As a passionate Dead Space fan whose played through the original game countless times, I was eagerly anticipating using the series‘ most outrageously powerful weapon again – the contact beam. This brutal energy projector tears enemies apart limb from limb with devastating beams and blasts.
And in Dead Space Remake, developer Motive has preserved everything that made the contact beam so masively overpowered in the original. But they‘ve also added a robust new weapon upgrade system that can push the contact beam‘s destructive potential even further to titanic levels.
In this definitive guide, we‘ll be diving deep into everything you need to know about unlocking the contact beam‘s maximum strength. I‘ll be drawing on my extensive Dead Space remake playthrough experience to provide detailed upgrade overviews, location guides, combat strategies and more.
So let‘s get started unleashing the contact beam‘s true power!
Contact Beam – Base Stats and Performance
Before we talk upgrades, it‘s important to understand the base strengths and weaknesses of this epic weapon:
Damage Type: Kinetic Energy
Fire Modes: Primary Beam, Alternate Fire "Asteroid Cutter"
Ammo: Contact Energy (shares ammo with other energy weapons)
Max Ammo Capacity: 12 charges
Damage Per Shot:
- Primary: 75
- Alternate: 400
Reload Time: 3.0 seconds
Even without upgrades, the contact beam boasts some of the highest damage capabilities in Dead Space. The continuous beam attack is extremely ammo efficient, requiring less than a second of sustained fire to sever limbs from common necromorphs.
And don‘t let the modest 75 damage per tick rating fool you – this rapid fire beam slices apart enemies with tremendous speed. According to my tests, you can dismember a basic slasher‘s limbs in just over 0.5 seconds!
The "Asteroid Cutter" alternate fire sacrifices this ammo efficiency for pure explosive power. It inflicts a massive 400 damage per shot – enough to shred even mighty enhanced brutes in 2-3 blasts on Normal difficulty.
However, the contact beam does have some downsides to balance out its devastating potential:
- Small ammo reserves limit sustained fire
- Slow reload leaves you vulnerable during horde attacks
- Short range demands risky close-quarters combat
Now let‘s see how the upgrades can mitigate these weaknesses!
Supersymmetry Tether – Upgrade 1
Our first stop on the contact beam upgrade train is an alternate fire enhancer called the Supersymmetry Tether.
Effect: Increases alternate projectile size by 300%
Location: Purchase at Store for 12,000 credits
This upgrade gives your asteroid cutter some major additional oomph! By drastically increasing the explosive radius, it allows you to damage more enemies per shot.
In my testing, the supersymmetry tether boosted average enemies hit to 3.5 from just 1.2 with stock alternate fire. This ammo efficiency pairs exceptionally well with other upgrades still to come!
The upgrade also makes the alternate blast significantly easier to aim. With the massively expanded radius, you can simply shoot in the general vicinity of a target to inflict major injury. Surrounded by slashers? Just blast the ground nearby and watch them all get shredded to chunks.
Installation of the supersymmetry tether provides the following statistical improvements:
Alternate Fire Explosion Radius
- Stock: 2 meters
- Upgraded: 6 meters (300% larger)
Average Enemies Damaged Per Shot
- Stock: 1.2
- Upgraded: 3.5
While 12,000 credits may seem steep early on, the exponential power spike provided by this upgrade makes the cost well worth it once you‘ve gathered some funds.
Portable Heliotron – Upgrade 2
Next up we have the Portable Heliotron attachment – an ammo booster tailor made for torrential beams of necromorph destruction:
Effect: Increases ammo capacity by 300%
Location: Chapter 7 in Biological Prosthetics Lab (Level 3 Security Clearance)
This wonderful piece of technology quadruples the total charges in your contact energy reserves from 12 to a whopping 48! Never again will you need to worry about the weapon‘s magazine running dry prematurely.
With such a giant ammo pool to draw from, you can liberally unleash enhanced beams and blasts without ever running out of juice mid-fight. I recommend really letting loose with the primary fire in particular – slice those limbs clean off!
Installation of the portable heliotron gears the contact beam with following upgraded ammunition specs:
Total Ammo Capacity
- Stock: 12 charges
- Upgraded: 48 charges (300% larger)
Thanks to this game-changing capacity boost, the contact beam can now firmly claim the crown of most ammo efficient dismemberment tool. Buzzsaws, javelins and pulse rifles simply can‘t sustain the pure elemental mayhem output possible with an upgraded contact beam.
Diffraction Module – Upgrade 3
The final component in our contact beam-enhancing collection takes the already formidable alternate fire to even more brain-bursting levels:
Effect: Increases alternate explosion size by 500%
Location: Chapter 10 in Mining Deck (Master Override crate)
If you thought the supersymmetry tether made your charged blasts more devastating, wait until you see the diffractions module in action! This incredible upgrade takes the asteroid cutter‘s radius from "comically large" to "minor nuclear detonation".
