All games, books and comics in the Dead Space series. A complete chronology of the confrontation between humans and Necromorphs

 

Today, many successful game series are turning into large media franchises. For example, within the framework of the Dead Space series from 2008 to 2013, games, comics, books, and cartoons were released that revealed this gloomy universe from different angles. Today, on the day of the release of the original Dead Space remake, we want to recall all the works that are related to the world of Necromorphs.

Dead Space is a space horror series inspired by classic 80s horror films. It was remembered by the players for its gloomy atmosphere, really creepy monsters, and gameplay with unique gameplay features. The series quickly became a cult favorite among those who like to tickle their nerves. For example, the recent The Callisto Protocol was expected precisely as the spiritual successor to Dead Space, because Glen Schofield, the author of the original 2008 game, was at the helm of development.

But back to Dead Space. The works related to the world of this game cover events that took place in a variety of time periods. For convenience, we have arranged the works not by release dates, but in a chronological sequence of internal plot events.

Dead Space: Martyr - book

• Genre: fiction novel;
• Release date: July 20, 2010.

The events of the universe start with the novel "Dead Space: Martyr". It is dedicated to the fate of Michael Altman, who is considered a prophet in unitology, the local religion. Her followers believe that humans were created by aliens and should be reunited with the dead after death. To do this, they need a special space artifact known as the Black Obelisk. Michael discovered his dangerous influence on people and wanted to warn humanity, but he was killed, and the words he said were presented incorrectly. Altman himself was declared the messiah. Later, the adherents of unitology will play an important role in the events of the series.

Fans of the series should read this and subsequent books. This is a good reading for the evening, which allows you to understand the origin of the first Obelisk and the emergence of a new religion. People who are not interested in the Dead Space series can safely pass by.

Dead Space: Catalyst - book

• Genre: fiction novel;
• Release date: 2012

This book describes the consequences of using alien technology that was obtained using the Black Obelisk. The main storyline of the novel is dedicated to the fate of two brothers who end up in a dark prison with their terrible secrets. Note that one of the main characters of the book is a catalyst - he is able to amplify the signals of the Obelisk.

Dead Space Comic

• Genre: graphic novel;
• Release date: 2008

This comic tells about the last days of the colonists of the planet Aegis VII. It was they who discovered the Red Obelisk, a man-made copy of the Black. We are shown how people under the influence of this artifact begin to go crazy, suffer from insomnia, see hallucinations, and, ultimately, fall under its influence. The head of the security service, Abraham Newman, guessed what was the matter, and proposes to stop the collection of minerals on the planet. However, unitology adepts soon arrive and take the artifact aboard the Ishimura. It is on this spaceship that the action of the first Dead Space and the remake will unfold. Although the Obelisk flew into orbit, the inhabitants of the planet began to turn into necromorphs and kill those who still survived.

As with the books, the graphic novel is of particular value to fans who are interested in the details of what happened aboard the Ishimura.

Dead Space: Extraction - game

• Genre: rail shooter;
• Platforms: Nintendo Wii, PlayStation 3;
• Release date: 2009

Dead Space: Extraction was released on Wii a year after the original game was released on PS3, Xbox 360, and PC. If the comic we talked about above was about the colonists from Aegis VII, then Extraction is dedicated to the miners from Ishimura, who loaded the Red Obelisk onto the ship. Of course, the crew members also fell under the influence of the artifact, and after a while, an epidemic broke out on board, which turned people into necromorphs. The game takes place both on the surface of the planet and on Ishimura itself.

Dead Space: Extraction is not a horror, but a rail shooter. We can only aim and shoot, and the hero's movements are automated. Games of this genre were popular on the Nintendo Wii, but by today they are completely outdated. If you are interested in the plot, it is better to limit yourself to a two-hour video on YouTube. Note that in January 2011, Dead Space: Extraction was ported to PS3.

