Like most games, you get some cool stuff for completing Dead Space 2. Complete the game on its "hardcore" difficulty, though, and you'll get something better than cool.

You'll get a foam finger. You know, like the "#1" things you get at sports games. Only this one kills bad guys, and goes "pew pew pew" while you're doing it.

If that sounds ridiculous, the video above will show that it's...well, ridiculous.

Dead Space 2 was released earlier this week on PC, Xbox 360 and PS3. Mike liked it a lot. I'm playing it right now, and I like it a lot, too.

Alien vs. Dead Space, by Vitor Zago. Don red/blue glasses to see the 3D effect. (Click it for big size). Or see the original work in standard color. Seen on DeviantArt.

Dead Space 2 now has me thinking video games may not be a healthy pursuit after all. Despite playing through the original Dead Space twice, my heart was not as well-conditioned to its horrors as I originally thought.

Visceral Games' newest sci-fi fright-fest piles on the spooks and scares just as well as its predecessor, a 12 hour long deep dive into the insanity of engineer Isaac Clarke. In Dead Space 2, Clarke, the unlucky engineer who tore alien undead limb from limb in the original Dead Space, faces a new Necromorph onslaught on a space station dubbed the Sprawl. Even Isaac's mental state, shattered after the events of the first game, is conspiring against him in his attempts stop the Necromorph infestation.

Isaac arms himself with new weapons and faces new, ghastly foes; but Dead Space 2 doesn't bring many new tricks to the survival horror formula—save for its online multiplayer mode. It does, however, keep the thrills coming.

Ideal Player

Brave souls who want to be stressed out by their entertainment, who like a good scare and who don't mind closets bursting with undead monsters. Those who may have given up on the "survival horror" brand of video game when other contenders started to feel less fresh—even if Dead Space is already starting to feel less exciting and new.

Why You Should Care

The original Dead Space is one of this generation's great horror games, a masterpiece of terrifying sound design, great atmosphere and bristling tension. Dead Space 2 matches its predecessor in those departments and fixes a few of its unlovable quirks.

What's new in Dead Space 2? Not a whole lot. Isaac Clarke still has access to a long list of weapons, many of them familiar (plasma cutter, line rack, flamethrower) and can upgrade those weapons and his space suit to boost his power as he faces hundreds of deadly Necromorphs. Visceral does add more to Clarke's arsenal and gives him a few new outfits, some with unique characteristics, to play with. But the core gameplay is pure Dead Space. Isaac can stop Necromorphs dead in their tracks with a time-slowing stasis field and use a telekinetic beam to throw things around. Improved is Dead Space 2's zero gravity movement, which gives Isaac the chance to float and fly through space. Sacrificed in that change is the disorientation of Dead Space's original zero G movement, which had an appeal of its own.

New strains of Necromorphs, please! While the old, reliable, blade-limbed Necromorphs from the first Dead Space reappear in droves, a few new variations on the undead make the sequel much more challenging. One particularly loathsome type is the Pack, childlike undead that quickly swarm the player in groups. The Puker uses one of Isaac's own tricks against him, with a vomit attack that slows the player's movements. Crawlers, infants turned Necromorph, are little more than sad suicide bombers. Stalkers hide in the shadows, then charge at the player with the speed of a velociraptor. There are no duds among the dead.

But still the same gory amputation-based gameplay of the original? Definitely. The core gameplay remains unchanged. Necromorphs will burst forth from closets and air ducts, surround Isaac and leap from the shadows; slicing off their limbs is still the best tactic. Despite Isaac's ever increasing power, you'll still feel as if you're in constant danger throughout. Hacking mini-games, zero G space flight and light puzzle solving serve to break up the action. One thankful deletion in Dead Space 2 is its total lack of turret gun shooting galleries.

And the atmosphere? Still as strong as ever, with brilliant lighting effects and sound design tricks that regularly unnerve. Dead Space 2's audiovisual suspense put me on edge for a 12 hour stretch. That can't be healthy, can it?

