESH savedata).

Either way, this game is golden. Definitely waaaay up there. And I'm glad it's not an exclusive so everyone can enjoy it.
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Philip J Fry - 426 days 22 hours ago
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1.4 - @Nos4Speed
I suggest you play Bioshock. If this is your second favorite game this gen you are really missing out on some good story and settings. I was scared more often in Bioshock than I was in this game. In Bioshock I could never determine where the sounds were coming from and it was just creepy to me. This was a good game, but for me Bioshock is the best this gen and Dead Space a distant five or so.
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1.5 marionz | 426 days 22 hours ago - User only got 1 bubble - Show
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orakga - 426 days 21 hours ago
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1.6 - Oh, and... (hehe)
I forgot to mention...
I actually ended up paying for the $2.49 DLC armor suit. (after trying out the Obsidian suit first and appreciating it immensely)

It was the very first paid DLC add-on I ever paid for in ANY game, but it made sense for me because over the long-term, that suit was going to save me tons of time. But I have to say, I'm a little ashamed I had to resort to that. So much for being a 1337 gamer... =(
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Hellgiver - 426 days 20 hours ago
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1.7 -
I still disagree. I didn't find it all that scary. I only found one part that even startled me. I have the setup for it. 40 inch LCD, sitting 4 feet from it, surround sound, small dark room with no other noises, always late at night. I rarely got into danger in the game. They gave too much health and too many health packs. Even on the hard difficulty, I only found myself dying stupid deaths. I think they could have done so much better.

I found Condemned 2 a lot scarier. Dead Space probably could have been SO much scarier if there wasn't so much light in the game. Luckily, they did it right in the Hard difficulty by reducing the amount of ammo, so you often are more concerned with making every shot count, and looking for combustible sources.

Regardless, I still think they could have changed the environment a bit, and perhaps even made it so that you didn't always know when to expect an attack. A lot of the attacks can be expected if you watch everything, such as shadows off in the distance (which was a very detailed and well implemented feature). Also, just keep watching the ground for nonhuman-looking corpses, and you just shoot them to keep from getting "ambushed". I think there should have been an option for drastically reduced lighting, and not just brightness adjustments. I adjusted that perfectly; there were just way too many light sources, IMO.
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SL1M DADDY - 426 days 9 hours ago
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1.8 - The game is scary if...
You play it on the difficulty level above what you are used to. Don't cheat yourself out of a great experience by playing it on easy if you know you can beat it on hard.

Oh, and don't DL the special suites if you want a real challenge.
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nos4speed - 426 days 23 hours ago
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1.9 -
I just completed this like 30 mins ago. All I have to say is WOW!!! Its such a great game, it is very scary at the start when u dont know were stuff is coming from but u do get used to the monsters HOWEVER the game keeps you jumping all the way through (Tomatoes anyone) right up to te end, and has such a great story unlike most horror games. It is now officially my second favorite game this gen, behind uncharted. I hope they make a sequal.

Im going to go complete it a few more times now :D
Obsidian suit FTW!
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ZidaneNL - 427 days ago
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2 -
I disagree, the game made me sh*t my pants so hard it gave me second-degree burns! From the beginning where you're chased in the hallway till the very end the game made me crap three colors of sh*t, shoot laser beams from my d*ck and almost gave me a total nervous breakdown. xD

Meh, just exaggerating a bit, it's still very scary, best horror game in quite a while, haven't had that much fun since F.E.A.R.! =D
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Milo Garret - 426 days 23 hours ago
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2.1 -
He played it with lights on, sound off, and with friends and family present. Or he is just some wuss trying his best to come of as tough...
This is by far the scariest game I have ever played, and yes, I plowed through re4, silent hill 2, 3 & 4 and F.E.A.R.
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2.2 THWIP71 | 426 days 23 hours ago - User only got 1 bubble - Show
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ZidaneNL - 426 days 22 hours ago
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2.3 -
You should play F.E.A.R. on PC with the graphics on maximum settings, lights off, headphones and diapers on! F.E.A.R. is a game that has a horror element that you either like or absolutely not. It depends on the person. I can't stand psychological horror, the one that screws with your head... >.> F.E.A.R. does exactly that! But some people are unaffected by that, I mean, even Dead Space's menu made me crap my pants... *shudders*
Played the PC version by the way, I also think playing these games on a PC is more immersive, you sit right in front of it, where sitting like 1-2 meters from your screen is totally different.
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Charlie2688 - 426 days 21 hours ago
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2.4 -
I actually found FEAR Extraction Point to be a LOT more scary bordering in flat out disturbing than the original FEAR

So far (Chapter 2) I found Dead Space scary but not so much (yet) as FEAR:EP
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2.5 THWIP71 | 426 days 16 hours ago - User only got 1 bubble - Show
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SeanScythe - 427 days ago
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3 -
sorry but this guy must have played it with friends around and the light on. You have to set the mood to get into this game. Alone in a dark house and the sound turned up.
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MazzingerZ - 426 days 23 hours ago
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3.1 -
I played SIREN Blood curse during the day with my family around and I anyway sh't my pants...old school surviving horror...SIREN BC don't rely in sudden noisees or pop-up enemies...the chibitos are there, you see them and they are just to creepy...the chasing parts via split screen where you can see yourself from their perspective added a lot of tension...great game!

