The Dead Space remake is here, serving as an enhanced version of the 2008 original. Much like the first installment, the remake is tough, but thankfully, you’re able to upgrade your gear, giving you a fighting chance. But with so many weapons, and so few upgrade resources, it’s easy to get overwhelmed. These are essential upgrade tips along with a list of weapons you should prioritize leveling first in Dead Space.

Upgrade tips

Upgrade a few items

Upgrading your gear is an essential part of Dead Space. But even if you’re familiar with the original, you’ll lack the credits and nodes on your first run to upgrade every single item the game has to offer. With this in mind, it’s best to fully upgrade a handful of weapons first, rather than spending credits and nodes on many firearms. You’ll get much more out of two or three powerful weapons than you will with five or six mediocre ones.

Upgrade capacity for a full clip

If you upgrade a weapon’s capacity, it will give you a full clip, so it’s best to make sure you completely empty the firearm before you upgrade it. This is to maximize your ammo count, which can be scarce depending on your play style and luck.

Sell unwanted items for nodes

Don’t hold onto that ammo for weapons you aren’t going to use. Instead, sell the associated upgrade materials and ammo to rack up enough credits for nodes. Remember, nodes are resources used to upgrade your suit and weapons, so you’ll want to have as many as possible on hand.

Stasis is your friend

Don’t forget to use Kinesis and Stasis when possible. All throughout the USG Ishimura are Stasis recharge stations that refill your Stasis ability to max, without having to spend credits to do so. Using Stasis/Kenesis preserves ammo, which indirectly saves credits, allowing you to spend more currency on nodes.

Plan your upgrade path

You don’t have to unlock every single weapon upgrade for it to be useful. As part of a weapon’s upgrade path, you can see enhancements ahead of time, allowing you to prioritize certain unlocks before others. So, it’s best to focus on damage and ammo capacity first, while other upgrades such as reload speed can be unlocked later. With this in mind, try to prioritize damage and capacity when possible, which will require you to plan according to the upgrade path.

What to upgrade first

All the weapons Dead Space has to offer are effective in their own ways. But given the limited upgrade materials and credits, it’s not feasible to max-level each weapon you come across. Instead, focus on a few weapons to make the most out of your upgrade materials. Thankfully, upgrades carry over into New Game Plus.

4. Plasma Cutter

Of course, the game’s starting weapon, the iconic Plasma Cutter is a top choice. You can upgrade it to become quite powerful, and it’s especially useful for dismembering your enemy’s limbs (as its name suggests). This is invaluable, as it’ll allow you to slow enemies and save ammo.

The other factor is that there’s a trophy/achievement called “One Gun” for only using the Plasma Cutter throughout the game’s duration. If you’re going for this achievement, you’ll want to pour all your upgrade resources into the Plasma Cutter at first.

3. Pulse Rifle

While the base damage for the Pulse Rifle leaves a lot to be desired, it actually becomes a powerhouse if you spend enough nodes to upgrade it. It’s great for long-range and works well for staggering your foes thanks to its rate of fire. Its grenade launcher alt-fire option is also a powerful tool you should be aware of, as it dishes out lots of damage at once.

2. Line Gun

The Line Gun is great for crowd control. This weapon works best when facing off against hordes of Necromorphs, allowing you to maximize your ammo count with fewer shots. You can even use the weapon’s alt-fire option to place traps around you, which comes in handy during sections when you’re stuck in a particular room.

1. Force Gun

Similar to the Line Gun, the Force Gun works best in larger groups, thanks to its powerful blast. It actually functions a lot like a shotgun, and works best in close quarters. While it doesn’t necessarily deal a lot of damage (especially from afar), it knocks enemies back, allowing you to escape, swap to another weapon, or heal.

Dead Space is available for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC now.