How's the story in Dead Space 2? It starts well and ends well, with thrilling action sequences that don't feel like repeats from the original Dead Space. The sequel actually opens with Isaac Clarke in a straitjacket, running for his life from Necromorph hordes, a smartly scary introduction to the world of Dead Space 2 and the state of our hero's mind. The game sometimes looses its step with uninteresting side missions and fetch quests—and some of the creepy environments Isaac finds himself in border on silly instead of truly scary—but if you've enjoyed the fiction of Dead Space, the sequel delivers more of its lore in spades. (For those who haven't played the original, a "previously on Dead Space" short will get them up to speed quickly.)

How's the multiplayer? It doesn't feel necessary, because Dead Space 2 can stand on its own as a single-player game, but it is not an unwelcome addition. Where Dead Space 2's story-driven mode comes in waves tense and terrifying, then quiet, its multiplayer side pits a team of humans against a team of Necromorphs in an objective-based mode that's a constant frenzy. Humans have access to unlockable weapons and upgrades through a familiar experience points system, while Necromorphs have Left 4 Dead-like sight and the ability to spawn at the location of their choosing. Teamwork is key here and multiplayer can be great fun. But single-player is really the draw.

Does Dead Space 2 do anything wrong? Other than feeling perhaps too similar to its predecessor, Dead Space 2 is a great horror game. There's little in the way of innovation in this entry, if that matters to you, which is only disheartening because the original felt so refreshing. Dead Space 2 also shares some of the annoying camera quirks of the original game, which can obscure Isaac's heads up display and make it even harder to see and fight Necromorphs.

Dead Space 2 In Action

The Bottom Line

Dead Space 2 is as much a hallmark of great terror engineering as the 2008 original, a satisfying, heart-racing trip through a hellish environment, full of haunting sight and sound. Like its predecessor, Dead Space 2 hooks the player into a second playthrough ("new game plus"), in which Isaac is just as powerful as he was at the conclusion of the first completion. Ripping through Necromorphs as a buffed up Isaac Clarke can be very cathartic. While it may not feel as unique as Visceral Games' first terrifying space adventure, Dead Space 2's genuine scares, its speedier play and big, broad scope will leave you wanting more. Just not anytime soon, please, Visceral Game. My heart simply can't take it.

Dead Space 2 was developed by Visceral Games and published by EA for the PlayStation 3, PC and Xbox 360, released on January 25, 2011. Retails for $49.99 to $59.99 USD. A copy of the game was given to us by the publisher for reviewing purposes. Played through single-player campaign on Normal and tested multiplayer component on PlayStation 3.

Visceral Games' first batch of downloadable content for Dead Space 2 is Severed, a single-player add-on starring Gabe Weller and Lexine Murdock from Dead Space Extraction. Severed will hit the PlayStation Network and Xbox Live in the coming weeks.

Dead Space 2 became available for pre-purchase on digital download service Steam yesterday. It went live early this morning. So why aren't Steam users able to play it yet?

Several readers have alerted us to an issue with invalid serial key errors when trying to activate newly-purchased copies of Dead Space 2 on Steam. The issue is the subject of a growing thread in the Steam Dead Space forums, with user after user reporting their CD Key being rejected as invalid. Many are suggesting the problem lies with EA's digital rights management (DRM) servers not being available for validation.

Now Steam has posted this notice on the store page for Dead Space 2: "Notice: There is currently an error trying to activate the game. We are working with EA to resolve this issue as quickly as possible."

So Steam is aware of the issue, and they are working with EA to fix whatever is keeping PC players from playing. We've contacted EA for status on the issue and will update this post should we receive a reply.

Update: Now we're seeing reports that the activations are finally going through. Cross your fingers and give it a go!

Product doesn't activate! [Steam Forums - Thanks Michael!]

Dead Space 2's campaign to appall mothers has been deemed a success. Rather than dismiss the moms from their focus grouping, lets keep 'em around to work on some other games we like - or find equally hideous.

As with most challenges, I'll stay hands off here, but your ingredients today are one of these lovely ladies at the bottom of the page, something identifiably a video game, and, as always, polysaturated funny. You're going to have to think creatively because, as they're facing us, we can't exactly see what they're watching. But we can put it all around them, or put them in a game, or make a two- or multi-paneled gag with mom as a deadpan reaction.

