Overview:
-Estimated achievement difficulty: 5/10
-Offline: 48 (1000GS)
-Online: 0
-Approximate amount of time to 1000g: 20-25 hours
-Minimum number of playthroughs needed: 2.5
-Number of missable achievements: 6
-Glitched achievements: No
-Do cheat codes disable achievements?: No

Welcome to the Dead Space Achievement Road Map. Dead Space is a third person shooter/survival horror game, borrowing many of the best elements of games like Resident Evil 4 and Bioshock to make for an excellent immersive, atmospheric shooter that is authentically scary. You are Issac Clark, an engineer called to repair the damaged planet-racking chisp USG Ishimura. But when you arrive on board, you realize that something is deadly wrong...

There are 49 achievements for Dead Space, 48 of which can be acquired on any difficulty. It will require at least 2 and a half plays to get all of them. Beating the game on any difficulty unlocks "Impossible" difficulty, which you have to beat to get the Epic Tier 3 Engineer achievement. You will also have to start a new game+ on one of your cleared files in order to fully upgrade all items for the Maxed Out achievement, as it is impossible to get enough power nodes to do so in one playthrough. It takes about 10 -12 hours to beat the game the first time through, and about 8 hours for a second time through on impossible. How far you have to play on a new game + in order to get Maxed Out depends on how much you upgraded your equipment on the original playthrough for that file. Dead Space isn't a very difficult game, and you can acquire the achievements on easy, so most of it isn't very hard. Impossible may be a bit of a challenge for some, but it isn't difficult at all compared to some other games like the Call of Duty series or Gears of War. Don't Get Cocky, Kid can also be quite frustrating. You can also use cheats to help you with the achievements - the money and power node cheats can only be used once per playthrough, and are very helpful in getting Maxed Out. The stasis cheat is a lifesaver on Impossible difficulty.

Cheats can be found here

Step 1: Easy/Medium Playthrough

On your first playthrough, set the difficulty to Easy or Medium. Easy obviously is easier and goes by quicker, and you'll get more money and items to sell so you can potentially get Maxed Out quicker. However, Easy is rediculously simple, and I recommend you play on Medium as it'll be a better and scarier experience. Just play through normally, and explore around as much as possible to fnd as much money and items as possible. I recommend you use the Plasma Cutter, Assault Rifle, and Ripper as your main weapons, though the Line Gun is also OK. Upgrade your gun's DAMAGE first. You will also want to upgrade your rig's AIR capacity before chapter 4 - after that, don't upgrade AIR anymore. Don't bother upgrading your STASIS or KINESIS. Buy upgraded suits from the store as soon as you can - don't worry too much about upgrading your Rig's health, the higher level suits will help with that. Also, keep your eyes out for data logs lying around. Also make sure you get all schematics (they appear as dark purple dots). You should easily get Legend Teller (collecting 150 logs) in Chapter 11 or 12 without having to resort to a guide. You'll also want to get all the 30 weapon kill achievements - you'll have all guns by the end of chapter 5. I recommend you focus on just 2 weapons at a time. Kills don't count if you die or reload your game. You should get most of the achievemnts, including all the secret ones, as you play. Be sure to use every money/node cheat before you finish your first playthrough - the extra 18,000 and 7 nodes will help with Maxed Out.

Missable Achievements
Ragdoll Check - Gravity panels are where there is an upwards streaming current of bluish particles coming from the floor. They are found only in Chapters 4 and 9.
Playing Catch - Brutes are found in Chapters 4, 5, and 9. The Leviathan is in Chapter 6.
Don't Get Cocky, Kid - The asteroid defense cannon sequence is towards the end of Chapter 4. Save right before you get on the cannon, and keep reloading your game if you fail until you get it. You always start with 85% shield strength on every difficulty. It can be difficult, but keep trying. Don't let the cannon overheat, always get the big, fast asteroids first, and keep focused. I also found it helpful to turn up the brightness temporarily so you can see the asteroids earlier.
Slugger - You fight the Slug Boss in Chapter 8.
Crackshot - The shooting gallery is in Chapter 9.
Zero-G Baller - Zero-G Basketball is in Chapter 10.
There's Always Peng! - The Peng Treasure is in Chapter 11, in the shuttle bay. Look to the achievement guide for details on it's exact location.

