A Gamers Christmas Wishlist for 2008

What games should you be hoping to find under the tree when Santa comes to town?  Read more

Why is Everybody Ignoring Dead Space? Here are 4 Reasons to be Excited

There, I said it.  Dead Space is being completely ignored by the gaming community already.  Why?  Well, for starters it comes out on October 31st this fall, smack dab in the middle of juggernauts such as Resistance 2, Gears of War 2, Little Big Planet and on and on.  True, there are in fact so many highly anticipated games coming out this fall that it’s easy for a new IP like Dead Space to get lost in the shuffle.  Frankly, that is unfortunate for many reasons.

First of all, the game is looking great.  The visuals look amazing and the atmosphere is very reminiscent of the Alien Trilogy (Quadrilogy my ass). If you enjoyed watching Ripley battle aliens in dark corridors against insurmountable odds this game should be on your radar.

Second, the story is almost exactly the same as the now legendary Ridley Scott directed Alien film…and that’s a good thing.  Set on a mining ship that is in, you guessed it, deep space, protagonist Isaac Clarke finds himself up against an alien species called “Necromorphs” that have taken over the ship and killed everybody.  It’s a classic science fiction story and one that perfectly creates a situation where you are completely alone and afraid.

Third, Dead Space is a third-person survival horror game that is very similar to Resident Evil 4 and the upcoming Resident Evil 5.  Chances are, if you like those types of games, this one will be much the same…only with less zombies and a sci-fi twist.

Fourth and finally, this game is a brand new IP from EA, a company that is traditionally very hesitant to take chances and move in creative new directions.  There is far too much money involved these days with developing new IP’s and the fact that EA is taking a chance on a new one is a positive sign not only for the industry but for gamers.  If you are tired of playing sequels and the same games that have been rehashed over and over again, now is the chance to throw your support behind a game that is trying something new.   Lets be honest, new IP’s don’t come along very often because of the financial risks involved. Too often a great new IP will be released that is gains universal critical acclaim…only to catch on too late with gamers. Fans of the amazing PS2 game Okami will agree that the game should have had far more success with the gaming community.

If you are one of the many that has not even seen this game yet be sure to check out the trailer below.  Better yet, be sure to see the awesome developer commentary video. Science fiction fans should be excited.

I think this game is going to be worth taking a “chance” on.  To learn more from someone that has actually played the game, check out a hands-on preview written by IGN’s Hilary Goldstein.

To be clear, I’m not advocating that you should go out and buy this game…yet. But if it comes out and is actually really good I only hope that gamers will give it a chance. Otherwise, all we may have to look forward from EA will be the next iterations of Tiger Woods and Burnout for years to come.

[poll=8]