If you want to cut your own screengrabs of the mom videos, you may find links to all of them here:

Post your submissions in the comments. The 20 best will get rounded up and published at the end of next Saturday. Meantime, I and the rest of the starred commentariat will approve and promote as many as we can so folks can see them and pass judgment. Remember, if you're trying to get a comment account approved, turning in a worthy 'shop is an easy path to the privilege.

Also, we seem to be forgetting one of the very few rules here: Post your work only. Don't post someone else's image - unless you're trying to help the community with extra source material. In that case, mark it as such. But "I saw this a few months ago," or, worse, misrepresenting something you didn't do as your own, risks comment moderation. This is your contest, we want to use it to showcase your work, not as a tribute to others, or to confuse people.

Nearly a year ago, the Dead Space 2 production team crowdsourced one of the game's signature kill animations, in which the player and a necromorph are locked in combat. "Meat Cello," which you'll see when the game releases, was chosen.

Daniel Emmerson of Cornwall, England, was named winner last April. He spoke to Asylum about how he developed the finishing move (seen above) against the game's "Leaper" enemy. Basically, someone threw laundry at him.

"I actually made a 'Leaper' out of a jacket (stuffed with other jackets) and a scarf for the tail," Emmerson told Asylym. "I used this to act them out to see what felt natural in a panic situation (someone threw it at me) and to see which was the quickest way to dispose of the Leaper."

Visceral Games, maker of Dead Space 2, said it was looking for ""a paired move that felt natural, scary and was something we could technically achieve," said Steve Papoutsis, the game's executive producer. "'Meat Cello' fit the bill."

Not only will you see "Meat Cello" in Dead Space 2 when it arrives next week, you'll see Emmerson as well. Included with the grand prize is the creator's appearance in the game itself.

New 'Dead Space 2' Features Move Created By A Fan [Asylum. Farewell.]

Are you a Dragon Age II fan that wasn't planning on purchasing Dead Space 2? Perhaps a free limited edition suit of armor can change your mind. Arise, Sir Cross-Promotion!

Back when Mass Effect 2 came out, players that had also played the original Dragon Age: Origins scored a special suit of Blood Dragon armor. Since Mass Effect 3 is still a ways out, this time around BioWare is teaming up with fellow EA developer Visceral Games to grant Dragon Age II players a special outfit based on the armor worn by Dead Space protagonist Isaac Clarke.

They're calling it the armor of Ser Isaac of Clarke, and despite the silly name it looks quite sexy. Unfortunately it's heavy armor, so if you plan on making your version of Dragon Age II's hero Hawke a caster or a rogue you'll have to hand it off to a non-player character.

Instructions on how to redeem the Ser Isaac armor will be included in copies of Dead Space 2 for the Xbox 360, PC, and PlayStation 3 when it comes out next week.

Dead Space 2 arrives next week. Sometime soon we'll be getting Dead Space on the iPhone, in a game whose story bridges that of the two console versions. Here's how the iPhone's gameplay will look.

Like the original game, Isaac himself is the HUD in the iPhone version (holograms over him show ammo, health, etc), which perhaps is more important considering the size of the screen involved here. The visuals look strong and with earbuds in I'm sure it sounds fantastic.

As far as the action goes, that remains to be seen. Everything comes to you from one direction in this gameplay, which cuts into the fear-all-around-you aspect of the console version. So they'll have to rely on details like that lighting trick toward the end to supply the scare.

No word on price or release date, but Tuesday is the release of Dead Space 2. My guess is it won't be too much after then.

[thanks sm1ley]

Dead Space 2's Outbreak multiplayer mode pits fragile humans against twisted alien monsters in an all-out battle to see who kills what first. Let's see how that looks through the eyes of a Necromorph.

I've played plenty of games that pit human characters with guns against hideous creatures with super powers; games like Singularity, Left 4 Dead, or Aliens Vs. Predator. No matter how powerful the alien critters are, I always feel safer as a human with a gun, which is funny, because it generally doesn't work that way. I suppose it's just the familiarity I find soothing. I guess I should all be glad I don't relate better to the aliens.