 

By the end of the first playthrough, you should have 45/48 achievements (all except for Maxed Out, One Gun, and Epic Tier 3 Engineer) for 735GS.

Step 2 - Impossible & One Gun

After you clear the game once, you will be able to start a new game on impossible difficulty. In order to get Epic Tier 3 Engineer, you must beat the game on Impossible difficulty (NOT hard). For One Gun, you have to beat the game using only your Plasma Cutter. You cannot fire any other gun - you can have them in your inventory or safe and you can equip them - just don't ever fire them. To be safe, don't even buy any other guns if you start a new game on Impossible for One Gun. I recommend you go for both on the same playthrough. Impossible is not too difficult, even if you use the Plasma Cutter, which is actually a very good gun, especially when upgraded. On Impossible, enemies take more hits to kill, move faster, do more damage to you, and you get less money/items.

Here are some tips for Impossible difficulty:
-Always go for the limbs. Aim for the crotch - if they're stasised, sometimes it will sever both legs and kill them right away instead of bringing them to the crawling stage.
-Stasis is your friend. Use it whenever possible. Have the stasis cheat memorized. If your struggling, try using it on every enemy and refilling your stasis with the cheat in between encounters.
-Conserve ammo whenever possible. Use stasis and curb stomp enemies when you've cut their legs off. This is critical earlier on - later, ammo won't be as much of a problem.
-Upgrade! I recommend you focus on upgrading your DAMAGE first - it actually makes a huge difference in the amount of shots it takes to kill necromorphs, and will reduce the amount of ammo you use. By the time you fully upgrade the Plasma Cutter's damage, it will take 2 shots to the legs and 1 or 2 to an arm to kill a standard necromorph. Enemies will be dropping more ammo (6 per drop) than it takes to kill them.

Step 3 - Maxed Out

In order to get Maxed Out, you must fully upgrade all 6 guns, your Rig, Stasis, and Kinesis. You must have all fully upgraded guns in your inventory or safe at once - you cannot sell them. You upgrade your equipment using power nodes at work benches. You just have to get all upgrades on everything - you do not have to fill in all "blank" spots with power nodes, so you should be able to leave some empty in some guns. You will find power nodes as you go on throughout the game, and can buy them for 10,000 credits. It takes 155 power nodes to fully upgrade everything.

You cannot get enough power nodes to fully upgrade everything in one playthrough. However, you can start a "new game +" on the same difficulty after you've beaten the game. Simply start a new game by loading your finished Easy/Medium game. All of your guns, upgrades, money, nodes, inventory, and items in your safe will carry over. Just keep playing on this new game + until you get enough nodes to fully upgrade everything. Sell all unnecessary items and use the money to buy power nodes. Also use the cheats that give you money and nodes. Also, if you haven't gotten Butcher yet, your dismemberments do carry over onto a new game +.

Conclusion


There you go - 2 and a bit playthroughs to get the full 1000 GS. Dead Space is truly an awesome game - one of the sleeper hits of 2008 - and is definitely worth more than one playthrough (and it's still scary the second time through). It's not to difficult or time-consuming - hope you had fun and got the pants scared off you!

[x360a would like to thank -ToXiN- for this road map]

Dead Space Achievement Guide

Printable Guide
Show completed achievements
Show secret achievements

There are 48 achievements with a total of 1000 points

  • Complete Chapter 1 on any difficulty setting

    After heading back to the tram save and go to mission 2. It will unlock then.

  • Complete Chapter 2 on any difficulty setting

    After heading back to the tram, save and go to mission 3. It will unlock then.

  • Complete Chapter 3 on any difficulty setting

    After heading back to the tram, save and go to mission 4. It will unlock then.

  • Complete Chapter 4 on any difficulty setting

    After heading back to the tram, save and go to mission 5. It will unlock then.

  • Complete Chapter 5 on any difficulty setting

    After heading back to the tram, save and go to mission 6. It will unlock then.

  • Complete Chapter 6 on any difficulty setting

    After heading back to the tram, save and go to mission 7. It will unlock then.

  • S.O.S.

