Poll: SPOILERS Dead Space 2 has gone too far.

[Sinclair Solutions]

I think I'm paraphrasing Yahtzee (the Resident Evil 5 trailer episode) when he said that true dread and terror comes out of something that truly disturbs the player and makes him or her uncomfortable. It should push the limits of taste and make the player feel uncomfortable whenever possible. Visceral, makers of Dead Space and Dante's Inferno, really do seem to have no limits when it comes to this. They want to freak you out, and by God they are going to do it.

 

[DamagedWill]

It was jarring but I soon got my shit together and started blasting. They aren't human anymore. Once I got that through my brain, I was fine. Want to feel bad for these creatures? Feel bad for the Guardians, the ones that look like people attached to the walls, they're actually still alive. They actually sigh with relief when you kill them if you listen close enough.

To be honest, what got me more was that crying baby in, Chapter 3, I believe. You can miss it if you don't listen for it but behind one of the apartment doors is a baby who is crying. It gave me a helpless feeling and the fact that I couldn't do anything plus the fact it was crying out made it even worse. I felt a little sick.

 

[mikev7.0]

Oops! I thought you were asking if we thought Dead Space 2 was pole vaulting Jaws by making an ad that promotes a Mature (18+) game by guiding players to a web site named: Yourmomhatesthis.com

Either they're knocking the average gamers living arrangements or little do they know that this is the year that the Supreme Court has actually agreed to hear the case against video games that California is making. Extra Credits did an excellent piece on the case if you haven't seen it.

My bad.

 

[Viptorian]

I'm fairly certain it is impossible to offend me with video game content. Can something be seriously fucked up and contrary to my morals? Absolutely. Will that shock me to a point where I won't play a game? Absolutely not.

These are video games and none of what is in the games is there for your 'approval.' It is part of a story, a narrative vehicle, and as such is not really something that I feel I can be offended by. You know what offends me? Dead Space 2's commercials saying, "your mom will hate this game! Buy it!" That offends my sensibilities as a person, a consumer, and a gamer. THAT will make me not play the game.

People get offended far too easily and play the, "X is a sacred thing and can not be defiled!" card too often. If you don't like or are offended by a game/movie/show/song/sketch/article, then you should turn it off or remove yourself from the situation. It is not up to YOU (general "you") to determine what is sacred for ME. If you are offended by dead babies, I 100% understand that and respect your opinion and decision. However, that doesn't mean it shouldn't exist - I'm not offended by it and I have as much a right as you do to have access to content that we may not see eye-to-eye on.

 

[Fiz_The_Toaster]

Dead Space wasn't the first to do it, Dante's Inferno did it and if anyone is going to get upset about killing babies it should be that game. I didn't think it was that big of a deal, if anything I freaked out because those little bastards are just creepy. It's fiction and it's horror, if you were disturbed by it then the developers did their job, so I don't think it's anything to get too excited about.

 

[Justanothergamer300]

Does that look like a kid to you

 

[silverleaf81]

This seems like a guilty pleasure, but everyone should remember the rule: Never kill kids on T.V. Then again, this is a video game. I'm surprised that christian child groups haven't banned it! Honestly, its not the worst it could be. It could be murdering innocent children, while these ones are mutated thingys...and if you could kill kids in video games, then it would make getting into Little Lamplight in Fallout 3 much easier!

 

[Sovereignty]

Seriously. Whats wrong with shooting mutated babies?

Tired of being unable to kill kids in games.

 

[Virgilthepagan]

you DO realize that they centered their advertisements around this right? I think at least part of this was intentional, and really, within the context of the world it makes perfect sense. Even the first game had babies, they were fetus babies...if that makes it better...

 

[Asuka Soryu]

Babies go boom. Ha. xD


I should get this game, I always hated babies and their irritating crys.

 

[Jimbo1212]

You shoot babies in it!?

I'm so buying this game.......

