20-minutes of Dead Space 3 gameplay makes me worried for the Dead Space franchise
/Dead Space 3 was announced at this year's E3 and yes its official - The game has drop-in drop-out co-op. The last game had competitive multiplayer which was ok since it was separated from the singe player campaign. But this time coop mode replaces multiplayer, and is part of the whole campaign, which I don't like one bit. Its the same game yes, but the changes added into the third installment questions the game's ability to deliver what we want out of Dead Space, and that is the thrill of getting freaked out by necromorphs. The fear of running out of ammo and literally making Isaac run for his life. This game is a survival horror, and the changes actually questions that. Sure, they say you can still play the game solo, but they stated that playing the game in co-op will unlock "additional story details and gameplay mechanics" only found when playing with a friend. That said - The full experience of the campaign is actually in coop. I would have been fine with Dead Space 3 being the same game but with maybe added features. We've seen it before with other games, but did they really need to add an extra mode? To make it sell better, sadly yes, which is why I think the Dead Space franchise could be hitting a brick wall with these kinds of decisions.
Maybe I'm overreacting with how Visceral Studios is presenting the game, but the final nail in the coffin was the fact that you can take cover and engaged in a firefight with actual humans. Not only am I questioning if this is still a Survival Horror game, I'm also wondering if its even the same game. This is the first time in the series that we see not-so infected humans wanting Isaac dead. After killing Necromorphs over and over again in the first two games, adding human enemies in the third really looks off to me. Even the game's levels seem more open giving Dead Space 3 a completely different feel.
Dead Space 3 is planned for next year for Playstation 3, Xbox 360, and PC.