     

    20

    Complete Chapter 7 on any difficulty setting

    After heading back to the tram, save and go to mission 8. It will unlock then.

  • Complete Chapter 8 on any difficulty setting

    After heading back to the tram, save and go to mission 9. It will unlock then.

  • Complete Chapter 9 on any difficulty setting

    After heading back to the tram, save and go to mission 10. It will unlock then.

  • Complete Chapter 10 on any difficulty setting

    After heading back to the tram, save and go to mission 11. It will unlock then.

  • Complete Chapter 11 on any difficulty setting

    Get on the ship and you'll be awarded the achievement after the cutscene.

  • Exodus

     

    20

    Complete Chapter 12 on any difficulty setting

    Head back to the ship after the battle and you'll be awarded with the achievement after the cutscene triggers.

  • Complete the game on the hardest difficulty setting

    Beat the game on any difficulty and you will unlock 'impossible' mode. You must beat it on impossible to receive this achievement. Like the name implies it is very hard. Always make use of every possible item you find. If you can't carry anymore, head back to the bank to make a spot for it, do not waste med packs. Sell air canisters, upgrade only what you need i.e. suit HP, air, and the only gun you use. Save as often as possible. Conserve as much ammo as possible - try shooting out the legs and crushing their heads with your foot to save ammo. Use Stasis and the Stasis cheat, unless you don't want to cheat. It's up to you. It does not effect achievements - cheats are in the FAQ.

    Note: You will unlock impossible mode if you beat easy, as soon as you start the game on impossible, save it otherwise it will disappear and you will need to beat the game on another difficulty to unlock it again.

  • Complete the game on any difficulty setting

    Beat the game on any difficulty and bam it unlocks.

  • Store 25 Items in the Safe

    If your playing on easy, put everything in the bank except for ammo for one gun you like, and one or two med packs. Keep finding anything you can and then go to the store and move each item from your inventory to the bank. Keep doing this throughout the playthrough and you'll get it in no time.

  • Collect 75 Logs

    See "Legend Teller."

  • Collect 150 Logs

    At first I thought I was going to have a huge problem with this and have to go and find every one of them, but I actually got both achievements just going through the game once. You will come across text messages, audio logs, and video messages, just keep looking in every room and as you walk; you will come across many of them. You can miss 18 throughout the entire game meaning you do not need every single one, so don't fret if you miss one or two. There are 168 in total. You will also get a log for each time somebody talks to you and tells you what to do.

  • Own every Weapon in the game

    Look for all the credit points you can find. Sell semiconductors and save up your money for each gun. You will need 55,000 credits for all the guns.

  • Complete Level 6 in Zero-G Basketball

    On level 10 you will come to a mini-game on a Zero G Basketball court. You must beat the high score or tie it to move on to the next level. All I did was start the game, jump to the very front wooden platform, shoot 20 goals at level 1, wait, at level 2 shoot 21 and wait, level 3 shoot 22, wait, level 4 shoot 23, and so on until level 6. Complete that level and you will unlock this achievement. Don't bother getting multipliers.

  • Collect 8 schematics

    Sometimes these objects will have a dark blue glow around them. Schematics are like blueprints for armor and weapons, and they allow you to buy them at the store or upgrade your suit. There is a schematic for 6 levels of suits and 6 guns. You should get this early in the game.

  • Shoot 50 objects using Kinesis

    This is very easy to do. Find a small object and hold and press to grab it with Kinesis and then press the to shoot it. Repeat 50 times.

  • Dismember 20 Limbs

    See "Butcher."

  • Dismember 500 Limbs

    See "Butcher."

  • Dismember 1000 Limbs

    Shoot for the head, arms or legs of aliens, after they're dead run to their body and press and stomp off every limb until you just have the body left. Head, arms, and legs can come off. You can do this on normal dead bodies too. Rinse and repeat on anything and everything you down or come across.

  • Freeze

     

    15

    Use Stasis on 50 enemies

    Every time you see an enemy hold , aim at it and press . It will slow it down, then just kill it, find another, do the same thing. Make sure to keep your Stasis gauge full, note, it will drain very fast when using it a lot. Use cheats to keep it filled if you like. They do not affect any achievements.

