iPad Review: Dead Space HD

Yes, I've still been playing games on my iPad in between the backlog. Puzzle Quest is often a staple as are Bit.Trip Beat and SuperBrothers: Sword And Sworcery, but by far the best game I've played so far on Apple's magical device is Dead Space HD.

Being a virgin to the Dead Space series, this was my first time exploring the horror's of the EA's dark universe. The first thing that immediately grabs you is the visuals. Still images of this game look like it's big brother console counterparts. The frame-rate takes a hit and some of the backgrounds are fuzzy, but for an iPad game, the visuals are an incredible achievement.

OH!mygod.

The second thing that sticks out is how easily this game controls. When a series like this is ported to a touch device, the results are usually a complete disaster. The virtual analog sticks and buttons will never replace physical buttons. Taking that well-known criticism under advisement, the developers implemented a wholly unique control scheme. Your character movement is handled by sliding your finger up or down the left side of the screen and camera control is handled on the right. Tapping the right side of the screen will also aim and fire your weapon.

Everything else is handled in-environment. So when you come across ammo on the floor, a virtual screen opens in front of your character and instead of tapping a "take item" button, you just tap on the item itself. Very clean an efficient.

The story is well told if a little predictable. You're on a space mission that goes bad and now there's scary monsters everywhere. There's one or two double crosses that come as no shock at all, but all in all, the story serves the overall experience well.

The scares in Dead Space HD come in two ways. The first is cerebral as your character slowly starts to lose grip with reality and has vivid, terrifying hallucinations, leaving you as the player to wonder what is real and what isn't. Unfortunately, these hallucinations are never explained outside of your basic assumption of space madness. The second types of scares are of the more traditional "jump out of a dark corner" variety and both work well within the game.

Nope.

 The sound design is phenomenal, featuring full voice work for multiple characters, and fantastic monster sounds that can go from the subtle to ear shattering horrific. Playing with a stereo headset also helps alert you to the location of enemies, and the stereo effects are beautifully and delicately implemented.

All in all this is the best iOS game I've ever played. I got it on sale for a buck, but I would gladly pay the normal asking price. A recent update to the game gives players new modes and features to play with as well. A fantastic value for a really terrific game.

Review in Ten Words or Less: Best game on the iPad, fool. Get it!