What I'm playing this weekend: Dead Space

Take a dash of "Alien," a pinch of "The Shining," and a (bloody) teaspoon of "Minority Report," and you get "Dead Space," one of the creepiest, most hypnotic, and jump-out-of-your-seat scariest sci-fi games ever made.

Yeah, I know—"Gears of War 2" just came out today, and it'll be all the rage this weekend. But for me, at least, Marcus Fenix and his gun-slinging buddies will have to wait. "Dead Space" has me by the throat.

Available for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360 (I'm playing the 360 version), "Dead Space" starts like many a sci-fi horror movie: A deep-space mining ship (the USG Ishimura) has gone ominously quiet, and you (Issac Clarke) and a small band of engineers and rescue-techs have been sent to investigate.

Of course, within minutes of boarding the eerily quiet Ishimura, it's clear that we're not just talking a blown gasket. Blood is everywhere, rotting corpses are strewn left and right, and swarms of flies buzz around the carrion. Not good. And then, the monsters start coming: Man-sized things that wiggle on the floor, skitter around on spider-like legs, and attack with fearsome pincers. Shooting them in the torso doesn't do any good; only dismemberment seems to work, and that can be a little tricky given their stick-like arms and legs.

Sounds pretty typical, I know, but "Dead Space" is a triumph of spooky, atmospheric visual and audio design, not to mention seamless gameplay.

Indeed, playing "Dead Space" is like walking into a game version of "Alien," right down to the dark, creepy hallways, the unnerving voice of the ship's computer (not clichéd this time, for some reason), the steam and flashing lights, the twirling shadows that might (or might not) be something in the corner, waiting to pounce on you.

That's the "Alien" part; then there's the music, a cross between the soundtracks of "Alien" and "The Shining," particularly the rapidly scraping, squeaking violins that have never failed (so far, at least) to send shivers down my spine. And then there's the sounds: The bumps, squeaks, muted cries, and far-off whispers (or are they?) that end up making you very, very jumpy.

As for the "Minority Report" aspect: Instead of the standard, persistent displays around the edges of the screen that show you your available ammo, health, etc., you can pull up floating status screens that hover before you in mid-air, "Minority Report" style. You can even move your third-person camera around and behind the displays, and when you're done, the screens disappear, leaving you with nothing to look at but the gloomy innards of the Ishimura. Awesome.

Even better, "Dead Space" throws in plenty of puzzles while keeping the frustration factor (I'm looking at you, "Star Wars: The Force Unleashed") to a minimum. It's always clear where you need to go and what you're supposed to do; if you ever get disoriented, you can activate a blue beam of light that points you toward your next objective.

Whatever you do, don't play "Dead Space" if you don't like scares. As other reviewers have noted, the jumps in the game come early and often, but not too often—just enough to keep you on the edge (or flying off of) your seat.

I've also found that "Dead Space" is at its creepy best when playing alone. In the dark.

So, tell us: What games will you be playing this weekend?