Dead Space: Extraction Comic

• Genre: graphic novel;
• Release date: 2009

If you want to get acquainted with the story that is told in Dead Space: Extraction, you can use the official comic with the same name. It completely duplicates the events of the game. However, in our opinion, the drawing of this graphic novel is executed frankly poorly. It's hard to recommend even to big fans of the series.

Dead Space: Downfall - cartoon

Genre: animated film;

Release date: 2008

In parallel with the game and the Dead Space: Extraction comic, the action of the cartoon Dead Space: Downfall takes place, which was released in Russian localization under the name "Cosmos: Territory of Death". It reveals the fate of the other heroes of Ishimura, who are faced with the influence of the Red Obelisk and the transformation of people into necromorphs. The plot of this animated film brings us to the events of the first part of the series - in the epilogue we see the capsule with the "Kellion", on board which is Isaac Clarke.

Is this cartoon worth watching? He adds additional plot information and does not hesitate to kill key characters, and in a very brutal way. At the same time, the atmosphere of the cartoon is completely different from what we saw in the original game, and the local art even in 2009 seemed mediocre. Today, against the background of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners and NieR: Automata Ver1.1a, it looks absolutely terrible.

No Known Survivors - browser game

• Genre: quest;
• Platforms: PC;
• Release date: 2008

Prior to the release of the first Dead Space, noknownsurvivors.com was launched (don't try to go over why - answer below), which offered to read the stories of individual characters from the universe of this game. The first is about an organ replacement specialist who falls in love with a girl who served as a security officer. The second tells of an agent pretending to work in a team, but in fact, performing a top-secret mission. Gameplay-wise, both games are simple quests. The site is currently unavailable.

Dead Space - game

• Genre: horror;
• Platforms: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC;
• Release date: 2008

The first Dead Space, according to many game journalists, was the best horror of 2008. Its closest competitor, the relaunch of Alone in the Dark, was innovative but not intimidating. He was remembered except for inconvenient controls and excessive complexity. Dead Space, on the other hand, was closer to Resident Evil 4, which was 3 years old by then.

But the game was really scary. Local opponents in the faces of Necromorphs look creepy and do not hesitate to attack at the most unexpected moment. And they turned out to be very tenacious. A headshot is often useless - to defeat an alien creature, you need to cut off all its limbs. In the arsenal of the protagonist, in addition to firearms, there are special devices, such as stasis, which can slow down individual monsters.

But even when Isaac Clarke is left completely alone, the game retains the atmosphere of a full-fledged space horror in the spirit of the first Alien. This film by Ridley Scott, along with the 1982 film The Thing, are the main sources of inspiration for the authors of Dead Space. At the same time, the game has its own unique vision of the genre, which distinguishes it from other horror games.

Of the minuses of the first Dead Space, one can only note the monotony of the gameplay. Around the middle of the passage of the battle with the Necromorphs begin to tire. The situation is a little brightened up by the need to go into outer space. Even by modern standards, such episodes look atmospheric.

Is Dead Space worth playing today? We will tell you soon in the review of the remake.

Dead Space: Salvage comic

• Genre: graphic novel;
• Release date: 2010

This comic tells about the fate of Ishimura after the end of the original Dead Space. The ship is found by a group of illegal miners who are looking for something to profit from in the remote corners of the galaxy. Most of them fall under the influence of the Red Obelisk, and the rest are attacked by Necromorphs. Later, the "Oracles", agents of the Earth government, arrive on board, pursuing their nebulous goals.

Unlike Dead Space: Extraction, this graphic novel can be recommended even to casual readers. For fans of the series, it's a must-see. The dark style of the comic is exactly the same as the atmosphere of the original Dead Space, and the intricacies of the local plot are really interesting to follow.

Dead Space: Aftermath - cartoon

• Genre: animated film;
• Release date: 2011

Cartoon Dead Space: Aftermath tells about the survivors from the planet Aegis VII, who managed to evacuate. It is worth noting that the stories of each of the four characters are presented in completely different styles of drawing. But the plot again comes down to the influence of the Obelisk on people and their fight against the Necromorphs. You can safely skip.