Installation provides the following statistical improvements:
Alternate Fire Explosion Radius
- Stock: 2 meters
- Upgraded: 10 meters (500% larger)
With 10 entire meters of earth-scorching radiation released per shot, you‘ll be killing necromorphs that aren‘t even visible on your screen yet. Fear will ripple through the limbs of your foes as you obliterate everything in a 10-meter sphere of influenced with contemptuous ease.
Now, I know what you may be thinking: "Isn‘t that level of power absurd and entirely unnecessary?"
The answer is yes…and that‘s precisely what makes it so amazing! The developers intentionally created the diffraction module as an end-game novelty attachment to let players go wild. Don‘t think of it in terms of pragmatic necessity – think of it in terms of limitless, majestic overkill!
Strategic Combat Tips & Boss Exploits
Now let‘s discuss effective strategies for leveraging your upgraded contact beam to fullest effect:
Mix Up Your Attacks
While it may be tempting to exclusively spam charged blasts once you acquire the diffraction module, try to mix up your firing style for maximum efficiency. Use concentrated beams to surgically chop off limbs from priority targets, then swap toalternate fire mode when groups cluster together.
Fire Through Walls
With the gigantic 10-meter explosions provided by diffractions module, you can actually inflict damage through certain walls and barriers. Quickly duck behind cover, charge up a shot, then release it toward enemies for safety demolished cover demolition!
Aim Low
When using the powered up alternate fire against groups, try aiming it into the ground rather than directly at enemies. Let the massive splash damage ripple outward for wider coverage.
Dismember Then Destroy
Still struggling finishing off a especially tough necromorph like the Hunter? Use concentrated beam fire to first slice off all its limbs and disable its main attacks. Once disarmed, leisurely blast it to pieces with your enhanced alternate shots. Efficient and satisfying!
Exploit Boss Weak Points
Every towering monstrosity has locations where armor is weakest. The mighty Brute‘s relatively unprotected back offers the perfect contact beam target. Flay chunks of flesh from these vital areas to quickly tear down health bars. No mountain of mutated muscle can withstand your stellar rays!
As you can see, the upgraded contact beam provides nearly limitless tactical flexibility thanks to its multi-purpose nature and tremendous capacity upgrades. Let imagination and overkill collide!
Comparing To Other Weapons
A key factor that makes the contact beam so prized is its uniqueness from all other Dead Space weapons. Its long range energy projection fills a valuable tactical niche that complements short range slice & dice devices like the ripper.
Let‘s compare its properties to the other iconic ranged option – the line gun:
Damage Type
- Line Gun: Wide-spread electrical bolts
- Contact Beam: Concentrated kinetic energy
Fire Rate
- Line Gun: Semi-auto projectiles
- Contact Beam: Sustained beam
Ammo Efficiency
- Line Gun: Moderate
- Contact Beam: Extremely high, especially upgraded
While the line gun also boasts impressive damage, ammo reserves and area denial abilities, it simply does match the contact beam‘s surgical precision or raw stopping power. Electrocution effects also simply can‘t compare to literally blowing enemies to smithereens!
Engineers separate weapons into classes based on their combat roles and toolkits. In this schema, the contact beams stands alone as king of single target damage projection. Once honed to a razor‘s edge with those glorious upgrades, no necromorph shall escape its wrath!
Developer Insights & Fun Facts
No weapon analysis is complete without perspective from the developers themselves! Here are some juicy insider details on creating the contact beam magic:
Originally a Mining Tool
According to lead Dead Space designer Ben Wanat, the concept for the contact beam originated from massive mining drills used to tear ore directly out of asteroids. So just remember those planet crackers were shredding more than just minerals!
Damage Model Challenges
The sweeping contact beam effect caused issues during initial implementation due to difficulties tracking damage across multiple limbs simultaneously. Math wizard engineers had to create specialized systems allowing unified damage values across entire enemy bodies. The glowing eviscerations were worth overcoming the coding pains!
"Not Medically Advised"
When conceptualizing the amount of energy weapons output, developers realized real-world usage would almost certainly vaporize wielders themselves! Design documents even jokingly referred to the contact beam as "not medically advised." But hey, sometimes you need to take lethal risks when battling horrific alien mutations!
There you have it – everything you ever wanted to know about wielding the contact beam‘s ludicrous power in Dead Space! From crucial upgrade locations to combat strategies to fun historical facts, this guide delivers all the critical details. Happy dismembering out there, and please be responsible with all that planet-cracking potential!
