The Dead Space Remake mercilessly puts your survival skills to the test. Then again, maybe not, because our selected tips and tricks won’t give necromorphic aliens a chance.
Quite a challenge: In 2008, Dead Space was one of the most terrifying horror games, now the overhauled remake has blown up to storm our fear center. Anyway, the futuristic horror trip can do more than terrorize Isaac with mutants and severed limbs.
The brave CEC technician is in fact subjected to an exciting resource management, and is confronted with tricky puzzle tasks on top of that. Accordingly, it’s easy to fail in “The Thing” inspired survival horror, but with our tips for the game, you won’t have to fear the grim corridors of the “new” Ishimura.
That’s because our guide contains optimal (combat) tactics for a relaxed playthrough on normal difficulty, with most tricks working on the other difficulty levels as well. Story content is not spoiled.
Dead Space Guide: How to Master the Remake With Ease
Tip 1: Isaac’s legs are powerful, so make use of them!
Be honest: The tempting glow of locked supply crates tempts most of us to crude gun violence. In Dead Space, too, the supply containers literally scream for a bullet, but you should ignore this call.
What Isaac’s stomping doesn’t suggest at first is that he can use it to smash even the blue-lit storage boxes on the ground. If one of these boxes is floating in the air due to zero G, you can simply use Isaac’s kinesis ability to bring it down. It should be self-explanatory that you can save a lot of ammunition this way.
However, you should also let Isaac swing his leg in combat situations! Especially when the agile alien mutations rush up at him. As soon as it stands in front of Isaac, a well-aimed kick will throw it back and create some kind of surprise effect for a short time. You might have to practice this kick a few times, though, since it only hits at a certain distance.
Tip 2: Focus on just a few weapons
The Dead Space remake also provides Isaac with a total of seven weapons, but only a few of them are particularly well suited for hunting mutants. Your best friend throughout the game is called Plasma Cutter, which you should level up as much as possible with focus on damage. Just like in the original, you do this at the Ishimura’s workbenches.
Another thing you should pack early on is the flamethrower, even if you basically need it for just one type of enemy. More on that in a moment. Third in line, you’ll always want to have the ray gun with you. Unlike the flamethrower, a slight upgrade won’t hurt in its case, especially in terms of damage and the natively low “magazine” capacity.
All other weapons can be safely left to gather dust in stores, although you could try out the industrial saw “Ripper” for increased amputation fun. In the long run, however, you should also save this inventory slot.
Tip 3: Have a root inventory
In order to play through Dead Space Remake with ease, you should set up a somewhat firm inventory. Which means: Carry the optimum amount of certain ammunition as well as some useful items with you. During our walkthrough, we did very well with the following equipment:
- 100 units of plasma energy (plasma cutter)
- 150-300 units of flamethrower ammunition
- 18 units of beam ammunition (beam cannon)
- Air canister (medium)
- 1x large and 2-3x medium medkit
- Optional: Laser cannon with 2-3x laser energy
Tip 4: Exploit the weak points of opponents
Text logs will tell you that the necromorphs’ limbs are the main thing to shoot. And you should definitely follow this, which is easiest to do with a plasma cutter. For most of the enemies, however, there are additional strategies for overcoming them or special weapon recommendations:
- From the Pregnants may burst spider-like Swarmers. They usually come in such large numbers that Isaac can do little with regular firearms. Therefore, use the flamethrower. It’s also a good way to test whether a mutant that’s slumped over is really dead. Because sometimes it’s not.
- There is, however, a way Pregnants will keep their unpleasant spawn in their bodies. To do this, first shred their short legs using the ray gun. Then, do the same to their “arms”. Be careful, though: you must not scratch the body of the fatty. Otherwise, this beast will immediately sic its Swarmers on you.
- The ray gun is made for the Cysts. Their three tentacles can be precisely detected by its three targeting lasers and then being amputated. However, Isaac’s distance to the respective opponent must be right!
- If there are Infectors in the enemy mob, you should always wipe them out first, because they turn corpses into Necromorphs. This is where the ray gun comes in handy.
- Guardians are enormously annoying enemies because they spit out equally annoying embryo-like pods. With an energy mine from a short distance you can solve this problem immediately. Alternatively, you can shoot the monster’s tentacles leading to the wall with the plasma cutter.
Tip 5: Always play it safe
Especially in combat, it’s better to be safe than sorry. You should get into the habit of reloading the gun(s) you use after every shootout. This is because the magazine often runs out far too quickly.
Furthermore, it can save lives to keep an eye on your flanks, especially in freshly started battles. It’s not uncommon for enemies to stab you in the back or to come at you from all directions. In the latter case, you should not forget that your stasis module also slows down organic creatures.
In general, however, it is recommended to leave your guns behind every now and then. Especially at the beginning of the game, resources are still scarce and you would do well to pass the one or the other area without fighting. For the first, that is. That’s possible in places that deploy automatic doors, because “excluded” Necromorphs lose interest almost immediately.
Tip 6: Exceptions confirm the rule
Although Isaac’s survival is more or less ensured with the previous tips, there are a few passages in Dead Space remake that may get on your nerves. We have identified exactly four of them, which can be solved as follows:
- Emergency room, corridor A: Quickly get rid of the Cyst and Exploder. A short lull in the action follows; at the first sound, immediately run back to the entrance gate, fire the Ray Cannon once and comfortably finish off the remaining enemies with the Plasma Cutter.
- Mortuary: First amputate the dark Necromorph that breaks through the glass pane (use the Plasma Cutter). Then shoot the marker with the ray gun and the situation is solved.
- Way to the asteroid cannon: For your first walk to the asteroid cannon you will need two medium air canisters instead of one. Here you may have the ripper in your luggage, but it is not necessary.
- First battle against regenerating Necromorph: This morbid monster seems incredibly strong and robust at first, but with the beam cannon (especially with its mines) it’s “neutralized” quickly. Aim for the legs here.
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