With today being Halloween Saturday, it is only natural to get into the feeling of the season -and what better way of doing that than listing some of the best survival horror games and their scariest moments? We at Gogaminggiant.com can agree that there are some games that are sure to scare the pants off even the most seasoned gamer. Today, we will be examining Dead Space, a game that handles like Resident Evil, monsters which look like they come straight from John Carpenter’s The Thing, and an atmosphere that is reminiscent of the psychological scares of Jacob’s Ladder and the cramped spaceship setting of Alien.

Yes, that is blood on the walls. Yes, you should be terrified.

In Dead Space, players take control of Isaac Clarke in his mission to explore and ultimately escape the massive mining ship “USG Ishimura.” Isaac is also searching for his girlfriend, Nicole, aboard the Ishimura whilst also discovering the truth behind the deaths of its crew members and the monsters who now inhabit it. Dead Space, like other survival horror games, creates a tense atmosphere by making the main character of the game an “every man” sort of character and not someone who is used to handling space marine-type scenario. In fact, Isaac is somewhat of glorified mechanic, and would most likely be more accustomed to performing maintenance on the ship rather than wielding firearms. I believe that making Isaac a “blue collar” worker, with no special training or augmentations, makes him much more vulnerable.

But what else could make Dead Space so scary? The answer is the monsters, who do a great job of appearing hideous as well as deadly, but also resistant to the age-old headshot mechanic. One of the scariest parts of the game occurs as soon as players obtain their first weapon and instinctively attempt to down a necromorph via a well-aimed shot to the cranium. Unfortunately (and against every preconception formed from film and other first-person games), these monsters feature some form of super-strong cranial bones. The necromorphs must be entirely dismembered, and even when both legs are gone; they’ll still drag themselves about, hoping for one last chance to rip at your flesh.

However, I must give the award of “scariest moment” to something which occurs within the first ten minutes of the game; Isaac’s first encounter with a necromorph, as he is chased away from his team. Isaac jumps into an elevator to escape a necromorph hot on his trail and makes it inside just as the monster is within reach…suddenly, the monster pries it open with its claws before a swift dismemberment by the doors slamming shut.

This necromorph just got a little too close for comfort.

I also enjoyed (but was terrified) at the claustrophobia the game gave me. The Ishimura, while being an immense space ship, made me feel uneasy with an abundance of small corridors and cramped rooms. I felt as though I was playing a video game version of Ridley Scott’s classic sci-fi horror film Alien, with all of the flashing emergency lights and isolation. Dead Space did a great job of keeping tension high not only with the aliens, but the disturbing audio logs and cryptic messages written in blood on the walls.

Isaac should definitely be earning hazard pay for his adventure aboard the Ishimura.

So if scares are what you’re looking for, we highly recommend Dead Space. It will certainly make you remember that in space, no one can hear you scream…but on Earth, your neighbors might hear you if you scream loud enough.