I'll be playing Dead Space during the spring, just played SIREN BC and I wanna keep the old school taste
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3.2 Blademask | 426 days 23 hours ago - User only got 1 bubble - Show
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MazzingerZ - 426 days 22 hours ago
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3.3 -
..and it gets only better :)...one can see that the original Silent Hill game designer is behind SIREN BC... I love that the screen is clean of any items like life gauge, ammo, etc....

I'm really happy I downloaded it, the painful chapter installs were well worth it...I had forgetten why I loved Silent Hill, old RE...survival horror games in general...today they have turned mostly into FPS...you, the main character, are never vulnerable...the enemies should be scared of you rather than the other way around

Good luck beating the game! I loved the ending!
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PirateThom - 427 days ago
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4 -
Scares me when I play it in the dark.

Probably the scariest game I've played since Silent Hill.
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ThanatosDMC - 426 days 23 hours ago
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4.1 -
PS1 Silent Hill... when the school changes to the rusty version... that was scary. Sometimes i didnt want to go to the next room. Limited ammo and health.
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lost2 - 427 days ago
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5 - It is one of the scariest games ever
.
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PoopsMagee - 426 days 23 hours ago
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6 - Ugh
Reviews like this are pointless. "Didn't scare me, I'm too tough."

Guess what, it's a video game! Name the greatest, scariest horror movie of all time, and I guarantee I could sit through it, in the dark, while yawning. The truth is that as soon as you're an adult things that go bump in the night are no longer scary, regardless of the medium. So to have a grown man ridicule a game because, although very well done, it didn't "scare" him, is ridiculous. What form of media would scare you?

See my point?
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FunAndGun - 426 days 23 hours ago
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6.1 - 100%
totally agree.
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RebelExtrm02 - 426 days 14 hours ago
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6.2 -
I have to disagree. I'm an adult and stuff like this still scares the crap out of me. I attribute it to my vivid imagination and refusal to believe that life is as simple as it appears.
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rhood022 - 426 days 23 hours ago
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7 -
I agree with the author, overall it wasn't that scary of a game. The ONLY time I really jumped was the first time the tentacle grabs you near the medical bay. That whole sequence really freaked me out because I couldn't aim at the yellow sack and hit it enough times before it sucked me into the hole.

Other than that, the scares were rather predictable. I mean, when you walked into an "empty" room, there was a 90% chance that a quarantine would be issued or some sort of necromorph would pop out of the wall. Similarly, if there were a long hallway with some ammo or other items at the end of it, chances are when you went down there to get it the return trip would be a shootout with something.

Despite the fact I didn't think it was scary, it was still a bloody good game.
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Kratos Spartan - 426 days 23 hours ago
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8 - To me
The scare factor just wasn't there. I played only at night. Nothing made me jump out of my boots or anything. Although it was very creepy and tense, maybe I was expecting too hard for the scare. I have been wanting it since the Game Informer Cover Story. The last, and only, time a game made me jump was the dog crash through window in Resident Evil. You didn't play that game and not jump at that moment. But I enjoyed Dead Space. Beat it. He was not alone in that spacecraft...
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Munky - 426 days 23 hours ago
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8.1 - Agree
Totally agree with you man, the first time the domerman jumps through the window in resident evil is the scariest moment i've ever experienced in a videogame. Looking back on it now it makes me laugh at how I screamed like a b1tch, but in the end that particular scene was by far the most i've jumped in a videogame.

But back on topic, Dead Space does provide a few creepy/tense moments but nothing to make you jump out of your seat, that doesn't take away from the fact that it is a awesome game in terms of graphics, sound, gameplay, and presentation.
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militant07 - 426 days 23 hours ago
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9 -
AT ALL
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Homicide - 426 days 23 hours ago
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10 -
The game isn't scary like Resident Evil 4. It's fun to play, but not really a horror game.
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KidMakeshift - 426 days 22 hours ago
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10.1 -
You thought Resident Evil 4 was scary?
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monkey602 - 426 days 17 hours ago
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10.2 -
I'm sure they meant it wasnt scary just like resi 4 wasnt scary
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Lelouch V Brit - 426 days 23 hours ago
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11 -
this article sucks.
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morganfell - 426 days 23 hours ago
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12 -
Sarcasticgamer = Ripten when they are bored. What sarcasticgamer is really saying is "WE NEED WEB HITS! WE NEED WEB HITS!"
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12.1 inane | 426 days 23 hours ago - comment has been reported as SPAM -
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Nicolator - 426 days 23 hours ago
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13 - well
After much hype .. and all i think ppl just got themselves really prepared for it.. and wen u chop off a limb or head 3 times i dont think doing it 30 times will really be bad after that... and the enemies i heard were abit the same thru the game .. so that again .. u know what to expect.. i dunno just my thought..
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morganfell - 426 days 23 hours ago
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13.1 -
"..i heard..."

