Lost Planet 3 (PC/PS3/360 - 2013)
No, I didn’t mean to put “Dead Space 3,” but comparing Spark Unlimited’s take on Capcom’s hit-and-miss Lost Planet series to EA’s survival horror franchise is closer to the mark than you might think. While the third-person shooter elements remain largely intact, your encounters with the tundra planet’s hostile inhabitants, the Akrid, are much more intense – the fierce insectoids bearing down on you until your ammo is out and your supplies thinned. You could hop into a towering mech and try to even out the odds, but be prepared to face horrors even bigger than your tin can. Remember, the world is against you and it’s not even your world.
Admittedly, Spark has delivered us critical clunkers in the past, but Lost Planet 3’s stark change of tone could signal a similar metamorphosis for the relatively green developer. While sci-fi survival horror is a great starting point for the title, the worst thing it could do is retread Dead Space beat for beat. It’s a wire act, sure, but if Spark can really harness E.D.N. III as a menacing yet organic part of the game’s onslaught, Lost Planet 3 could really set its self apart (which it’ll need to if the rumors of a Dead Space sequel set on a frozen planet blossom into truth).