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Posted by: Matt Liebl

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The new direction EA and Visceral seem to be taking with Dead Space 3 may be the wrong one depending on who you ask.

While the series was once known for its survival horror elements, Dead Space 3 seems to have more of an emphasis on the action/shooter gameplay thanks, in part, to the addition of co-op gameplay. While EA insists that it is "no less scary" than its predecessors, claiming the multiplayer addition will encourage others who may have been too scared to play,  Dead Space writer Antony Johnston feels they "may be taking it in the wrong direction".

Speaking to StickTwiddlers at Manchester MCM, Johnston admitted, "I haven't seen much of Dead Space 3, perhaps as much as you, but what I have seen made me worry a little that they may be taking it in the wrong direction."

"That being said, I have a lot of faith in the team and I'm sure they won't disappoint fans," he added.

EA has continuously said it was more of a requested feature to add multiplayer, defending that many people were too scared to play alone. Fans, meanwhile, feel that adding co-op is just EA's way of appealing to a larger audience and, by doing so, loses the survival horror aspect of the game.

When asked if he believes the survival horror genre is dying, Johnston stated, "Developers and publishers need to come to terms with it never being a mass thing, like books and films, it's a niche."

"But there's still profit to be had, and they should set expectations accordingly."

In Dead Space 3, series protagonist Isaac Clarke fights alongside merciless soldier John Carver with the cooperative mode mirroring the single-player campaign, but accommodating the added character. Dead Space 3 is set to arrive in February 2013. You can check out our preview of the game from E3.

Tags: Dead Space 3