So you are saying you haven't played the game. You do realize of course that on the Opinion Validity Scale of 2008 you now rank below sarcasticgamer.
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Nicolator - 426 days 23 hours ago
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13.2 - @mrganfell
the last time i chked this is a forum and ppl have to share opinions so get ur head out of ur A**..
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morganfell - 426 days 22 hours ago
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13.3 -
So what you are saying is it is fine for you to share an opinion, however uninformed, but I am not to be afforded the same freedom regarding your erred remarks?

Yes you are entitled to you own opinion. You are also entitled to be called on the carpet for said opinion. Particularly when it has no backing and is composed, not of experience, but rather of supposition snatched out of the thin air like a bothersome housefly.

Also, juvenile attempts to beat the swear filter are not so much an opinion as they are a sign of a lack of creativity and a distinct misunderstanding of maturity.
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orakga - 426 days 22 hours ago
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13.4 - @ Nicol~
Sorry dude, but your "opinion" is not actually an opinion.

It's called a "heresay", and is the #1 cause for misinformation on the internet.
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Hellsvacancy - 426 days 23 hours ago
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14 - I cant wait to get my hands on Dead Space
Im lie lying when i type

I shall hav myself a bag of my mates finest home grown i shall kick the missis off to bed and then sit up untill the sun starts to appear playin Dead Space

Im lookin 4ward to it, im playin through Viking Battle For Asgard the games ok but not really what i wanna b playin
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15 inane | 426 days 23 hours ago - comment has been reported as SPAM -
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shysun - 426 days 23 hours ago
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16 -
Anyone have extra underwear for me? :(
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FunAndGun - 426 days 23 hours ago
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17 - Great Game!
I thought there were just as many "jumping" moments as any other horror game. The thing about scary movies and games is you have to allow yourself to be scared. If you go in thinking it is not scary, then chances are you won't jump. If you use a little of your own imagination and get swallowed by the immersion of the game then this game is indeed scary.

Of course I could play this game and NOT jump, but that wouldn't be any fun now would it?

One of the best games so far this year. its dripping with quality!
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Doctor Strange - 426 days 20 hours ago
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17.1 -
Yeah I agree you have to let your guard down a bit and play the game. Also like many people said turn the sound up and having the lights off really adds to the mod and tension of the game.

I jumped quite a few times playing this and I'm glad to say that because its been long time since a game actually made me jump or feel the least bit scared and this is a game I think everybody should play.

For newcomers I suggest starting the game off on hard, its way more fun and of course challenging that way.
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mjaruzel777 - 426 days 23 hours ago
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18 - ...
The game scared me..I jumped a bunch of times :o
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miasma - 426 days 23 hours ago
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19 - I know i wrote this same comment on the other 'Review'...
but I'll write it again,

I am loving this game. The sound on my home theatre is incredible, it really makes the game, they did an amazing job on the sound effects and how well the sounds immerse you further into the game.

I also like the maps and inventory systems and the way they implemented them, none of this 'pause the game and fiddle around with the inventory' crap. You need to make sure you aren't about to be attacked when you are going for the maps and stuff. And putting the health meters on the suit is awesome, with all of this, i never take my eyes off the environment and i always feel like i'm in the game. Nicely done EA.

As for scaring the hell out of me, honestly, it's about 50/50. The very beginning got me good, and there have been a few moments here and there so far.
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AclayPS3 - 426 days 23 hours ago
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20 -
To me Dead Space wasn't really that scary, but nearly the entire game is filled with very tense moments.

The part in Dead Space where I was really scared was in Chapter 8 or 9 I think when you had to work your way through a room of Sliding Doors/Panels ( it was something like a puzzle) and after working your way through and reaching another area that Enemy that just keeps Regenerating over and over again after you shoot off his legs or arms broke out of his Glass Chamber and then you had to run away from him and work your way through the sliding doors again with that Enemy behind you.... that part really had my heart racing.

The Regenerating enemy probably creeped me out the most, and those Really fast enemies that run at you at breakneck speed were creepy as hell too in Dead Space

When playing Dead Space the atmosphere in the room must be right because if not, you wont get the full effect of the game. Don't play the game with the lights on and don't play it in a room full of people. I played Dead Space with the lights off and with my headphones plugged into the TV.

I almost can't believe that this guy didn't get scared at all though because there was some moments in Dead Space that really made me Jump (enemies popping out of windows as soon as you walk near them, etc...)
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JelalTrueshot - 426 days 22 hours ago
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21 - Wha!?!
The reviewer is clearly dead inside.
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