 

[Firetaffer]

Since when was killing a person OK? It doesn't matter, child, teenager, old man, pregnant woman, 28-year old man. Killing people is never OK.

However, Issac Clarke can kill who he pleases for his own survival, I guess you could say Dead Space is an RPG, you aren't FORCED to kill the 'children,' however doing so will ensure your survival? Basically throughout this whole game you've killed 'children' under your own power. If you want to be a non-baby killer than play like one :3.

 

[The Amazing Tea Alligator]

It's no longer human. It's alien. The cell structure has been infected with the alien recombinant DNA. They don't look entirely human, either. The backwards head, the black skin, the swollen white stomach. Because they don't look entirely human, i have no compunction towards shooting them in self defence.

I know that I'm quoting this out of context, and I bear absolutely no grudge or ill will to you Gralian. I simply find this interesting, more as how we as a species think than anything.

 

[The87Italians]

"cross my heart, hope to die..."

Those who played it will know what I'm talking about (It's practically the endgame), and know that THAT scene is way worse than the exploding babies.

The first time I played that scene, I missed because I didn't notice the moniter. That was cringe worthy.

OT: I don't think comparing the killing of the necromorph-children to the airport scene in MW2 is that great of a comparison. In Dead Space (2), the "children" aren't exactly helpless, they can (and probably will) end up killing you. In MW2, those civilians had no way of defending themselves. Killing monsters that have an intent to kill you is nowhere near as bad as mowing down innocent civilians.

 

[Sir Thomas Sean Connery]

The whole point is to disturb you. You have been disturbed, the game has won. It's not over the line, it would be over the line if that wasn't so obviously THE POINT OF THE FUCKING GAME.

That part is a perfect example of why the inability to kill kids in RPGs like Fallout 3/New Vegas, Oblivion and Fable 1/2/3 is completely idiotic. So exploding babies is fine, (and fun) but killing a 10 year old kid is off limits?

Anyway, to the OP: Apparently it wasn't THAT bad as you could have just turned off the game when the first baby appeared, but to each in his own I guess.

Again, context. These are not games that set out to shock you.

It works though. They ARE meant to be total freedom, which un-kill-able kids breaks in half. I get what you are saying though.

 

[4484448444844484]

Nothing is sacred and there is no such thing as "going too far". Ethics and morals restraining fiction are outdated.

 

[natster43]

No. They are dead. It is not a big deal.

 

[The_Echo]

but im now walking thorugh a nursery, listening to crying children and shooting mutated babies, which explode.

They're no longer human, obviously. They're monsters, just like everything else. Would you have a problem killing them if they weren't humanoid? Let's say there's a beasty in the game that spawns baby versions of itself. You'll kill those, right? But they're still babies. Is it only a problem when they resemble your own kind?

This isn't going very far at all, so just chill out.

 

[Irridium]

Contrary to what Hollywood teaches, children aren't safe from deadly diseases. Or zombification.

In fact, its logical to assume there'd be much more children zombies, since they'd be easier to infect(bite, or however its spread).

And besides, we did this in the first game to. Or did you forget about those jars full of fetuses and mutant babies with those three tentacles coming out of their backs?

 

[Catalyst6]

.

y'know its actually a very good comment, shooting my points to pieces, (and yeah on reflection the lurkers (or whatever) were babies, and i didn't put two and two together)

but the fact my argument fails dismally, and the fact i don't care shows that its not a rational reaction. childrens nurseries, babies etc are sacred to me and walking thorugh what should be a picture perfect happy zone with a pistol in your hand killing everything that moves strikes me as wrong on every level.

hmmm... i suppose that its a good point, well made, and simply a case of my finding that there's a line here for me. this isn't acceptable to me, but i can see why you aren't bothered.

Well, yeah, it's a *horror* game. The entire nature of the genre is to find your predetermined mores then tear them to shreds and beat you with them. Otherwise it's not horror.

To be more clear: It's supposed to be in the game because it disturbs you.