When we think of Dead Space, we think of two things: dismemberment and constant Necromorph-induced terror. Dead Space: Ignition provides neither. 

Instead, it offers three styles of mini-games held together by a shoddy, branching story — finishing each path unlocks content for DS2.  Ignition is more narrative than game, and one that presents itself in a way similar to the motion-comic prequel series released before Dead Space. Except it’s horrible. Cookie-cutter characters and terrible dialogue delivery are just the icing on an inedible cake. Both the motion effects and the art are equally atrocious. 

The hacking mini-games aren’t enjoyable, either. Instead of something tolerable like those found in Mass Effect 2 or BioShock, Ignition has bastardized versions of reflect-the-light-beam and kamikaze tower-defense games, along with a Tron­-esque racing-type mode where you race lines to make it to the core before any enemy hacks do.  And these mini-games don’t even have any real relation or impact on Ignition’s events; they only serve as something to do between story sequences.

As a pre-order freebie, Ignition isn’t bad, but it isn’t worth paying for or playing through otherwise.

On Xbox Live Arcade

+ Unlocks are always welcome…

- …What you have to do to get them isn’t.

- God-awful dialogue and voice acting.

? Why does this even exist?

3.5