Before listening to this week’s discussion, be sure to dive into last week’s episode of Horror Bytes: our indie showcase show!
In Space, no one can hear you stomp.
Space horror has always scratched a similar terrifying itch for me, not unlike aquatic horror. Both settings are inherently isolating, and inhospitable locals are shrouded in darkness, concealing god knows what kind of terrors. The lack of oxygen is also slightly problematic. And while Dead Space certainly wasn’t the first to capitalize on the volatility of space, it was one of the first to damn near perfect.
Taking a more action horror approach to combat and combining the atmospheric dread and industrial, blue-collar influence of Ridley Scott’s 1979 masterpiece Alien, Dead Space was a recipe for mainstream horror success. The game effectively revitalized horror on consoles which, for the time, were only seeing mainstream success from big tentpole survival horror franchises. Dead Space filled a void at a crucial time, providing unprecedented alien stomping carnage, suffocating environments, and truly hellish monster designs that felt reflective of their world.
So, before the Dead Space remake is released at the end of the month, Neil and I take a trip back to Issac Clarke’s first encounter with Necromorphs, Dead Space’s unique approach to combat, and our hopes for features included in the remake. – Jay Krieger
Safe Room is a weekly horror video game discussion podcast with new episodes every Monday on
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Next week sees Safe Room delving into two of Dante’s most divisive outings in the Devil May Cry series as Devil May Cry 2 and Ninja Theory’s DmC: Devil May Cry celebrate their 20th and 10th anniversary respectively. If you have thoughts and feelings on either of those games, then let us know on Twitter.