Dead Space writer says action focus of Dead Space 3 as 'inevitable'

Antony Johnston, one of the writers for the first game, recently spoke about how the transition away from "old-school survival horror" was "inevitable" because of the universe Visceral Games had created.

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Dead Space 3 has been rather divisive amongst fans. Many lament the franchise's move to bigger action setpieces, and long for a more solitary experience akin to the first game. Antony Johnston, one of the writers for the first game, recently spoke about how the transition away from "old-school survival horror" was "inevitable" because of the universe Visceral Games had created.

"The developers always wanted to go bigger, in terms of scope," he explained. "And I've mentioned before that the universe we created was huge, with lots of elements, which simply didn't make it into the first game."

"So to get that story told, to round out the universe, it was inevitable the settings and environments would open out a bit, become a bit more epic in scale," Johnston told NowGamer. "Otherwise you'd just have the same game on a different ship each time, and that's pretty dull."

While Johnston had no involvement with Dead Space 3, he does say that Visceral was successful in finding that balance between action and horror--echoing the sentiment of our own review.

Andrew Yoon was previously a games journalist creating content at Shacknews.

From The Chatty
  • reply
    February 11, 2013 5:00 PM

    Andrew Yoon posted a new article, Dead Space writer says action focus of Dead Space 3 as 'inevitable'.

    Antony Johnston, one of the writers for the first game, recently spoke about how the transition away from "old-school survival horror" was "inevitable" because of the universe Visceral Games had created.

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      February 11, 2013 7:10 PM

      Was the game's new direction really that bad? I enjoyed the hell out of it - first in co-op play (which was one of the best experiences I've had in a long, long time and easily justified committing two whole weekend days to it - it was fantastic), and now for a second solo playthrough just to see the differences.

      I guess I can see some of the concern in it not being as "solitary" per-say, but I feel like they made up for it in the presentation of everything else.

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        February 12, 2013 3:09 AM

        For those of who who prefer survival horror to action, the new direction is terrible.

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          February 12, 2013 3:20 AM

          I won't say horrible, but it did get tedious towards the end.

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            February 12, 2013 5:40 AM

            I will agree with this, though. I would have liked a bit more of the space/ships section and a bit less of the ice world.

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        February 12, 2013 5:39 AM

        I thought it was great

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        February 12, 2013 5:50 AM

        It isn't bad by any means, but it doesn't quite connect with what was interesting about the series.

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      February 11, 2013 8:34 PM

      It just sounds suspiciously similar to what they said about Resident Evil. What is it about these games?

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        February 12, 2013 3:21 AM

        Target demographics. Uttering the phrase in the 90's would have gotten you justifiably shot.

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      February 12, 2013 3:55 AM

      They couldn't deliver another Dead Space on par with the first. All the mystery has been revealed; they should put the series on ice for a while.

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        February 12, 2013 5:00 AM

        I had my doubts about 2, but it was excellent. Great atmosphere, a linear level design that still offered plenty of side paths to explore, a much more balanced arsenal (although the plasma cutter was still the dominant weapon), strategic combat and resource management based on survival decisions and tactics, and haunting audio design.

        In other words, a proper Dead Space game.

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