  • Achieve a perfect score in the Shooting Gallery

    You will come across the Shooting Gallery in level 9. Use the Plasma Cutter and have it on vertical firing mode. The goal here is to shoot all the red guys as fast as possible (if you miss a red guy, you lose) and without shooting a single blue guy. It takes a little bit of practice but it's pretty easy once you get the hang of it. You will get good prizes too, so it's worth doing for more than just the achievement.

    Picture below:

  • Zero-G Jump over 100 times

    Zero G rooms will be marked and it will tell you when you're in one. Make sure you don't have an oxygen timer going as it'll make things ten times harder. Just keep jumping from wall-to-wall and you will get this. There are many spots to Zero G Jump throughout the game.

  • Beat the game using only the Plasma Cutter

    This can be done in a good 7-8 hour playthrough on easy. Make sure you upgrade the Plasma Cutter all the way. It will help a lot. Stock up on nothing but ammo for the Plasma Cutter and a few med packs. Sell everything else. If you run out of ammo in a boss fight, I hate to break it to you, you're screwed.

  • Kill at least 30 enemies with a melee attack

    This one is pretty easy. Shoot out the legs of an alien and when it starts walking with its arms, run up to it and press and you will obliterate it with your boot and it will die. Do this 29 more times and you'll unlock the achievement.

  • Upgrade all weapons and equipment

    This achievement is a pain. Always look for blue and yellow cases on the wall, each one has a power node guaranteed. Do not sell your weapons, you will lose all upgrades you bought for them if you do - I had to find that out the hard way after wasting 35 nodes on them. You will need to do multiple playthroughs on the same save. You can buy power nodes at the store for 10,000 credits each too, so be sure to save up your money. Concentrate on stuff you need first then move on to weapons you don't use after. When you want to upgrade, go up to a work bench and press , then select what you want to upgrade and start popping in power nodes for each upgrade slot. 155 Power nodes are needed in total. You do not have to waste them on the empty slots. Try and go around them.

  • Force an enemy into a Gravity Panel 5 times

    During chapter 4 you will come to a room with many panels that are missing, they have blue lines coming from them. Do not step on them as it will instantly kill you. You need to get monsters on them and kill them with it, and you will get the achievement. To do this have your Stasis gauge full, hit them with Stasis and then push them by walking into them with your body until they fly up and die. Make sure you don't go with them otherwise you die. You should have just enough enemies, if you do happen to run out and still don't have the achievement, there will be a few more panels on chapter 9.

  • Spend 300,000 credits at the store

    This achievement is cumulative, which means you do not have to save up to 300,000 credits and spend it all at once. You can keep spending money with whatever amount you have and when it adds up to 300,000 it will unlock.

  • Kill 30 enemies with the Contact Beam

    If you're going through on easy, all of the weapon achievements are very simple. Most enemies die in one hit. With this gun you need to press and hold to charge it up and then let it go. Enemies get obliterated by it. Make sure to stock up on ammo for each gun, then once you get it, store the gun in your safe and buy ammo for the next gun. Repeat for every gun achievement.

  • Kill 30 enemies with the Ripper

    A very fun gun, which shoots a spinning saw blade out that you can control and chop up limbs with. Stock up on saw blades for this as and when you can.

  • Kill 30 enemies with the Plasma Cutter

    This is your starting weapon, surprisingly one of the best in the game. Depending on how many guns you're carrying, if you're just carrying one gun you will get a lot of ammo for that gun. Make sure to make use of the  while holding the (alt firing modes) when needed.

  • Pusher

     

    10

    Kill 30 enemies with the Force Gun

    Looks a lot like the Half Life Gravity Gun and works a lot like it too, but you can pick up objects with it. Works best up close.

  • Kill 30 enemies with the Flamethrower

    The flamethrower will require a lot of ammo. You will burn through a canister of fuel for one guy. Aim for the arms or legs and make sure to keep plenty of fuel tanks for it.

  • Kill 30 enemies with the Pulse Rifle

    Aim for the legs and arms. If you get surrounded by enemies press and hold and then hold   which means you will get on one knee and you will hold the gun up shooting all around you. It's the definition of awesome.

  • Kill 30 enemies with the Line Gun

    Aim for the shoulders and it should just about kill every small monster in 1 hit. Keep only one weapon in your weapon slots meaning you can hold lots of ammo.

