I have a bit of a problem with self control when it comes to purchasing video games. When I found this particular game heavily discounted there was no way I could pass it up, even though I really didn’t know anything about it. After sitting on my shelf for awhile I finally got around to playing it and I am glad I did. It is a lot of fun.
While playing the game I was often reminded of several different outer space based horror movies. Unfortunately this meant that I was not allowed to play the game while my wife or children were present. The game does an amazing job setting the ambiance. Lighting effects, sound effects, cut scenes and plot development all come together amazingly well to create one of the most legitimately creepy video games I have played in a long time.
One interesting mechanic is that there is no way to recover your health except with medical packs you’ll find. There are only a certain number of these on the ship, and while I never ran out of them I was always careful to use them sparingly.
Enemies can be killed with head shots or body shots, but the most effective way of killing them is by shooting off their limbs. This is a different mechanic from every other game in the history of the world and it turns out to be pretty important because of the limited amount of ammunition available. I was constantly running low on ammo so I had to be very careful with my shots.
The only problem I had with the game was that enemies kept dropping behind me. There are vents all over the ship that the bad guys can use to travel around and they will often drop through a vent behind you, even when you think you’re in a nice safe supply closet. I suppose the designers did this to force you to keep moving but I found it to be highly irritating.
Overall I really enjoyed playing the game and I am looking forward to the sequel, which I have already purchased.
* Excellent use of Sound / Lighting / Cut Scenes
* Scary
Cons* Relies on the ‘Something is behind you!’ mechanic a bit too much.
Is it fun: Yes
Score: 8/10
Length: 15 hours
System: PS3
Genre: Third Person Shooter / Survival Horror
Video Gaming Dad 