Highlights

  • The Dead Space remake successfully maintains the original game's essence while improving upon its flaws, making it a faithful and enjoyable experience for fans.
  • The success of the remake has sparked interest in EA Motive developing a Dead Space 4, allowing the studio to showcase its talents in creating engaging horror experiences.
  • A potential Dead Space 4 with EA Motive at the helm has the opportunity to course-correct the franchise and revitalize it, similar to what Resident Evil 7 did for Capcom's survival horror series.

Ahead of the launch of last year's excellent Dead Space remake, many fans who still had access to a copy of the original game took a preparatory stroll down memory lane. For those that played through the original 2008 version of Dead Space prior to 2023's remake, perhaps most remarkable was how well the original held up under scrutiny even when placed side-by-side with modern survival horror games. The Dead Space remake's faithful reimagining of one of the genre's all-time greats is precisely what makes it succeed, smoothing out the original's rough edges but not fixing what isn't broken. It also happens to serve as a proof-of-concept for giving EA Motive its own shot at crafting Dead Space 4.

The success of the Dead Space remake was one of the early highlights of 2023, even prompting publisher Electronic Arts to send out a survey gauging fan interest in more remakes in the sci-fi horror franchise. While a Dead Space 2 remake with EA Motive at the helm is an enticing prospect, what's more exciting is the idea of giving Motive the reins to the franchise and letting the talented studio develop a follow-up to Dead Space 3. 2023 didn't just mark the release of Dead Space's remake, it also was the 10-year anniversary of Dead Space 3's launch, and the remake proves there's still plenty of life (ironically) left in the franchise.

Dead Space Remake's Success Could Lead EA Motive to Shoot for the Wrong Moon
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Dead Space Remake's Success Could Lead EA Motive to Shoot for the Wrong Moon

The success of Dead Space Remake returned the series to the spotlight but may lead EA Motive to set the wrong goals in following it up.

EA Motive's Talents Would be Better Represented in a Dead Space Sequel

After wowing Star Wars fans with the studio's ability to craft impeccable visual and sound design in both Star Wars Squadrons and Star Wars Battlefront 2, Motive's work on the Dead Space remake stands as some of the most impressive presentation of any game released in 2023. In particular, Dead Space's audio design is second-to-none, making it a game that practically demands to be played using headphones. Even a year later, as more and more games come out that are built using Unreal Engine 5 and push the limits of visual fidelity, Dead Space's lighting and textures are also a standout within the survival horror genre.

Motive has established it has a knack for creating an engaging and engrossing horror experience, and it would be a shame to restrict that talent behind the constraints of another remake. The Dead Space remake is excellent, but there's little denying that it is incredibly faithful to the source material, somewhat dampening the impact of its scares for players who are incredibly familiar with the original. Seeing EA Motive take its talent for atmospheric lighting and audio design and crafting a brand-new experience within the Dead Space universe has the potential for it to end up being the most frightening game in the series.

A Dead Space 4 with EA Motive at the Helm Could Course-Correct the Franchise

Despite many players holding fond memories of the game from having played through its campaign with a friend in co-op, Dead Space 3 was an odd misstep for the series that wound up being the nail in its coffin for a decade. After two games that so perfectly captured the essence of the survival horror genre, the third Dead Space game made the unexpected leap into action, and like the similarly action-forward Resident Evil games releasing during the same era, fans weren't happy about the change in direction. Dead Space's excellent remake offers a chance for Motive to be the studio that rights the ship.

Instead of giving the studio the responsibility of making a remake of Dead Space 2, Motive could harness its experience from developing the Dead Space remake to create a Dead Space 4 that reboots the franchise, much in the same way that Resident Evil 7 did for Capcom's survival horror juggernaut. 2023 gave players not one, but two excellent remakes of all-time greats within the survival horror genre. A year out from Dead Space's release, it's obvious that it should just be the start of a full-blown series revival.