Dead Space

Developer: EA Redwood Shores
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Release Date: October 21
Platform(s): PC, PS3, Xbox 360

It would be easy to dismiss Dead Space as BioShock with a hat-tricked premise: Replace the beneath-the-sea arcology with a derelict mining craft in space, and all the odd horrors would feel right at home delivering the same old scares. Heck, you even have the disturbing headgear, though this time, it's the protagonist who's wearing it. But to reduce Dead Space to that would be to do it a disservice. Despite the undeniable similarities, EA's deep-space experiment seems primed to one-up last year's chilling hit in the action category, if not in the subtlety of its delivery.

Protagonist Isaac Clarke isn't a warrior by any stretch, though once you catch a glimpse of his dystopian space-age handyman arsenal this becomes a moot point. To counteract the destructive potential of your tools, the enemies come in hordes. And frightful hordes they are; think undead mutants as conceived by H.R. Giger, quick to swarm, and hard to peel off once they've got their hooks in you.

What we've played of Dead Space indicates that the core mechanics are very much on point. If the game's scenarios are as thoughtfully realized as those of its source material, then we may just be looking at one of the year's best.


Bully: Scholarship Edition

Developer: EA Redwood Shores
Publisher: Electronic Arts
Release Date: October 21
Platform(s): PC

One of two Rockstar games finally coming to PC this holiday, Bully isn't too far removed from the GTA series in terms of an open-world structure but focuses on a much different world.

Here, you play student Jimmy Hopkins, a bit of a troublemaker who's just been dumped off at a prep school called Bullworth Academy, as his mom has married a rich old guy and taken off on a year-long honeymoon. Left to fend for himself, Jimmy needs to adjust to being the new kid at school, getting to classes (represented by themed mini-games), and trying not to get expelled. If one of the school's cliques start picking on Jimmy, he'll have to fend for himself with a solid fighting system.

The Scholarship Edition that was later released for the Wii and Xbox 360 contained a few new missions and upgraded graphics, which we're hoping are even more polished in the PC version. But it's really the story we're excited to play through, a tongue-in-cheek look at the hassles of school life written as cleverly as the Rockstar games we've come to know and love.


Far Cry 2

Developer: Ubisoft Montreal
Publisher: Ubisoft
Release Date: October 21
Platform(s): PC, PS3, Xbox 360

Pondering Far Cry's lineage can get a little confusing, but for the moment let's forget that Crysis was a spiritual sequel. This leaves Far Cry 2 in an interesting place. It's undeniably possessed of its predecessor's legacy (note the lush environments) yet wisely avoids treading the same ground as its Crytek-developed cousin Crysis (in other words, you may just be able to run it on your PC).

The setting is Africa, and the execution seems to be textbook "open world." As one of twelve mercenaries (the 11 you don't choose will populate the world as NPCs you can foster relationships with), you'll explore what Far Cry 2's developers assure is a living world, complete with abundant flora, animate fauna, and day/night cycles. The game's mission structure doesn't appear too strictly linear, and traversal through the world will play a big part, via airboats, disposable automobiles, and more. The aforementioned NPCs will supposedly play a large role as well. Depending on how your relationships with them play out, they may even come to your aid when missions get hairy. And if they die in the course of duty, they're gone forever.

Ubisoft's new approach to Far Cry seems very interesting on paper, so we're eager to see how it will actually play out.