Dead Space

Released Oct. 14

Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC

Developed by EA Redwood Shores

Published by Electronic Arts

Dead Space, a thoroughly enjoyable new entry in the survival horror genre of action games, has helped me realize some heady truths about myself. If I’m ever stranded on a massive spaceship during an infestation of flesh-eating aliens, I’m pretty much gonna be totally screwed. Even with tri-beamed plasma lasers and deployable saw blades, I’ll probably get eviscerated about a thousand times over. It doesn’t matter how many razor-sharp mutant limbs I blast off, or scurrying balls of sudden death I stomp into smithereens, there’ll always be at least three more around the next corner waiting to graphically vivisect my incompetent self. Yes, I really suck at surviving.

I can’t hold that against Dead Space, though, because it’s such a fun and finely crafted game. There’s nothing particularly original about it; everything from the setting to the story to the game play has obvious antecedents that, if not done better, at least had the benefit of being first. But every element of Dead Space is highly polished and well-implemented, with or without innovation. The well-mixed sound is genuinely spectral and creepy, the character design suitably horrific, and the overall atmosphere is exactly as desolate and foreboding as the story requires. The story leans a bit too heavily on clichés, and its twists are easy to predict, but the script and voice acting are almost never embarrassing, which is about the best you can hope for in a video game. The controls are responsive and easy to grasp. There are no blatant glitches or bugs (other than alien ones that need to be squashed), and although the game gets seriously difficult at times, there are only a few moments that feel unfairly or unnecessarily hard.

Dead Space’s most striking success is its implementation of procedural matters such as the in-game map, inventory screen, and health and ammo meters. There are no distracting on-screen meters and graphics cluttering the screen's periphery, as all this information is either related through gauges on the character’s spacesuit or through holographic projections that appear onscreen in real time — Dead Space’s one true innovation, and a technique other designers should steal often and with impunity.

So, yes, Dead Space is a quality product, easily one of the year's better games, and a testament to EA’s commitment to developing new top-notch intellectual properties. Yet, I’m fairly sure that gamers will have forgotten the game come December, after the tidal wave of high-profile winter releases has fully hit.

Y’see, video game critics tend to extremes. They either go absolutely nuts over every shiny young thing that shakes its pixels in their faces, or else they savage games that have the temerity to be mediocre. Honest, dispassionate opinions can be hard to find in the enthusiast press, at least until after a game has been out for a while and the hype storm has died down. Game journalist Leigh Alexander calls this the "four month bell curve", and she makes a good point. Publications don’t have space, and journalists don’t have time to professionally reevaluate every game after four months, but that could be in the best interest of the consumers the reviews supposedly inform.

Of all the high profile releases this holiday season, Dead Space might be the most likely candidate for such an eventual downward revision. It's the sort of highly polished game that makes a great first impression, but gradually falls shy of true greatness. It’s like one of the better Bruckheimer movies, say The Rock or Top Gun, an excellently put together product that succeeds greatly as entertainment but doesn’t make a deep or lasting impressing. Dead Space is an inspired, heavily entertaining game that misses out on true classic status due to a relative lack of personality. It's a great experience on its own, but struggles to force the gamer to look past its obvious influences. I enjoyed it, but never became obsessed with it like I did Bioshock, Metroid Prime and Resident Evil 4. That's about the lightest criticism any game could ever receive, but it also signifies that Dead Space isn't quite a game for the ages. As a game for late October of 2008, though, it's almost untouched.

Released Aug. 5

Nintendo DS (also available for the Nintendo Wii)

Developed by Now Production

Published by Activision

Looking for a good DS game for your baseball-loving nephew, son, or developmentally disabled brother? Look no further than Little League World Series Baseball 2008, a low-key baseball simulation that focuses on easy-to-understand action and cute, kid-friendly presentation. It’s similar in style to the popular MLB Power Pros series, but without the startling depth and customization.

The game isn't particularly deep or realistic, but it neither attempts nor claims to be. There are some minor control issues on the offensive side: You have to quickly drag the stylus across the touchscreen to hit, but the recognition doesn’t seem to be particularly precise. A number of swings that should’ve been hits registered as strikes while almost identical motions otherwise produced at least some contact with the ball. Pitching is smooth, however, with the player basically tracing the arc of the ball with the stylus. The faster your hand moves, the faster the pitcher throws the ball. Overall, though, it's a perfectly acceptable handheld game that understandably prioritizes pick-up-and-play action over more complex baseball simulation. It might not offer much for older gamers, but kids should love it, and anybody looking for a fast, simple, and, most importantly, portable baseball experience could do worse.