Dead Space Remake Accused Of Being ‘Woke'

EA Motive has come under fire, with critics calling 2023's Dead Space remake 'woke' for its changes from the 2008 original.

02nd Feb 2023 12:13

EA Motive

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Winter might be on its way out, but according to critics of 2023's Dead Space remake, there are "snowflakes" everywhere. Funny that the only ones moaning are the kind of people who would use the word snowflake.

While EA Motive has been praised for its faithful but modernised approach to remaking Dead Space for new-gen systems, it sounds like not everyone is impressed with this return to the USG Ishimura.

Why Are Critics Slamming The Dead Space Remake?

The Gamer has spotted complaints Dead Space has gone "woke," with haters taking their complaints to Steam. One locked thread is titled, "Hard pass I guess, it's gone too woke." 

They shared an image that claims Asian and White character models are swapped out for Black ones, Kendra is now "flat and apparently a lesbian," and victim Hailey Johnston has been swapped out for a Black character who survives the initial attack.

Not that we can say we went through Dead Space with a fine tooth comb looking for racial differences, but safe to say, the comments soon turned into a bit of a mess. The OP added, "If you don't like where this is going stop buying AAA western games. It's one flop after another anyways." 

Someone else agreed, saying, "Yeah sadly I guess it's too much of this crap for me also… I don't want to support that stuff in video games and movies."

A third grumbled, "Yeah, no thanks. If I feel in the mood for Dead Space again I'll just get Callisto Protocol despite the reviews or Replay the first one. I have no need of 'Remakes' that deface the Original, it's stupid and disrespectful on top." 

Summing up the views of most, someone concluded, "If you start to force yourself to find something you think is "too woke", you are the exact same thing you try to boycott." With the likes of Johnston, the remake simply scanned the original voice actors to gain their likeness. 

Could There Be A Dead Space 2 Remake?

Complaints aside, Dead Space is currently sitting pretty on the Steam charts, is rated 9/10, and is deemed "Very Positive" based on 11,869 reviews. It's clear that these "woke" moans are from a particularly vocal minority. 

With such a positive reception, attention has turned to whether a Dead Space 2 remake will be on the cards next. Discussing their hopes with GQ, Senior Producer Phil Ducharme and Creative Director Roman Campos-Oriola said it's in the hands of EA.

"There are ideas, that's for sure," said Ducharme. We're gonna be heading out on vacation and then we'll sit down and we'll have those discussions within EA to say, 'Well, what's next?'" At least it's going down better than Glen Scofield's The Callisto Protocol.

While keeping our fingers crossed for a Dead Space 2 remake, remember the alternate ending and some sneaky Easter eggs hint that one could already be in the works. Could we swap the Ishimura for the Spawn sooner than expected? 

Tom Chapman

About The Author

Tom Chapman

Tom is Trending News Editor at GGRecon, with an NCTJ qualification in Broadcast Journalism and over seven years of experience writing about film, gaming, and television. With bylines at IGN, Digital Spy, Den of Geek, and more, Tom’s love of horror means he's well-versed in all things Resident Evil, with aspirations to be the next Chris Redfield.

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