Podcasts
The ‘Dead Space’ Remake Reviewed in ‘The Inventory’ [Safe Room]
The realization that the first month of the new year is just about over is hitting me like an Issac Clarke boot stomp. While the month has flown by, that doesn’t mean there weren’t several notable horror releases, both big and small. Before diving into January’s biggest release, Neil and I discuss the dark fantasy adventure of Children of Silentown, the atmospheric and bleak, haunting trek through the wilderness with Chasing Static‘s console release, and the uneven but intriguing mystery of Dance of Death.
And then there’s the Dead Space remake.
Earlier in the month, we discussed the impact and legacy of Visceral Game’s 2008 original while discussing our hopes and trepidation about EA remaking Dead Space for modern consoles. Given EA’s previous lack of regard for the core Dead Space trilogy, these reservations were not exactly unfounded. And, as a very welcome surprise, Neil and I found our concerns to be quelled almost instantly.
Simply put, as Neil did in his review, the Dead Space remake is a triumph in more ways than one. The bar for horror remakes was unequivocally raised with Capcom’s 2019 Resident Evil 2, a modern update that was more thorough than just a fresh coat of paint (and g). Motive Studios take this bar and launch it into the stratosphere. On the surface, such a claim seems like hyperbolic genre bias, but in breaking down the lengths and pains, Motive has gone to improve the original in every conceivable way.
Neil and I discuss the graphical and sound design overhauls, the inclusion of dialogue for Issac, side questions and lore expansion, weapon redesigns, and more!
(And If you were on the fence about the remake, know the asteroid section from the original is barely a footnote of the experience this time around, which in my opinion, entirely justifies the $70 price tag.) –Jay Krieger
Safe Room is a weekly horror video game discussion podcast with new episodes every Monday on
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After winding down June with discussions of our vey first William Castle film Homicidal (listen) and queer director Roland Emmerich’s summer tentpole Independence Day (listen), we’re heading back to 1981 to check out Joe Dante‘s seminal werewolf film The Howling.
The Howling sees television journalist Karen White (Dee Wallace) attend a psychiatric retreat with her husband Bill (Christopher Stone) after being attacked and traumatized by local serial killer Eddie Quist (Robert Picardo). It isn’t long before Karen realizes that the retreat is actually a secret cult of werewolves, and they’ve already got their sights set on Bill.
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Episode 394: The Howling (1981)
Make note of that smiley face sticker and snag that conveniently-placed jar of acid because we’re talking Joe Dante’s stealth werewolf classic The Howling (1981)!
Join us as we discuss the film’s deviations from its source material before doing a deep dive into this very tongue-in-cheek, self-aware horror film. It honestly feels like a precursor to Scream, in many ways!
Plus: Roger Corman (again!) those incredible special effects, differentiating “color movies” from “movies in color,” and why queer icon Elisabeth Brooks has us going “Marsha, Marsha, Marsha!”
Cross out The Howling!
Coming Up Next: We’re tackling our very first Ken Russell film with a look at his controversial 1984 erotic thriller Crimes of Passion!
P.S. Subscribe to our Patreon for over 508 hours of Patreon content including this month’s new episodes on Terminator 2: Judgment Day, Forbidden Fruits, Saccharine, Evil Dead Burn, an audio commentary on Howling II: Your Sister is a Werewolf (aka Howling II: Stirba – Werewolf Bitch), and the conclusion of our coverage of AMC’s The Vampire Lestat on the Requel Tier.