Dead Space: Sabotage - game

• Genre: horror;
• Platforms: iOS, Android;
• Release date: 2011

A high-quality, but completely optional prequel to the events of Dead Space 2, which tells how the Necromorphs ended up on the New Titan. In a nutshell, the unitologists who sent their agent to the station are to blame for everything. We have to play for him. Outwardly, the game is similar to the licensed parts of the series, but its gameplay is much simpler. Unfortunately, today it will be problematic to download Dead Space: Sabotage, it has been removed from the AppStore and Google Play.

Dead Space Ignition - Game

• Genre: puzzle;
• Platforms: PS3, Xbox 360;
• Release date: 2010

Another prequel to Dead Space 2, which was released exclusively on the seventh-generation consoles. It is dedicated to unitologist Franco Delil, who will save Arthur C. Clarke from certain death in the second part of the series. In Ignition, a man encounters Necromorphs for the first time. The game itself is made in a cartoon style and is a set of three simple mini-games. It can be praised for its variability, but the events of Dead Space Ignition hardly affect the main plot.

Dead Space 2 - game

• Genre: horror;
• Platforms: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC;
• Release date: 2011

Dead Space 2 retained the mechanics of the first part but added in scale and variety. Her actions take place not on a spaceship, but on a huge Titan station, which is a small city. The game has new weapons and unique gameplay features, such as depressurization of the room, as a result of which all Necromorphs fly into outer space. The plot has become much better, and the main character feels alive - he not only talks but also actively swears during battles.

Even forced "backtracking" is interesting here - we return to the same locations, but over time they change. If at first people still try to fight the Necromorphs, resist, and scream, then towards the end of the passage, the station completely dies out.

You can recommend Dead Space 2 even today. Over the past 12 years, she has aged a little on the outside but is still able to deliver a lot of pleasure to horror lovers.

Separately, it is worth noting the addition of Severed (“Cutoff”). It is dedicated to Gabe Weller and Lexina Murdoch, characters from the rail shooter Dead Space: Extraction, which we talked about above. It turns out that government agents have been watching them for a long time - they need the girl to become pregnant. She is immune to the effects of the Obelisk, which is why her child is so important. At the end of the story, Gabe gives Lexina the opportunity to leave Titan, however, at the cost of his life. The gameplay of the DLC is no different from the original Dead Space 2.

Dead Space: Liberation - comic

• Genre: graphic novel;
• Release date: 2013

Liberation is a prequel to the events of the third part. It tells the story of John Carver, the second playable character in Dead Space 3. The guy is forced to kill his own wife and child because they became infected and were supposed to turn into Necromorphs. After that, John decided to fulfill the last wish of his late wife - to learn the secrets of the Obelisk. The plot features Ellie Langford, familiar to us from the second part, and Robert Norton, who will play an important role in the triquel.

Visually, the comic really resembles Dead Space 3. Another thing is that the game itself was not as interesting as the first two parts. But if you liked it and want to know more about John Kraver, you can read it.

Dead Space 3 - game

• Genre: third-person shooter, horror;
• Platforms: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC;
• Co-op: yes;
• Release date: 2013

Dead Space 3 is noticeably different from the first two parts. This game turned out to be much closer to action in the spirit of Gears of War than to horror. Here it became possible to hide behind shelters, the arsenal has expanded noticeably, and the story campaign can be played in co-op. Among the opponents, there are both Necromorphs and fanatics from the Church of Unitology.

Fans of the series did not appreciate the innovations, and critics were not enthusiastic about the game. Dead Space 3 was no longer scared, but as an action game it was inferior to other representatives of the genre. Released a month later, the addition of Awakened ("Awakened") only added fuel to the fire - it was perceived as a logical ending to the main story, which for some reason was sold separately. As a result, the game did not live up to the publisher's expectations, and the series was frozen for a long 10 years.

If we are ready to recommend the second Dead Space even today, then it is better to skip the third part. She lost the uniqueness that distinguished the games in this series and became a regular third-person shooter.

Have you played Dead Space? Which part of the series did you like best? Share your opinion in the comments!