Dead Space is a massive video game franchise and one of the more cherished survival horror experiences that came out a couple of console generations ago. While the franchise only received three mainline installments before IP became dormant, we’re getting a remake of the first Dead Space title, which is slated to make its way out into the marketplace this year. But while the game is gearing up for its release, we’re still learning more about the development process that went into crafting the remake.
Motive Studios is the development team handling this game, and they have been sticking to a remake that stays true to the original. Despite sticking closely to the 2008 release of Dead Space, there are some slight changes made to the game. For instance, one of the bigger additions to the game was that the main protagonist, Isaac Clarke, would finally have a voice in the first installment. In the original release, the protagonist was silent but spoke in sequels. So, developers returned to the sequels and captured his tone and personality to make him more lively in the remake. However, there was one particular feature that the developers almost included in the game. It’s a feature that Realization Director for Dead Space, Joel MacMillan, found too intense.
While the game is gearing up for its release, Dead Space developers are still taking interviews about the project. Recently, Inverse spoke with Joel MacMillan about the upcoming video game release. During this conversation, we learned about a feature the developers had initially planned to incorporate into the game. There were initial plans to cut out the ability for players to pause the game. So if things were getting a bit too rough, players would have had to push through. But developers found this to be too intense.
Joel MacMillan felt that removing the pause feature would make horror games more impactful, as players could never be safe. The developer said that even he gets jittery when playing these games, so its nice to have the ability to pause a game. As a result, the development team scrapped the feature idea. But, of course, players could attempt to push through on their own and simply refuse to pause their game.
Currently, Dead Space is set to launch on January 27, 2023. When the game does release later this month, you’ll be able to pick up a copy of the game for the PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S platforms. In the meantime, you can check out the game trailer for Dead Space in the video embedded above.
