Dead Space Remake Gives Voice To This Silent Character

One particular character in the "Dead Space" remake may sound significantly chattier to some veteran players than how they remember.

While some modern remakes of old classics like "Final Fantasy 7 Remake" significantly deviate from the source material and feature new stories and gameplay systems, Motive Studios' "Dead Space" remake has remained quite loyal to the original game. Outlets that played the game's opening hours, such as Screen Rant, were notably struck by how closely the new title follows the same beats as its predecessor in terms of story, level design, and gameplay. In many ways, the remake is the original "Dead Space" dressed in a fresh coat of paint.

Of course, that's not to say that this new reimagining of the space-based horror title doesn't shake things up in specific ways. For instance, certain cutscenes play out a bit differently, there are new side quests and rooms to break up the pacing of the main story, and a couple of added tweaks to the typical "Dead Space" gameplay – such as the addition of circuit breakers, which can impact segments of the game based on the player's choices. However, one of the changes that may irk diehard fans the most is that one character who was silent in the original now has a voice — and they've got plenty to say.

In the "Dead Space" remake, protagonist Isaac Clarke is now fully voiced, verbally interacting with characters and commenting on events. That's a fairly significant change from the original "Dead Space" in 2008, in which the character serves as a silent protagonist despite being a crucial figure in the plot. Whereas other characters do the heavy lifting in terms of dialogue in the 2008 game, the remake sees Isaac talking within the first few minutes of gameplay.

Such a major shift in Isaac's portrayal may be jarring to those used to how the character behaved in the original game, but it's not the first time that the "Dead Space" protagonist has been given a voice. In fact, the lead is voiced by Gunner Wright, who previously portrayed the character in both "Dead Space 2" and "Dead Space 3" (via Escapist Magazine). Additionally, the development team set some boundaries when developing the character's dialogue. As the team revealed during a 2021 presentation, it followed two rules regarding adding a voice for Isaac: He would generally only speak when spoken to or in situations where it would be strange if he were otherwise silent.

It's up to fans to decide whether a voiced Isaac marks an instance where the "Dead Space" remake improves on the original, but the change will undoubtedly offer a new perspective.