Dead Space is a perfect example of how I like the survival horror genre. Creepy at some parts, but overall not too spooky, so I know that the games entire purpose is not just to scare me.
The innovative weaponry in the game (only one "weapon" actually is supposed to be one) certainly adds to the game. The game would not nearly be as fun with ordinary point and shoot weaponry. The idea of dismembering the enemies to not only do extra damage but slow them down, is phenomenal fun. I mean, who gets tired of shooting people's limbs off.
The story is pretty good, going outside of the normal genre of sci-fi horror and getting some interesting twists and turns throughout it.
The only problems this game suffers from is some slight problems during the non-normal gameplay sections, such as a section where the player must use a cannon to shoot asteroids manually. Also, the amount of backtracking is incredible, and while it fits within the context of the story, it is still tedious at times, although the developers did do a decent job of mixing it up a tad.
Even with these problems, I would definitely suggest getting this game.
9.0 out of 10. (I don't really like the stars thing. Some people I know seem to think 4.5 out of 5 stars is somehow different, other than being less specific, than 9 out of 10....)