It all started a long time ago when a cursed artefact was discovered.

Those were the bad

times in our future history, almost no resources left and way too many people. So this strange
object that seemed to have an inexhaustible source of power was received as a true salvation.
But then disaster struck. Almost all of the human colonies began to show signs of a strange
infection that turned humans in horrible killer creatures. And despite all the chaos and
destruction that this artefact brought upon our kind, a strange religion rised from humanity's
ruins: the Unitology.
Its believers were convinced that this alien object, now known as the Black Marker and
all its human made copies, are good and this is an evolutive process that must be let to take
place...no matter what the consequences would be.
The unitologists, lead by Michael Altman, are a strong force, able to whitstand a gread
deal of influence, and the one man that can stand against them is Isaac Clarke, a simple
engineer. But Clarke's mind holds a terrible secret as it was in direct contact with one of the
markes and that changed his life forever. Now he's the only human that can build a new
marker and the only one that can destroy them.

If you enter Dead Space 3's universe without any other previous contact with this
franchise, things might look a bit strange at first, especially as Isaac's background is quite
limited to only a few relevant details. But for all of you - the others - that have played Dead
Space before, there's not going to be all that much of a difference from the previous episodes.
Basically, the gameplay stayed the same and the few modifications that the producers
introduced aren't all that important.

Still, as in many of the modern games, the first level was kept on a lighter note, being
more of an introduction to the main plot and a good excuse to get the players (re)aquainted
with the controls. Especially as the screen was cleared of any signs and indicators. Instead of
that, the health meter was quite cleverly disguised in Isaac's back gear and the remaining
ammo meter was transfered direcly onto a small screen in the right side of the weapons. So
yeah, that's a unique feature of this shooter.
Here we go again
It doesn't take long to discover the plot behind the game's scenario: A crucial event that
threatened to turn the tide in humanity's war for survival against the markers. A series of
research data unraveled the fact that all the markers have a common source, a planet called
Tau Volantis, something that you might call hell if not for the freezing temperatures and all
the dangers that are lurking around.
200 years after these main events, we get to see Isaac Clarke that, after numerous
troubles, decided to take a low profile and avoid the official authorities that in the past tried to
disect his mind for knoledge about the markers. A lousy appartment on a lunar colonyand
some old photos, nothing much yet quite enough after all that fighting for survival.
But what hero could stay away when his ex-girlfriend's life is at stake. So Isaac has to
get back in the game, just to find out that Michael Altman and his unitology troops are onto
him.
So in just a couple of minute, Isaac departure from the lunar colony turns into a
desperate fight for survival that will take him, step by step, closer to Tau Volantis. But as
ever, his plasma cutter remains a trusted and efficient ally, both against unitarian soldiers and
in Isaac fights with the monsters formed after the colony's marker has been turned on.
First class horror
Despite some malicious remarks regarding the first trailers published by the devs, the
thing is that the game's atmosphere is as horror as every other Dead Space title ever was. In
fact, from some viewpoints things went even further, taking the suspense a step further with
very well thought fight scenes that escalates the tension until that critical point where its all
down to fighting for your life.
After escaping from the, now infected, moon colony, Isaac and a small party led by
John Carver leave in search of Ellie, Clarke's ex girlfriend and one of the few that were still
pursuing the intel about the original planet of the markers. But the flight turns in more than
what they bargained for when their FTL flight ends up in a field of space debrees on the high
orbit of Tau Volantis. Sadly, the team is forced to leave their ship, badly damaged by some
space mines and take refuge on one of the wrecked ships floating around. But even after 200
years none of these vessels are empty as the crew members turned...into something else.
Of course, hanging to that well thought horror athmosphere, the game doesn't throw
monsters at you from the first moment you get on board. You may pass through severall
halls and rooms without encountering anyone and then, suddenly you start to see dried blood
on the walls and wonder what the heck happend there. Its only the first sign that something
bad took place back 200 years ago. And then, out of the shadows or from that elevator close
to you, a large monster attacks you without any warning. Indeed, this isn't a game for those
suffering from heart issues.
High tech stuff
Speaking of monsters, they come in various shapes and sizes, many having even
regeneration abilities, something that makes them close to impossible to defeat. But such a
large field of debrees cand be an ideal opportunity for an engeneer like Isaac. All sorts of
parts can be found both on the ships and in space, turning this game in more than a simple
monster shooting adventure. We're talking here about serious upgrades, both for the weapons
and for Clarke's suit.
Actually, one of the most interesting element in Dead Space 3, is the presesnce of the
Work Station, a kind of work bench where you can modify your gear using special menus.
You could say that this is as simple as a game of Lego because all you need to do is combine
compatible parts between them in order to obtain the best configuration possible. More or
less there's an infinite number of combinations available where you can join the efficiency of
the plasma cutter with the high damage of a grenade launcher or a flame thrower. And
beyond these high tech weapons, Isaac has two more special abilities: telekinesis and the
power to freeze his enemies for a certain amount of time. But both are limited in time so if
you play Dead Space 3 you will have to learn how to use them wisely.
The good looks
I must say that this game has an excellent graphics to it and DS3 really manages to
catch that sense of horror and suspance. But as good as the visual effects are, they come with
a cost of their own as some older PCs won't be able to render them properly.
As is, Isaac Clarke is one of the best represented characters in terms of graphics and his
armored suit was created to the smallest detail so not to disturb the player's eye in any way.
And while his suit looks awesome, for those of you that bought the cross promotion between
Mass Effect 3 and Dead Space 3, there's also gonna be available the N7 suit wore by Shepard
in ME3.
The co-op is at its best
If you want a really interesting experience from Dead Space 3, you should try out the
co-op function where you will play together with a friend. But of course, one of you will have
to borrow John Carver's space boots as there's no way you could have two Isaacs at the same
time. But anyway, this is mode will unravel more of Carver's personal life and tragedy,
opening the road for a more unexplored part of the game's script. Moreover, there are going
to be interesting elements to the co-op, special missions and puzzles designed to be solved
only as a team, and so on...
And here I draw the line

Its anyting but easy to condense such a great deal of information in such a small space
but as is, I belive you have enough to get a picture of what kind of game Dead Space 3 is. It is
also obvious that we're talking about a very good game with a complex story that will keep
you connected to it for the whole lenght of the game. So I really recomend you play Dead
Space 3 not only for its above mentioned qualities but also because this is one of the most
interesting games of the year.