It has a slight edge in gameplay terms just from simple refinement, but I think the Ishimura a far stronger character than the Sprawl, the original much scarier, case in point being The Hunter and Doctor Challus Mercer- that frankly neither Tiedemann or Danik hold a candle to.
Isaac, Stross, and Ellie are better characters than Kendra and Hammond though in terms of "friendlies" -but Doctor Kyne and Mercer and the logs you find onboard the Ishimura and that environmental storytelling I find so much stronger, and that sense of paranoia stronger.
And that's what grips me most in terms of survival horror storytelling, not that I can't appreciate a well told plot but... although I thought the Isaac and Nicole stuff in DS2 amazing and shocking as a teenager, nowadays I find it incredibly one note overall and I straight up prefer the original actress, the log was much better performed in the original one.
It has a Silent Hill 2 like quality to it, where you know something's amiss immediately, and when you find out what you are left wondering if anything was the way it really was or was that just Isaac's perception?
Whilst in DS2 and DS Remake, Tanya Clarke sounds mildly bummed that her car broke down, an extremely dull performance thus far.
And a more straightforward take on mental illness that's not as truthful, you don't just get to a cathartic point and get over it.