  • Find the Peng Treasure

    You can find this on chapter 11, in between the two walkways. It's an award, probably an easter egg from the developer. Anyway, just grab it with Kinesis and pick it up. It can be sold at the store for 30,000 credits!

    From Sgt Dex Grif: "Peng's Treasure is located directly to your right as you exit the ship on chapter 1. Unfortunately, it's also out of reach. When you come back here in chapter 11, you will have Kinesis to grab it with."

    Picture of it:

 

Secret achievements

  • Kill the Leviathan

    You will come across the Leviathan at the end of chapter 6. 

    He is a very huge boss. At the very beginning of the battle white worm like things will shoot out from underneath it, quickly shoot the yellow parts of them to kill them. After all 3 are dead, it will shoot exploding rocks at you from the middle of its mouth, while its' shooting catch them with Kinesis and shoot them back for the 'Playing Catch' achievement. After you get it just shoot them before they leave his mouth and it will hurt him more. Keep shooting them and it's dead. I finished it in under 2 minutes on easy.

  • Kill a Brute

    During the game you will face many of these. The Line Gun is very good against them. Try and shoot them between the shoulder blades. Other times, if you shoot them enough they will lay down and get tired and then you can go around behind them and shoot their back until they die.

  • Kill the Hive Mind

    This boss is the size of one of Resistance 2's bosses. It's pretty epic. Good thing it's easy though. When you start the battle start strafing left and right dodging the tentacles that come at you. First, aim for the 5 yellow blobs on top and shoot all those, once those are gone shoot the ones in his rib cage. After they're all gone it's dead, simple as that.

  • Catch a Brute or Leviathan Pod using Kinesis

    From Sgt Dex Grif: "I've never had a brute shoot at me, personally, so I did this during the Leviathan battle in chapter 6. Wait until the mouth starts spitting pods at you, grab it with Kinesis, and shoot it back."


    From EternalDamntion: "When you're facing a brute, shoot off its shoulder and it will start launching pods from it, grab them with Kinesis and send them back at it."

     

  • Survive the ADS Cannon with over 50% shield strength remaining

    As soon as you cross the big cap where the asteroids are coming at you, have the door close and save right before you get on the gun. If you don't save and go below 50% shield strength on the gun you will not get the achievement. I got this achievement with 77 shield remaming. What you need to do is focus on the big rocks and the really fast ones. Fire both guns at the same time - it will kill the big rocks a lot faster. Remember that the sequence isn't scripted so it will be different every time. It took me about 3-4 times and I finally got an easy sequence. If it goes to 49, quit out and load again and you will be right next to the gun for another try. Happy rock shooting!

    From: Sgt Dex Grif: "This is the segment on chapter 4 where you have to shoot down the asteroids before they hit the ship and it's pretty difficult. Remember you have two guns, and you can hold down both triggers, but the guns will overheat. Try to only concentrate on the ones headed straight for you and the huge ones that split. I noticed that some of the asteroids will fly off screen and won't damage you. Keep an eye out for them."

  • Escape from a Lurker's grab attack 10 times

    Upgrade your armor to the max amount of HP you can get, get a few medic packs and then go on the hunt for Lurkers. They look like little babies who have 3 little tentacles that come out of their back. Run up next to them and let them lunge and attack you. They should start stabbing your back/neck. Quickly tap A and get them off of you. Repeat 9 times.
  • Kill the Slug Boss with more than 50% shield strength remaining

    When you get to the Slug Boss, the one that's covering up the Array. Right before you get on the gun, go to the save point so you can restart if you mess up. After you've saved, as soon as you get on the gun and start shooting, aim for the middle left tentacle. Press and at the same time really fast, but don't overheat the guns. You should be able to kill it pretty fast. After that, take your time. Don't let the shields go underneath 50% and if you mess up, just quit and load again.

  • Kill the Slug Boss

    When you get to the canon, shoot it once, it will then raise up 4 big tentacles that'll start throwing junk at you. If enough of it hits the ship it will blow up and die, so you need to make sure you shoot it before it hits the ship. Look at "Slugger" for an easy way to get this achievement and the "Slugger" achievement at the same time.

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